After Pentecost Devotional - Day 10

"Instead, store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy them, and thieves cannot break in and steal them." Matthew 6:20

The Bible is rather harsh in its critiques of economic systems. It matters little if we are talking about the economic systems of the Ancient Near East or those of the present day. Leviticus called for a revolutionary new economic system, and Jesus goes even further in his comments regarding economics.

Much has been said to downplay the concepts and ideals Jesus espoused regarding wealth and its use. When we look honestly at what he said, however, there is simply no honest way to keep Jesus' words from interfering somehow with our economic constructs and systems.

As much as American Christians like to claim capitalism as God's gift to humanity, Jesus' words do not promote the aims and objective of capitalism, much less its strategies. We tend to gloss over his words as though they simply do not apply to life in the modern world. The problem with that perspective is that if they do not apply to our era of economics, they likewise did not apply to Jesus' own time period. I have heard others brush Jesus' words aside as only applicable in the new kingdom he was establishing, yet these words refer to entering that kingdom, not living in it.

Jesus tells us very clearly that we should not be focusing on amassing earthly wealth. He considers that earthly wealth is not nearly as secure as we normally consider it to be. He tells us that we should be focusing on preparing for a wholly other quality of life with a wholly different sent of priorities and values.

These values and priorities are not based on material possessions, power, and control over others. They are not based on economics as we know them at all. These higher values are focused on serving one another in dependence upon the provision of God. In amassing wealth, we are focused on independence. While that may sound good at some levels, it interrupts the purpose of living in community under the care, guidance, and direction of God.

A few verses ahead, Jesus will tell us not to worry about finances and meeting our basic needs. He will tell us to trust God as the antithesis to worry over material blessings. He will tell us that we too easily fall into the trap of serving wealth in place of serving God. That is a far cry from the emphases of our economic, social, and political structures. It is a far cry from the values of our American Dream.

Instead of our American Dream, the gospel challenges us to a wholly different dream. It calls us to a radically different ideal in which the good of the larger society, the good of our neighbors, the good strangers are met with the same care we give to meeting our personal needs and wants. After all, that is what loving one another as ourselves would necessarily look like. As long as we focus on the values of our society, we will continue to miss the priorities Jesus has for our living.

What are your highest values? How do your financial statements reflect that?


"Lord, give me the courage to adopt your values as my own."

—©Copyright 2016, Christopher B. Harbin
http://www.sermonsearch.com/contributors/104427/ 
My latest books can be found here on amazon

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