*NOTE* - I got this image from a blog called Rain and the Rhinoceros. Apt for what I wanna talk about today.Christ & The American Dream
...or perhaps I should call it "Christ vs. the American Dream." This is one I've been contemplating over the past year or so. When I first began thinking about it, I couldn't help but think of how the concept of the American Dream seemed so contrary to what Christ has to say in Scripture.
(By the by, when I speak of the American Dream here, I'm talking more of its current meaning of material prosperity than I am of the right of every individual to live and work in freedom. Why? Two reasons. 1. There is nothing in Scripture that overtly contradicts the latter and 2. I've found the previous definition to be more culturally relevant in present society - which makes sense, given that it's the current 'going' definition.)
So, here's the question: What does Christ have to say about a topic like the American Dream?
And I think that we, as Christians, should be cognizant of that. Does that mean we shouldn't have money? By no means. What I think it points to is a question of stewardship.
Dictionary.com defines a 'steward' as "a person who manages another's property or financial affairs; one who administers anything as the agent of another or others" (italics added). By definition, a steward is not an owner of any particular thing. Americans are obsessed with possessions (or, as my high school friend Josh Bernardin once said, "We long for possession, not possessions" - implying that we only want; the object of our want is secondary), but the joke is on us - we own nothing!
Read through Psalm 50 if you get a chance. Verse 10 is a pretty popular one (at least one that I've heard repeated often), but the entire passage speaks of God's lack of need for sacrifices - it's already His! If you or I 'have' anything, it is on loan from its Original Owner.
What does that say about us as Americans? Should our concern be for our own wellbeing? Obviously, I think we need to be taken care of... but what of those who are less fortunate? Consider James 1:27 or Acts 2:45. Or, possibly even more condemning, check out the Book of Amos!
Amos was a shepherd from Judah (the southern kingdom of Israel) called to give testimony against Israel (the northern kingdom). At this time, Israel was going through something of a Golden Age - they were amid several trade routes and were doing quite well for themselves. However, while they were prospering economically, they were dying spiritually. Sin had not become taboo, theoretically from the presence of so many foreign (read: pagan) influences. They were a living example of what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called "cheap grace" - it didn't matter how many times they sinned; they'd just up and sacrifice an animal and start all over again!
Amos 4 is a stinging rebuke. Amos calls the women 'cows,' claiming that they oppress the impoverished and make demands from their husbands (a cultural no-no in ancient Israel). God's response to their behavior? "The time will surely come when you will be taken away with hooks, the last of you with fishhooks" (Amos 4:2). Ouch!
Ultimately, the northern kingdom was subjagated by the pagan nation of Assyria, to be followed only a few years later by Judah (who were taken by Babylon). These things happened as a result of them turning from God and His law.
"So... what exactly are you saying, Stephen?" I hear you ask from afar.
America is a great nation... but it is a nation consumed with consumption. We desire material wealth to great extent. And, often, it can consume our focus to the point where the things we should be focusing on (i.e. the Kingdom of God - Matt 6:33). It is difficult for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven... but not impossible. God granted that many men in Scripture should be wealthy: Abraham, Jacob, Job, Solomon, Joseph of Arimathea, among others.
Actually, let's look at the focuses of two of those men - Solomon and Job.
Solomon was granted wealth as an extention of his request for divine wisdom (I Kings 3:10-14) and he accomplished many things with and through it. The most well-known, of course, would be the construction of the Temple, which was to be the permanent placement of the Ark of the Covenant (rather than the tent-like Tabernacle constructed during the Exodus). However, Solomon also amassed for himself many wives (something prohibited in the Law - Deut. 17:14-20, sp. v. 17 which also warns against amassing wealth), many of them political marriages from among Israel's pagan neighbors. Between giving his focus largely to these two vices (lust and greed), Solomon faltered in his kingly duties and, after his death, Israel was divided into two northern and southern kingdoms (the aforementioned Israel and Judah).
Job, however, is another story. Job was a wealthy man, having several children as well as many servants, flocks, and herds (in a time where these rather than gold and silver is what measured wealth). God took all of it away from Job in the span of a day. On top of it, he was inflicted with all manner of boils and sores. Not only was he emotionally devastated, but was subject to crippling physical pain as well. Job's own wife (who was, at this point, about all he had left) told him to curse God and die. Job's response? "Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" What I find to be one of the most powerful parts of Job, however, is his statement in Job 3:15: "Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face." Despite being wracked with doubt and confusion, Job remained faithful to God... and was rewarded for his faithfulness. Job 42:10-17 speaks of how Job was blessed more in the second half of his life than in the first - given more children, servants, and herds than he'd had previously. He was wealthy... but despite his wealth, remained faithful.
And I think that's how we need to handle money. If we had none, would we still be faithful to God and to His purpose? Perhaps we should look at that question objectively. The answer, I think, has the potential to surprise us.
Thoughts? Comments? Counter-rants?
(By the by, when I speak of the American Dream here, I'm talking more of its current meaning of material prosperity than I am of the right of every individual to live and work in freedom. Why? Two reasons. 1. There is nothing in Scripture that overtly contradicts the latter and 2. I've found the previous definition to be more culturally relevant in present society - which makes sense, given that it's the current 'going' definition.)
So, here's the question: What does Christ have to say about a topic like the American Dream?
- Matt. 6:19-21 - "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
- Matt. 19:23-24 - "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
- Matt. 6:24 - "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." (Some translations substitute 'Money' for 'Mammon,' an abstraction, a personification of material wealth. Mammon gained particular fame as a demon in John Milton's classic Paradise Lost.)
- I Tim. 6:10 - "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." (Yes, I know these were the words of Paul and not of Christ, but Paul himself encourages others to follow his example as he followed Christ's - I Cor. 11:1. I would encourage you, however, to read the whole passage (vv. 3-10). Most people just know that verse - and not accurately, I might add - and I think the whole thought is an important one.)
And I think that we, as Christians, should be cognizant of that. Does that mean we shouldn't have money? By no means. What I think it points to is a question of stewardship.
Dictionary.com defines a 'steward' as "a person who manages another's property or financial affairs; one who administers anything as the agent of another or others" (italics added). By definition, a steward is not an owner of any particular thing. Americans are obsessed with possessions (or, as my high school friend Josh Bernardin once said, "We long for possession, not possessions" - implying that we only want; the object of our want is secondary), but the joke is on us - we own nothing!
Read through Psalm 50 if you get a chance. Verse 10 is a pretty popular one (at least one that I've heard repeated often), but the entire passage speaks of God's lack of need for sacrifices - it's already His! If you or I 'have' anything, it is on loan from its Original Owner.
What does that say about us as Americans? Should our concern be for our own wellbeing? Obviously, I think we need to be taken care of... but what of those who are less fortunate? Consider James 1:27 or Acts 2:45. Or, possibly even more condemning, check out the Book of Amos!
Amos was a shepherd from Judah (the southern kingdom of Israel) called to give testimony against Israel (the northern kingdom). At this time, Israel was going through something of a Golden Age - they were amid several trade routes and were doing quite well for themselves. However, while they were prospering economically, they were dying spiritually. Sin had not become taboo, theoretically from the presence of so many foreign (read: pagan) influences. They were a living example of what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called "cheap grace" - it didn't matter how many times they sinned; they'd just up and sacrifice an animal and start all over again!
Amos 4 is a stinging rebuke. Amos calls the women 'cows,' claiming that they oppress the impoverished and make demands from their husbands (a cultural no-no in ancient Israel). God's response to their behavior? "The time will surely come when you will be taken away with hooks, the last of you with fishhooks" (Amos 4:2). Ouch!
Ultimately, the northern kingdom was subjagated by the pagan nation of Assyria, to be followed only a few years later by Judah (who were taken by Babylon). These things happened as a result of them turning from God and His law.
"So... what exactly are you saying, Stephen?" I hear you ask from afar.
America is a great nation... but it is a nation consumed with consumption. We desire material wealth to great extent. And, often, it can consume our focus to the point where the things we should be focusing on (i.e. the Kingdom of God - Matt 6:33). It is difficult for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven... but not impossible. God granted that many men in Scripture should be wealthy: Abraham, Jacob, Job, Solomon, Joseph of Arimathea, among others.
Actually, let's look at the focuses of two of those men - Solomon and Job.
Solomon was granted wealth as an extention of his request for divine wisdom (I Kings 3:10-14) and he accomplished many things with and through it. The most well-known, of course, would be the construction of the Temple, which was to be the permanent placement of the Ark of the Covenant (rather than the tent-like Tabernacle constructed during the Exodus). However, Solomon also amassed for himself many wives (something prohibited in the Law - Deut. 17:14-20, sp. v. 17 which also warns against amassing wealth), many of them political marriages from among Israel's pagan neighbors. Between giving his focus largely to these two vices (lust and greed), Solomon faltered in his kingly duties and, after his death, Israel was divided into two northern and southern kingdoms (the aforementioned Israel and Judah).
Job, however, is another story. Job was a wealthy man, having several children as well as many servants, flocks, and herds (in a time where these rather than gold and silver is what measured wealth). God took all of it away from Job in the span of a day. On top of it, he was inflicted with all manner of boils and sores. Not only was he emotionally devastated, but was subject to crippling physical pain as well. Job's own wife (who was, at this point, about all he had left) told him to curse God and die. Job's response? "Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" What I find to be one of the most powerful parts of Job, however, is his statement in Job 3:15: "Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face." Despite being wracked with doubt and confusion, Job remained faithful to God... and was rewarded for his faithfulness. Job 42:10-17 speaks of how Job was blessed more in the second half of his life than in the first - given more children, servants, and herds than he'd had previously. He was wealthy... but despite his wealth, remained faithful.
And I think that's how we need to handle money. If we had none, would we still be faithful to God and to His purpose? Perhaps we should look at that question objectively. The answer, I think, has the potential to surprise us.
Thoughts? Comments? Counter-rants?
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