October 14 NOTES FOR REFLECTION Ordinary 28
Texts: Amos 5:6-7, 10-15; Hebrews 4:12-16; Mark 10:17-31
Theme: A need for restraint here! Nothing like "Fat Cats Get their Come-Uppance" should cross our minds for even a moment. I'm going with "A Need to Prioritise", which is both a modern-day political mantra and a good summary of what our readings are on about today.
Introduction. The suggested theme gives us a good starting-point, I think. When we hear reference to the need to prioritise in our society it is always against a background of real or imagined financial difficulties. The Government is short of money, or New Zealand Inc is going through hard times. The opposite is true in the spiritual world. It is precisely when we are doing well financially that we are most likely to forget that the first call on our time, commitment and love should be God. This is the message of Amos, who was carrying out his prophetic ministry around 750BC in the northern kingdom of Israel at a period of great national peace and prosperity. Religious observance had become pro forma, something to be got over with as soon as possible so as not to interfere too much with trade and commerce. (Another example of the ability of Scripture to seem always contemporaneous with our own times!) The eager young man who approaches Jesus seems to have a similar need to re-prioritise. He's a good person, doing a lot of good things; but when Jesus confronts him with the stark choice between material and spiritual wealth he goes sadly away. Such is the sharpness of the Word of God, as the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews reminds us today.
Background. We often hear complaints that our society is obsessed with sex: advertisers use it more and more explicitly to sell even the least sexy imaginable items, and more and more films and TV programmes feature so-called "adult themes" (an interesting expression in itself). Others make similar complaints about alcohol. Few seem to notice the real obsession in our news media, sometimes treated almost as reverentially as rugby, is that mysterious family of personified forces called "The Market", with all its off-springs scattered around the world but still bearing the family name, "the markets" (sometimes individually identified as "Wall Street", and so on). Another prominent member of this family is" The New Zealand Dollar". Sometimes they are treated as mere humans; in which case regular "medical bulletin" are issued through our media. They might have had a quiet night – they might be treading water awaiting some announcement or other – they might be a little stronger today – they might be rising or falling or a bit flat. More ominously, they are given a divine status, attended by a watchful priesthood drawn from the Gnostic ranks of Credit Agencies. Those whom we, as humble electors, thought we had elected to power are required to propitiate these supposed deities, and will undoubtedly experience their wrathful judgment if they presume to exercise their power in a way that does not accord with the will of these gods.
And so to the markets. As regular listeners to the National Programme will know, we get regular market updates about how the markets are doing, not just our own share market and our own currency, but those in the UK, US and Australia; and on a good day we might even have a few bits from some of the European markets as well. Such market updates tend to crop up as often as weather forecasts and sports headlines. Yet I heard the other day that only 7 percent of New Zealanders own shares. Presumably, some of those are professionals who would need far more detailed information than we get on the radio, so why are we given all these regular updates when very few listeners have any interest in them? Because there is an unspoken assumption that all things economic and financial are of real importance – even though, at most, 7 percent of the public is actually listening.
We are often told, too, about the ever-declining church membership, and how fewer and fewer people in this country have any religious beliefs. I haven't seen any figures for that recently, but I suspect that even now we could must a figure in excess of 7 percent. Can you imagine the reaction if Radio New Zealand decided to broadcast regular "church updates", along with weather reports and sports bulletins? But why would that be ridiculous, whereas it makes sense to constantly tell us that "Wall Street is holding its breath awaiting the outcome of a state election in Germany"?
It's all a matter of priorities, isn't it? And when the markets are doing well, who needs prayer? Time enough for that when the bubble does what all bubbles eventually do (often to the great surprise of some of the market acolytes).
Amos. Like many prophets, Amos was a reluctant starter. He was quite happy working on the land, tending sheep and trees in the southern kingdom of Judah. But somewhere around the middle of the 8th century BC God called him and sent him on a mission to the northern kingdom of Israel with a rather unwelcome message. Things had gone well for Israel. It had enjoyed a few decades of peace and prosperity. Markets were bullish: the rich and powerful were becoming ever more rich and powerful. Market regulation had yet to put in an appearance: the eastern equivalent of the Wild West approach was in full swing. Fortunes were being made, mansions built, and land accumulated. The art of creative book-keeping was born, along with ever more inventive approaches to lending, borrowing, racketeering, money-laundering and many other elements of market life that we, in our arrogance, believe that our generation have invented recently. As ever, ethics did not develop quite as quickly: cheats and frauds benefitted greatly, and, of course, the poor and the dispossessed suffered grievously. All this from the chosen people, the people who had been rescued from slavery, and led into the Promised Land to become a light to the Gentiles, a working model of a righteous society. They were living in a bubble of their own creation: that bubble was about to burst. Amos was sent to warn them. They did not listen. Their kingdom fell to the Assyrians. The God whom they ignored during the "good times" declined to intervene when everything turned to custard..
The key verses for me are vv. 6 and 14: "Seek the Lord and live"; and "Seek good, not evil, that you may live." The "good life" is to be found in God, not in the markets. And notice the second half of verse 14: "Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you just as you say he is." They believe that God is with them despite their shady dealings and exploitation of the poor. In other words, their belief in God is not deep enough, real enough, to cause a change in their behaviour.
Taking It Personally.
· A day for deep reflection, perhaps with your bank statement, your cheque-book, and your Bible spread out before you.
· Do you take comfort from the fact that this passage is not about the accumulation of wealth in itself, but about dishonest dealings? Is God concerned only with the harm done against the poor, or the lack of help given to them as well?
· Should we attempt to critique our country's economic and political policies against the prophetic writings of the Old Testament or not?
Hebrews. After the joyous good news of last week, we have a much more mixed message this week. The passage falls into two halves. First, the bad news: we all face the judgment of God. The Word (or, for the more visual among us, the eye) of God cuts through all our attempts at evasion, compromise and obfuscation. We have no choice but to be completely real with God. Another image may be that we must come naked before God, completely open, vulnerable, just as we are. Based on this passage is our wonderful Collect for Purity, which we so often dash through as we settle into the service. Here it is: Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden; cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, so that we may truly love you and worthily praise your holy name; through our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
And, of course, the second part of this passage tells us why we offer this prayer "through Jesus Christ our Saviour". It is because of his saving work that we can approach God "with confidence"; some translations even say "with boldness". So begins the writer's long reflection on the Office of the High Priest, which he now sees passing to Jesus. Just as, on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest would disappear from sight into the Holy of Holies, so Jesus has "gone through the heavens" (quite possibly a reference to the Ascension). And again the writer is at pains to stress the full humanity of Jesus: he is a High Priest who can sympathise with our weaknesses precisely because he experienced all the temptations we experience. He resisted them, so that is humanly possible with the help of the grace of God which is now available to us on request.
Taking It Personally.
· Do you feel the sharp edge of these readings today? Does Scripture sometimes cut you to the bone? How do you react?
· Spend time meditating on the Collect for Purity. Make it part of your prayers every day this week.
· What special help or grace do you need from God at this time? Approach the Throne of Grace confidently and ask accordingly.
Mark. Last week the topic was divorce: this week its personal wealth! And critics still think we make this stuff up, that it's some sort of wish-fulfilment? Give us a break! The passage gets off to a very interesting start: a young man runs up to Jesus and falls on his knees before him. That's not the first time that's happened in the gospel narrative, is it? In 1:40 a leper approaches Jesus in that way, seeking healing for himself; in 5:22-3 Jairus comes asking for a cure for his son; and, of course, in 7:25 the Syro-Phoenician woman does likewise on behalf of her daughter. But this time it's different: this man is not seeking physical healing; he is seeking "a word", as it was known when someone approached a wise spiritual teacher for guidance in the spiritual life. "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus challenges him first about his use of the word "good": it should be used only of God. Two schools of thought here: either Jesus is clearly distinguishing himself from God, or he is inviting the man to join the dots and recognise that Jesus is God. Take your pick. Jesus reminds the man of the Commandments, but interestingly not all of them. He leaves out the ones owed "directly to God", the first three. It seems that this guy is very good to his neighbours but perhaps lacks something in his love of God. Then comes the two-edged sword, and the man is cut to the quick. Notice the amazement of the disciples; they took for granted the local version of the "Gospel of Prosperity" – the rich must be doing something right in the eyes of God, otherwise they wouldn't be rich. Notice, too, verse 27: it is not humanly possible to enter the kingdom of God, only God can do that for us. There is some suggestion that the closing line, verse 31, might be a bit of a put-down of Peter for his boast in verse 28.
Taking It Personally.
· Try to hear (or read) this story as if you for the first time. How do you feel about it? Are you already trying to construct your "defence case"?
· Some commentators suggest that Jesus was not laying down a general principle, only giving specific guidance to this one person? Do you agree? (The correct answer is "no", but it's tempting, isn't it? The fact is the teaching is given to the disciples after the man has gone sadly away.)
· Try to imagine "losing everything" – perhaps in a natural disaster, or a fire. What would you most miss? Why?
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