Sept. 18 Lk. 16, Jer. 8
In this passage, form and content coalesce. Divine judgment is inevitable and is at the heart of the matter Their crying out will not change what seems to be inevitable.. In the face of looming destruction, we find deep pain of grief for both the prophet and God . "O that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears, so that I might weep day and night for the slain of my poor people!" (9:1).
Judgment---does not reflect God's desire for god’s people. God and prophet are broken-hearted and despairing at the fate of the people. The proper response to catastrophic judgment is not a theologically justifying "I told you so" or "You got what you deserved." It is grief, sorrow, and lament: "Is there no balm in Gilead?".WPR.. As long as there is balm in Gilead, and as long as there are physicians who can restore health, the human community has the ability to receive God's healing and transformation. This takes the lamenting question in verse 22 and turns into a declaration of hope: "There IS a balm in Gilead to make the wounded whole."Every week we get soul balm in the confession and declaration of forgiveness.Balm may appear as a listening ear, or some act of sympathy or compassion. Looking to a future ,may well be balm when times are bleak.
Dishonest manager shrewd/prudent-This is a parade example that parables are a way of looking at our lives and situations, not rules for moral behavior.As Luther warned about Mammon 500 years ago, “‘Many a person thinks he has God and everything he needs when he has money and property, in them he trusts and of them he boasts so stubbornly and securely that he cares for no one. Surely such a man also has a god -- mammon by name, that is, money and possessions -- on which he fixes his whole heart. It is the most common idol on earth." Shrewdness and prudence can be Christian virtues.Even a tough boss can admire the shrewdness of the dishonest manager, just as we enjoy a caper film when the crooks carefully plan to rob some impregnable place (Ocean’s 11) .We all know that financial gain can become a number one priority. Money in itself seems neutral: it can be used for great good, but it can take over a life. Scrooge in christmas carol the exemplar. When I get an p opportunity to work with money with a couple seeking to marry: i usually say that grown ups have . Money means different things to different people; it may have great symbolic importance along with its necessity to live.disagreements about money that ar e not managed can infect other aspects of a relationship.Here folks may choos eot vote with their pocketbook when thye are dissatisfied or maybe even when they are satisfied wiht church life.We really try hard here not to constantly go on about money, even as we continue to run a serious deficit again. Giving may well be a balm in Gilead.
Luke is concerned with sharing possessions.When we are called by our Master or our Father to give an account of ourselves, our life, our work, our dealings with others or our stewardship of resources entrusted to us, we mercifully do not get what we deserve. When we come afraid, deeply aware of our shortcomings and limitations and stand before the One who has the power to decide our fate, we do not get what we deserve. We give the word - our word, our pitiful, sinful, cheating, squandering, word - and the Word intercedes for us. The voice booms from heaven, "This is my child, dishonest, dissolute and beloved."(Pres. Outlook)
No comments:
Post a Comment