Luke 16:10-18
Jesus calls His disciples to be radically counter-cultural. He does that in three specific ways in these verses. They are profoundly disquieting for our comfortable faith.
The Jews of Jesus’ day saw wealth as evidence of God’s favor. Jesus took a contrary view, He taught that earthly wealth is not wealth at all, or not real wealth. Wealth may allow us to look good and even go through the motions of generosity. But image is nothing and only appearing to be good is worthless. “What is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God”. We have no wiggle room here, the pursuit of wealth, regardless of how we try to polish our image is to purse something God finds contemptible. This is a message that we need to take to heart both as individuals and congregations.
Jesus second lesson is that some times people mistake the Kingdom of God for the latest cool fad. Verse 16 is difficult to interpret and apply. Until the conclusion of John the Baptist's ministry the law and the prophets were the final authority. Jesus begins the new stage with the preaching of the Kingdom. Everyone wanted to co-op Jesus’ ministry and the Kingdom for their agenda. Not unlike how today political parties (both/all) will try to appeal to the church. How special interest groups will see the church and an avenue for their agenda. But no one will ever successfully turn the church into its servant.
Rather than conform the Kingdom to suit us, we must conform ourselves to the Kingdom. Jesus makes this point by using the example of divorce. In Jesus’ day a divorce was as easy as a man writing a note for his wife with two witnesses. And he could do so for any reason at all, including finding a more attractive woman. One sentence two witnesses and she is thrown out. It is as foolish to try to make the kingdom fit our agenda as it to assume that we could so easily dissolve God’s plan for marriage. We must not try to reshape God’s plans. Rather we must be reshaped by them.
"Lord, change me so that I conform to what you want me to be. AMEN"
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