Amos 8:4-7 +Psalm 113
+1 Tim 2:1-7 +Luke 16:1-13
Psalm 113 is a song of praise and revelation. We who pray it are identified as servants, which should govern our relationship with God. Praise is “now and always” from “east to west”—always and everywhere—and God is transcendent. High above the nations! High above the heavens and earth. So we pray each Sunday: “Glory to God in the highest!”
The transcendent God “stoops to behold” what is below. The Hebrew word, ‘shaphel’
[to humble, abase, or make oneself small] reminds us that God must “empty
Himself” anytime He reaches out to us. Salvation is very concrete, He raises the "weak"
out of the dust and lifts up the "poor" from the ashes*. The relationship of salvation and creation centers on the word ‘aphar/dust’ which is used in Genesis 2. God forms the 'adam from the 'aphar' so we can say He literally 'raised a man
out of the dust.' As God makes us from inert particles, so will He also
raise us from the ash heap of death. We are all included in the poor and needy because of our absolute dependence.
God loves the poor, and this is echoed in Amos' preaching. The powerless are easily abused. Amos shares their fringe status because he is an unwelcome outsider from the Southern Kingdom of Judah who preaches his visions of doom to the powerful in the Northern Kingdom called Israel. Amos declares that “Divine Economics” centers on the value of every human life. When the rich get richer++ while the poor get poorer the Lord brings judgment. As the Virgin Mary** said, “[the Lord] has mercy…He has cast down the mighty…and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry…and the rich He has sent away empty.”
Jesus teaches us how to make money holy. His parable illustrates a devious and self centered man. Jesus wants us to be as clever serving God as he was serving himself. Jesus says, “Don’t only use money to makes friends for earthly needs, but use your wealth to make friends who will welcome us into a (skene) “tent” that lasts forever.
Back to Psalm 113.
Praise the Lord! Our Lord humbles Himself to see the needy and raise
them up and make them His royal children (theosis!!).
Blessed is he who raises the poor out of the dust…
Blessed is she who befriends the needy…
Blessed are they who glorify God by blessing the weak…
For they shall dwell in the tents of the Lord forever.
You can never be too generous serving the Lord.
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some references and things to ponder
*[This same sentence (including sitting with princes) appears verbatum in the Canticle of
Hannah, 1 Samuel 2:8, which shares many features in common with the canticle of Mary (He has looked with favor on His lowly servant). God’s salvation is expressed in her miraculous pregnancy. Her son, Samuel, will be one of Israel’s greatest figures. Both women are poor and lowly, and each is a ‘barren’ women who becomes the
happy mother of a son Ps 113:9. Their sons will be God’s
act of lifting the poor out of the dust and ash heap!]
++The issue of what to do about poverty, beyond personal generosity, is very challenging. In an earlier version of this sermon I actually looked at current income distribution in the USA. If you rank by income and divide the nation into five equal sized groups, currently the bottom 20% make 3.1% of the total wealth while the next makes 8.2%, and the next makes 14.3%. All three groups have a seen a significantly lower share compared to 1970, which is a very troubling trend. ++When the top twenty percent makes more than double what the bottom sixty percent does, one should listen to the words of Amos.
I do not know what the just answer is, though I do know that whatever we do, it will not solve the problems to everyone's satisfcation and it will generate new problems in the days ahead.
Concerning reparations and income redistribution. If it were possible would it help change things longs term? We must remember that wealth is fluid and can quickly be transfered through spending and saving practices. If we could redistribute all the wealth equally among our citizens, is there any doubt that in ten years we would see a similar pattern repeat itself? For example Sports Illustrated did a study which found that 80% of Football and 60% of basketball players are in some type of financial distress within a decade of leaving professional sports. In other words, it is possible to quickly spend hundreds of thousands, millions, even tens of millions of dollars--with nothing to show for it.
Even so, God's word will not allow us to do nothing. Therein lies the challenge.
*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Income levels demonstrate the concentration of wealth. The obligation of the rich to the poor is made very clear in Scipture.
However, the reality is the cost of child care and their education, or medical care, or support of adult family members especially parents, can quickly consume even extremely high income. In addition, saving for retirement requires very large sums of money each year. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/27/sam-dogen-a-middle-class-lifestyle-now-costs-over-300000-a-year.html
Even so, God's word will not allow us to do nothing. Therein lies the challenge.
*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Personal_finances_of_professional_American_athletes
Income levels demonstrate the concentration of wealth. The obligation of the rich to the poor is made very clear in Scipture.
The top .1% ($2.7mill) 1% ($700,000) 5% ($300,000)
10% ($118,000)
https://www.investopedia.com/personal-finance/how-much-income-puts-you-top-1-5-10/
However, the reality is the cost of child care and their education, or medical care, or support of adult family members especially parents, can quickly consume even extremely high income. In addition, saving for retirement requires very large sums of money each year. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/27/sam-dogen-a-middle-class-lifestyle-now-costs-over-300000-a-year.html
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