Sermon Notes



Sermon Notes

Scripture: John 14:15-21, Acts 17:22-31

Context: Jesus promising the gift of the Holy Spirit, Paul “unknown god” to Romans

Title: What’s more desirable than fame and fortune?

Location: St. Matthias Evangelical Lutheran Church

Date: 5/17/2020

Grace to you and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.

(Phil. 1:2)

What kind of a life

do we hope to live?

Some of the things

that are most sought after

in our society are…

wealth, fame, popularity, and power.

And at first,

those things might sound superficial and worldly.

But rather than villainize those things,

if we look a little deeper,

we’ll see that what people really want

is a little different

than what meets the eye.

For most people…

Wealth & Material Success

doesn’t necessarily mean

owning a yacht and

living in a mansion in Beverly Hills.

It means

having the things they need, and

not worrying about their finances.

For most people,

Popularity and Fame

aren’t usually about

signing autographs and

having your picture on the cover of a magazine.

It’s usually more about wanting

people to respect you, and

authentically like you for who you really are.

And having Power

isn’t usually about

becoming the CEO of a major corporation.

It’s usually more about

having autonomy,

the ability to be your genuine self,

to make your own choices, and

to not be controlled by someone else.

(Relevant Questions)

So if that’s the case,

then what’s so wrong with wanting

wealth, fame, popularity, and power…

in those ways?

(Pause)

(Thesis)

And the simple answer is…

nothing.

But here’s the catch…

Here’s the thing that no one tells you…

(Pause)

you already have

all those things.

And you won’t find

any of them

by running after

wealth, fame, popularity, or power.

That’s the truth.

(Transition)

But why take my word for it?

I’m a pastor.

Isn’t that what I’m supposed to say?

And why just take God’s word for it?

Maybe He’s just trying to keep you from being too happy.

Or maybe there’s times where

you’re not sure that He even exists.

Why not

ask those who have

wealth, fame, popularity, and power, and

see what they have to say?

(( ))

There’s a 7 minute YouTube video

called “Celebrities Speak Out On Fame & Materialism”.

I’d be happy to share the link with you.

And in that video,

13 celebrities with immense

wealth, fame, popularity, and power

talk about their lives.

And here’s a small sample

of what they had to say…

(1)

Singer and songwriter Alanis Morissette said…

I thought that everything would be helped, and healed, and soothed by fame.

If I get famous, I’ll be less lonely, I’ll be understood, and I’ll be loved.

And that love will go in and heal any of the broken parts (of me).

Then I came to see that the fame got to be quite isolating.

In her own words…

like the rest of us,

she wanted to be

less lonely, understood, and loved, and

for the broken parts of her to be healed by that love.

And she was hoping that fame

would give that to her.

But it actually gave her the opposite.

(2)

Legendary member of the Beatles, John Lennon, said…

As a Beatle, we made it.

And there was nothing to do.

We had money. We had fame. And there was no joy.

And he even worked with David Bowie on

creating a song about

how destructive fame is.

(3)

Famous guitarist Eric Clapton said…

I had everything a man could want.

I was a millionaire.

I had beautiful women in my life.

I had cars, a house, a solid gold career, and a future.

And yet, on a daily basis, I wanted to commit suicide.

(4)

Fashion model Essena O’Neill said…

I was surrounded by

all this wealth, and

all this fame, and

all this power.

And yet, the people I was with were all miserable, and

I had never been more miserable.

(5)

And actress Cameron Diaz said…

If you’re looking for fame to define you,

then you’ll never be happy.

And you’ll always be searching for happiness, and

you’ll never find it in fame.

(Commentary)

Each of these persons experienced something that

Dr. Steven Covey talked about in his bestselling book First Things First.

They were so busy climbing the ladder of success,

that when they got to the top,

they found out that

the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall.

They thought that chasing after wealth, fame, popularity, and power

would make them happy.

But it didn’t.

(Reflection)

The purpose of hearing their words isn’t

to put down these celebrities, or

to demean them in any way.

In fact, it’s just the opposite.

You might not like some of the celebrities that were mentioned.

You might even think that some of them aren’t that intelligent.

But what we can agree on is this…

they all have wealth, fame, popularity, and power, and

none of them found joy in any of it.

In today’s gospel,

Jesus says…

I will not leave you orphaned.

I am coming to you.

And He promises to give us

the gift of the Holy Spirit.

And through the gift of the Holy Spirit,

Jesus is

with us, and

in us, and

here to guide us and lead us.

And Jesus comes to us…

even when we’re selfish and sinful.

even when the world turns against us.

even when we lose all the things that we thought were so important.

And it’s in those moments,

that God reminds us …

that He loves us for who we are, because we’re His children, and

we’re accepted and perfect just the way we are,

because we’re made in God’s image, and

we don’t need to look for joy in things like

wealth, fame, popularity, or power,

because as we heard in today’s first lesson,

joy is found in searching for God… and

God allowing us to find Him, and

teaching us

what a joyful life really, truthfully looks like.

(Conclusion)

We all want

to have the things we need, and

not to have to worry about our finances.

We all want

to be respected, and

authentically loved for who we really are.

And we all want

autonomy,

to make our own choices, and

to not be controlled by other people.

And according to the celebrities

we just heard from…

we won’t find

any of that

by searching for

wealth, fame, popularity, or power.

But when we search for God,

we’ll find that

we already have it.

Because God already

abundantly provides more than what we need.

And we don’t need to look for joy in things like

wealth, fame, popularity, or power.

God has something much more valuable to offer.

God gives us

the gift of His Holy Spirit, and

the gifts of joy and peace

that can only come from God Himself.

And it’s for that amazing gift,

that we say together…

Thanks be to God.

Amen.

(6:33)

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