Coronavirus and Greed. God had a commandment on that.

Leviticus 19:9-10  – Social Order Basics Part II – On Greed

Day 12 of our 14-day self-quarantine and today’s passage seems so relevant to the madness we have experienced lately with respect to hoarding of consumables like toilet paper and household disinfectants. Read on.

The Passage

⁹ ‘Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. ¹⁰ Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the Lord your God.

Thoughts on the Passage

Most of us are not into farming these days, yet we so appreciate those who are, especially these times. In the days of the Israelites, farming was big as there were no supermarkets to go and get your vegetables or flour to bake your bread. So, God is telling His people not to try and pick up every morsel that their fields of harvest, or every last fruit that their vineyards, yield. And his reason is simply this – they were to leave them for the needy and the strangers in their land.

The lesson here is not to say “well, that does not apply to me because I’m not into farming” but rather to fully grasp the attitude we are to have towards those in need. Whatever we do for a living, however we get paid or compensated, we are to remember those in need. We are to give of our gain to those that have a need. Many of us do that through the support of our churches and missions, through the support of various charities, or directly to those that God has placed in our paths.

And it’s not always about money. These days, in the midst of the coronavirus situation, it may be time – time to make a phone call or to Skype or Facetime with them, or to write a letter. Or, as God allows, it may be to volunteer in a riskier way. For others, it may be that all you can do is to pray for them and to let them know that you are.

And again, why is it that God wants us to do this? There are two reasons. First, remember, this whole chapter is about “social order”.  The fact is that there are those in our world that are in need.  And in order to have “social order”, they must be taken care of.

So, let’s remember this when we are in the grocery store next time and there are only three packages of soap left on the shelf.  Do we really need all three right now? Have we got enough faith in God to believe that when we really need soap, He will provide?  I hope so.

Life is not always fair. Today, billionaire David Geffen tweeted from his yacht (complete with pictures) the following: “Sunset last night. Isolated in the Grenadines avoiding the virus. I hope everybody is staying safe.”  That’s despicable, arrogant, and ignorant. And that is the kind of person God may have had in mind when He gave Moses this commandment for us to follow. We are not to be insensitive to the needs of others as Mr. Geffen seems to be.

Finally, you may ask, “why do I need to remember the needy?” Well, God tells us again, at the end of the passage, for “I am the Lord your God.”  Period. No other reason is required for the believer. But it also makes great sense with respect to keeping social order.

Hang in there. God’s plan is unfolding.  Let us stay alert and be in tune with His heart.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Are You Working For A Living Or Just Making Money?

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Work and Wealth in Scripture:
How to Grow, Prosper, and Work as a Christian

Lawrence A. Clayton, RESOURCE Publications, Eugene, Oregon, 2015

The book’s author, Lawrence A. Clayton, is Professor Emeritus of History, University of Alabama. He has written numerous books, undertaken jail ministry teaching weekly assignments since 2000, and done missionary work in both Dominican Republic and Honduras. In this book, he passionately wants to trace through history, the meaning and value of both work and wealth in parallel to Biblical teachings on the subjects. Through this short volume of 148 pages, Clayton propels us to think about our own attitude to work, to money, and to wealth. In the process, he shares what he believes God expects of mankind with respect to work and riches.

The author starts the book off with an imaginary Fox Network interview of Jesus and the Apostle Paul on the subject. The co-interviewers are two network personalities, one from Fox and one from PBS. It’s a most interesting opening and through it, Clayton sets the stage for the various chapters and their topics that follow.

With him, we explore the question, “What do you do?”, being reminded not to confuse working for a living with making money. Slowly we’re nudged into thinking that “work, obviously, has a higher end than ‘making money’.” Throughout the book, appropriate Scripture verses or whole passages are drawn attention to. He ends this chapter by expanding the original question to, “. . . equally important, what do you do with what you earn?”

The answer to that is based, as he shows us next, on what we value. If we’re focused on “getting rich, getting things, making wealth for its own sake” we tend to lose track of what really is important, at least for the Christian (if not all of us), and that is to be in the will of God. And that, he argues, does not mean “being poor or accepting poverty as your lot in life. It means what it says: staying in the will of God.” Later in the chapter, he defines “real wealth in this world”.

Clayton then introduces the “name it and claim it” or “prosperity” theology that has become popular in the modern Christian church, claiming it provokes more controversy than any other phenomenon in the church and shows how wealth continues to be a contentious issue today. So he takes us back to how various predecessors of ours treated both work and wealth down through the ages after Christ’s time on earth. The Protestant work ethic is analyzed as are a number of other ‘isms’ with respect to the topics. For some, like the Puritans and Calvinists, for example, he shows how their views of work and wealth impacted their assurance or lack thereof with respect to their salvation. The author shares 10 Tips from Scripture on Money and its use that are most helpful as we determine our own position on work and wealth.

There’s an interesting chapter on how work got to be a “dirty word” which incorporates the thinking from the day of Adam, right through Plato and Aristotle, on to Cicero, and on to Hebrew rabbis. He deals with the concept of “renunciation” of worldly goods and what it really meant practically for the early Christian church to “share all things in common”. Never far away from his main points is what is expected of us with respect to our “surplus” (that which is not necessary for our own existence) and especially how that may be used to help the needy.

Of most interest to me was the author’s sharing of the “seven-fold spirit” of work which Theophilus wrote as a preface for one of his books. That in itself, would make a great sermon or even a series for some industrious pastor. The whole point for Clayton, of course, is the spiritual goal, of having us move “closer to Christ through (our) work”. He introduces us to Luther’s thinking on the subjects at hand – the idea being that if we are all equal before God, then all our work is equally valid before Him, and thus should be before us. Calvin joins the chorus by adding his own belief that it is okay for us to rise out of our circumstances if they are not what we are capable of achieving, but not for the sake of wealth.

For many of us, the author contends, it is a struggle which comes down to how we interpret Scripture on these topics. But however we do it, we must, Clayton argues, recognize that Scripture itself does not change. It is our interpretation of it, based on how we think it can be applied to our day and age, that changes. And that requires careful stickhandling if we are to stay in the will of God.

Near the end of the book, Lawrence Clayton also shares the thoughts of Hugh Whelchel as he summarizes the latter’s “Five Lessons for Our Lives from the Parable of the Talents”. Well worth the read and great material for yet more sermons.

While I initially found the book a challenging read, when going over it again, looking at all my marked passages, I realized the problem was more mine than that of the author who sometimes repeated his ideas and points whenever he could get them in. But that’s a small inconvenience to allow for an excellent historical rendering of work and wealth in Scripture. A most recommended volume for all who really care about “what they do” – be it ‘making money’ or ‘working in the will of God’.

--  By Ken B. Godevenos, President, Accord Resolutions Services Inc., Toronto, Ontario, May 13, 2016. www.accordconsulting.com

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Everything and Everyone Needs A Rest -- Exodus 23:10-12:

“And you shall sow your land for six years and gather in its yield, but on the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat.  You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.  Six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor; in order that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave, as well as your stranger, may refresh themselves.”
 

At face value, this instruction is addressed to those who farm the land. But does that excuse the majority of us who today find ourselves otherwise occupied? I don’t think so. This “6 and 1” rhythm seems to have been established earlier in scripture.  Back in Genesis we noted that God Himself worked six days and then rested on the seventh. Earlier in Exodus (chapter 20) we are told we must do all our work in six days and then rest on the seventh. And now here, God says that “6 and 1” rhythm is good for the land as well. Farm it for six years, reap the harvest that it yields, and then let it rest. If God rested, and if He requires that His creation (the earth) rests, how much more important is it for our working animals and us to rest?

And then God interweaves a key principle into this direction. He is in essence saying, “Don’t be so fanatical about this to the point where you do not allow others with real need to gather what I provide naturally as you allow the land to lie fallow (tilled but not seeded).” Directly or indirectly, God is saying, while you have food in your stockrooms and silos for this year of rest, you still have to be conscious of the needs of others; you still need to take care of widows and orphans.

God also shows His care for animals, for as we leave our farmland to lie fallow allowing the needy to be taken care of, so too, what they leave, will take care of the beast of the field. It never fails to amaze me how well things would work if we were to follow God’s plans in every detail. In this case, the needy, as well as the beggar on the street would be fed and so would our four-legged friends.

This passage deals with years – allowing the land to rest on the seventh after it was worked for six. The “6 and 1” rhythm principle is not to be limited to those among us who till the ground and grow our food. It is a principle that can, and should, be transferred to all of our labor activities – in the office, in the classroom, on the professional sports arena, and so on. We can transfer the idea of “years” to days in keeping with God’s other commandments. Failure to apply the principle is at our own risk. I have recently started speed walking daily with my wife but we both realize that our bodies need rest each week. If we don’t take that rest, we do not make it through the next week.

Ask yourself “Am I maximizing on the rhythm that God established for the physical aspect of my life? Am I taking the rests that I need? Am I giving my family, my workers, and my staff that rest? Am I thinking creatively about those in need?” I cannot vouch whether or not “Things Go Better With Coke!” but I can tell you “Life Is Better In God’s Rhythm!”

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