On each Sunday in Lent we have heard Gospel stories, mostly from John's gospel. John carefully chose and told the stories so that we would understand the importance of Jesus Christ in our lives, the life of the church and the life of the whole world.

In the story of the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus is the one who can provide living water, water that will be a fountain of life in every person who drinks it.

In the story of the man who was born blind, Jesus is the light of the world, who can open our eyes to the glory of God and make our lives shine with God's love and hope.

Today, in the story of Lazarus, we hear how even those who are dead can hear the voice of God and can be set free to live a new life. Lazarus was really dead, four days in the tomb and his body was already starting to decompose. Yet he still heard Jesus' voice and was brought back to life. The message is simple - there is no one who cannot be saved by the love of God. It does not matter how rotten and stinking our lives may be; the life of Christ can reach us and make us whole and healthy.

This message of hope is for all people, the bad, the lonely and the lost, and it is for good people, too. People like us, who are not perfect, for no one is perfect, but we are not particularly evil either. People who live good lives also need the light and life of Christ, to make good things better. And it is important for us, people of the church, to hear the message for ourselves and to pass the good news on to others. In this way, we grow in faith and the church grows as well and eventually the world will be changed by the light of Christ and the love of God.

Now the church is the tool which God uses to change the world, and we are the workers chosen by God. Just as a skilled carpenter or electrician needs to know how to use the tools of the trade, so Christians need to know how to use the church in the service of God.

I have already mentioned a few things which are important for us, the need to include children and to teach them how to worship, the need to meet in small groups to care for each other and to learn our faith, the need to tell our friends the good news we have, and the need to have leaders who encourage and build us up.

There are many other things to consider, things like the way we worship and the way we teach newcomers, but I would like to say a few words about money today.

Money is very important in our lives and the life our community. For many people, companies and governments, money is the bottom line, the reason behind all their activity. Their question is not, will this produce peace, justice and reconciliation, no, they ask only "How much money will I make?"

Jesus knows that money is important - many of his stories and parables are about money, the story of Zacchaeus, the dishonest tax collector, the story of the rich young ruler, and the story of the widow who put two small copper coins into the temple treasury. Jesus understood money as a good servant, but a dangerous master. Jesus said, "You cannot serve God and money" and St Paul warned people saying, "Love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains." On the other hand, Jesus taught that money can be used for the purposes of God, and should be used that way. In Luke's gospel, chapter 16, Jesus advised his disciples to use money to make friends, and to be faithful in dealing with money. "Only then," he said, "will you be entrusted with the true riches of the kingdom of heaven." It is an important and Godly thing to be a good steward of money.

We try, in this parish, to be good stewards of money. We make sure that our treasurer is skilful and honest and we appoint an auditor to make sure that we don't make mistakes. The wardens and parish council look for the best advice in using money and we commit our decisions to God in prayer.

The Op Shop provides us with some income, our investments give us some more, but most of the money we need is collected, Sunday by Sunday, at the offertory, and when the bread and wine are brought to the altar, we give thanks for them and for the money we give. The church of St Luke relies on the generous giving of those who are part of the community of faith, that is, me and you. This means that every Christian needs to be a good steward of money, using it generously and wisely.

For the church to be able to do its work the income needs to be regular and generous. Even if you don't come to church one Sunday, the church keeps working. That's why we provide envelopes for giving, so that we are reminded to give each week. Another way to make your giving regular is to make an automatic bank transfer into the church's account. When we give to the church we are asked to give generously. Generosity is a virtue commended in the Old and the New Testaments. In the Law of Moses, people were expected to tithe, that is, to give one tenth of their income. Many people do this today, setting aside a tenth of their income for the work of the church. Here at St Luke's we make no such requirement, how much each person gives is entirely up to them, however tithing is a good biblical principle - at the least it reminds Christians that they need not be ashamed of poverty and that it is good to give thanks to God for prosperity. St Paul wrote to the Corinthians saying, "Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver, and God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance."

In the end, our stewardship of money, property and anything else comes as a response to the God who is able to provide us with every blessing, the blessing of life itself, the blessing of new life in Jesus Christ, the fellowship of the church and the blessing of abundant and eternal life in the kingdom of God.

We have heard how God gave blessings, through Jesus, to the woman at the well, to the man born blind and to Lazarus who was restored to life. Let us consider how we respond to the blessings God has given us.