Proverbs for the Rich

These will some of the comments made during our SAO Sunday service on Sept 9th. There will also be drama presentations, great music, prayers & a homework exercise.

I’m not going to talk much today about how the world situation of today has become so inequitable – how some people are so rich, and some people are so poor – how some countries are so well resourced, and other countries having comparatively little. I will talk about though, about whose responsibility it is to do something to alleviate the despair and degradation, and about whose responsibility it is to live out more Jesus like attitudes in human community.

You don’t have to go any further than the first chapter of the bible to find out the answer. Having created everything else, God then made human beings, and gave them responsibility for the rest of the created order. Part of this would surely be looking after the well-being of one another. This would be possible to achieve because we were people made in the image and likeness of God, made with the capacity to love, care, and decide with wisdom. We could participate in bringing about God’s plan for the world, whilst enjoying perfect communion with God.

Yet, this was not good enough for humankind; as we read in chapter 3 of Genesis, humanity sought to grab control away from God, and be God themselves, and thus lost the plot concerning every other facet of God’s creation. So there has always been repair work to be done. And while sin exists, there will always be a lot to do! There is pain and groaning; there is hatred, violence and fear; there is poverty, sickness and despair.

God looked upon all this, and didn’t choose to stay remote, but rather came to live in the midst of human community, into a poor Jewish family in Palestine – why? John’s Gospel provides the great explanation behind the mission of God … “for God so loved the world”. God was never going to give up on the world, or the possibility that people would reconnect with God in a transformative way. This would be like a parent’s love for their child – no matter how bad things get – this is still their child! This is still God’s world.

So we find God again through Jesus, our Saviour, and receive the Holy Spirit to enable us to live out the life of God in the midst of the world’s traumas. Our salvation was never meant to be purely personal – our salvation connects with the salvation of others, as well as connecting with all of the needs in God’s world. And so, when Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment – could he sum up the meaning of life? Yep! “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength; and love your neighbour as yourself”.

This was God’s intention behind all of his dealings with Israel … that the human community could live healthily and helpfully with each other (and with God). So often they failed, as we have failed, yet the true prophets of Israel knew the heart of God. What was it that Micah preached when reflecting on the question of God’s requirements of human beings … “To do justice (to act justly, to defeat injustice), to love mercy (kindness), to walk humbly before God.”

Other prophets from the 8th Century BCE like Isaiah understood how close the poor and needy were to God’s heart, and of course Jesus identified with this when he quoted such scriptures in his own time. There were also wise proverbs that the people of Israel could refer to in getting the right perspective on life; some clearly reflecting this deep concern for the plight of the poor.

Proverbs 14:31 > "Those who oppress the poor insult their Maker, but those who are kind to the needy honour God" (NRSV).

This proverb clearly shows where God stands: to oppress someone toward material or emotional or spiritual poverty is likened to insulting, showing contempt to, or even blaspheming God. And this proverb probably shows two sides of a very thin coin, one side Godless, the other side Godly; where it is very difficult to stand on the edge – you have to choose to be on one side or the other, on the side of the problem or the side of the solution.

31:8 > "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute" (NIV).

Here we have the challenge to speak for those who do not have the voice or audience to speak for themselves and be heard. These are the ignored, isolated, abused, impoverished and needy. We are called to be advocates for those people society is leaving behind. May they never feel that God has rejected them because all people have seemingly done so! We need to befriend the friendless, and speak up for the voiceless.

19:17 > "Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and will be repaid in full" (NRSV).

Of course, these proverbs not only reflect God’s concern, but also his call to us, his followers of all generations, to participate in the solutions God wishes to bring about. And this proverb suggests that any kindness shown to the poor is equivalent to ministering to God. Jesus understood this when he taught, “As you do it to one of the least of these children of mine, you do it unto me”. It is one of the deepest acts of worship to sacrifice oneself for the poor. You think of Mother Teresa, some will know of Father Damian of Molokai who worked with the rejected lepers, some will think of their own particular heroes: William Wilberforce’s lifelong struggle against slavery, Martin Luther King’s stand for human rights. However this proverb is not just for the renowned heroes of the faith, but for all of us!

11:25 > "A generous person will be enriched, and one who gives water will get water" (NRSV).

Being generous of heart is not only good for the recipient. The giver finds blessing through their efforts for other people. This is not in a financial sense, but much deeper than this; there will be spiritual refreshment, a deep experience of the ‘living water’ that Jesus provides, we will experience our most urgent needs being met as we give ourselves to the needs of others. Having said this (and reflecting on how the NRSV translates the Hebrew proverb here), one wonders about any possible connection with the nation of Australia:
· a country largely in drought
· that at the same time boasts a multi-billion dollar surplus
· while providing a very low contribution to international aid.

Isaiah 58:9b-12 reads:

"If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong;and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in."

I spoke about being involved in God’s solutions. Some of these solutions will be very proactive, seeking our governments and councils and organisational decision makers to make decisions in the best interests of all citizens, with a special bias to those who has previously missed out. The problem with capitalism is that it only serves those who have been able to participate in the system. Those who cannot participate can be left behind, and miss out on the benefits everyone else seems to be enjoying.

Some of God’s solutions will necessarily be reactive – because ‘the horse has already bolted’. We are presented with a need, and have to find a way of helping and restoring the situation. This will involve at least three areas of activity:

(1) PRAYER

a. We can pray for hurting, desperate people themselves.
b. We can pray for justice and hope for the oppressed and war-ravaged people groups of the world.
c. We can pray for support agencies as they seek to reach out and help.
d. We can pray for better governmental decision-making (both proactively and reactively)
e. We can pray for wisdom as to how we can personally and collectively participate in God’s solution.

Philip Yancey wrote: "When I pray for another person, I am praying for God to open my eyes so that I can see that person as God does, and then enter into the stream of love that God already directs towards that person".

(2) GIVING

(3) SPEAKING OUT & LIVING GOD’S WAY

a. Stand up for the needs of indigenous communities, struggling farmers, flood ridden communities.
b. Be informed, write letters, sign petitions, be involved in the causes that God puts on your heart.
c. Stick solid with God’s view of things (which is often vastly different to the “world’s” view of things): be about the business of loving neighbour, defeating injustice, offering mercy, being kind, walking through life humbly.

We cannot just ‘worship’ God in a very narrow sense, and hope everything turns out okay. We are not here to just eagerly await Jesus’ return; we are here to engage the world. As God has sent Jesus, Jesus has sent us (in the enabling power of the Holy Spirit) to make a difference! Another 8th Century BCE prophet Amos spoke to those who believed they could detach their worship from their life in the world: “Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps; but let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream”.