Stephen
Terry, Director
Mission
to the Unreached: Part 1
Commentary
for the December 9, 2023, Sabbath School Lesson
"The
heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day
after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They
have no speech; they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice
goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." Psalm
19:1-4, NIV
While we often have clear skies,
I live near a city that has considerably less than a million people but still
generates enough light pollution to obscure much of the beauty of the heavens
at night. Many of the stars are obscured, but the moon and the planets are
usually visible. They are mute sentinels that nonetheless testify to the beauty
and order of our universe. Some see them as beckoning to humanity to come
exploring the mysteries that await discovery. Such explorations make up the
bulk of an entire genre of literature, movies, television series, and artworks
known as Science Fiction or Sci-Fi.
We find it hard to believe that
in all that vastness, we alone are a singularly sentient species floating
through space on a globular speck of conglomerate organic and inorganic matter.
The accident of our being causes us to ask if there are other such "accidents."
If they exist, would those species be similar to us or
something entirely different? Knowing something of ourselves, we ask if those
ideas should comfort or frighten us? Could encountering species with a technological
advantage mean the demise of our culture much as we have inflicted on cultures
on this planet more primitive than our own? On the other hand, if we were the
more advanced culture would we do as we have done in the past, destroy and enslave
those who do not have the means to resist us? Despite its beauty, the vastness
of interstellar space may serve as a natural barrier insulating us and others
from such experiences. The sordid history of imperialism and ongoing cultural
domination through economic, political, and military warfare give ample evidence
of the need for such distancing. As we have grown to a population of over eight
billion individuals the strife has only increased, often stoked by those who
would disallow the necessities of food, shelter, clothing, and healthcare to
those who were incapable of returning an adequate profit to a wealthy elite.
They have horded those necessities to artificially increase demand and
therefore profits as they out compete the needy in the marketplace.
Our streets are overrun with the
homeless who cannot compete for housing in a market driven by scarcity and
competition between the wealthy for that limited housing. Although history
tells us things were bad in the 1930s, in my seventy-two years, I have never
seen the homeless problem as bad as it is currently. Despite the greed and the
victimization of the poor, despite the pollution and the diminishing of the vision
of the marvelous universe we live in, some can still look up and hear a voice
that speaks to their hearts and tells them this is not how it was meant to be.
It can be better than seems possible.
The problem is not the universe. It is us. We have taken the milk cow to town
to sell some milk and instead have exchanged the reliable cow for a handful of
magical beans that are purported to give us wealth beyond our wildest dreams.
But unlike the hero, Jack, who grew a giant beanstalk that led him to an
endless supply of golden eggs, our beans either didn't sprout or were infested
with parasites that killed the stalk. In the end, like the prodigal of
scripture,[i] we
find ourselves lacking even what we need to satisfy our gnawing hunger. When we
no longer had the means to entertain others, they vanished like vapors, unable or
unwilling to sustain us as we had them. We chased the phantom of wealth the
world dangled before our eyes and could not grasp it. Even in our destitution
it does not cease to taunt us. We are reminded that lottery tickets are cheap
so we should keep chasing that twinkling, golden light. After all, if you don't
buy a lottery ticket, your chances of winning are zero. I live not far from a
casino, and when the poor receive their Social Security payments, the bus stops
around the casino are crowded with those eager to take another chance with Lady
Luck in the hopes of escaping their poverty. But the money is soon gone and the
crowds at the bus stops are, also, until next month.
Even when Jesus walked the
shores of Galilee and visited the towns there, he witnessed the struggles and futility
of people's lives. We are told, "Jesus went through all the towns and villages,
teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and
healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion
on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a
shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the
workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers
into his harvest field.'" (Matthew 9:35-38)
What did Jesus mean by workers? He told his disciples to teach others what he
taught them.[ii] It seems reasonable then
that those workers would be doing the same. Some who claim to be workers for
Jesus teach that God wants each of us to be wealthy. Is that what Jesus taught?
He said, "You cannot serve both God and money." (Matthew 6:24) If our goal in
life is to increase our wealth, we will not be sharing the teachings of Jesus.
Instead, by our example, we will be sharing another's message, a message that Jesus
pointedly rejected. While in the wilderness, he was offered all that the world
could provide if he would only acknowledge the one offering it as master.
(Matthew 4:8-10) He recognized that offer as being a direct challenge to
dependence upon God and serving him. Sadly, too many of us fail to see through
that magical, deceptive glamor for what it really is.
Even our churches pay homage to
the devilish dreams of wealth and power, ever seeking more and more wealth to
come pouring into institutional coffers along with the power and prestige it
can buy a denomination in the eyes of the world. The ensuing corruption is
evident globally. While we look down our noses at other denominations or even
non-Christian religions, we build expensive churches that gobble up resources
to maintain them. Those in power give their time primarily to the wealthy who
helped them achieve that power. And we dole out positions of power locally,
regionally, and globally to those who are brokers of wealth and power within
the church. A man or woman who has little to offer financially has little to no
voice in church matters. In practice, wisdom seems only to be evident as an
attribute of wealth. The church has no room nor patience for any who are uanble
to sign large remittance checks.
The Disciples did not start out
this way. In fact, when Simon the Sorcerer, a new convert, sought to buy power
among the believers,[iii] Peter rebuked him for
such temerity. While the newly converted wealthy and powerful had been
liquidating their assets to help the needy,[iv]
Simon was seeking to use his to possess greater power over others. Like Simon,
people too often love money and the power it can provide. They will justify the
accumulation of wealth by saying that the more they have the more they can help
others. If this was indeed the purpose behind it all, we would not have the
need that exists in the world today. It begs the question as to when they willl
have finally accumulated enough to solve the world's need? Ironically, it is
often those who have the least who are the most generous toward the needs of
others. Jesus tried to tell us how simple it all is. He said, "And if anyone
gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple,
truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward." (Matthew
10:42) It is not for us to seek to accumulate wealth so we can make a big gift
to the needy. It is as simple as sharing what we already have, even a cup of
water.
The wealthy tend to want to
memorialize their gift giving. I remember a church I belonged to where a refrigerated
drinking water fountain was installed with a large plaque saying who donated
the fountain and its installation. The fountain was expensive to maintain and
eventually stopped refrigerating the water. The person who insisted their name
be on the plaque was forgotten with only a few elderly members even remembering
who he was. Eventually the fountain was replaced with a more practical ceramic
one and the plaque disappeared. The donor of the refrigerated fountain did not
consider the needs of the church. He did not consult with those who would use
it whether that was a practical way to address a church need. He just felt that
they should appreciate what he wanted to do and accept it. He felt this way despite
other more urgent needs that he could have addressed but would not provide him with
what he thought would be lasting public recognition of his gift. It is not the
price of the gift, but the heart of the giver that reveals the message Jesus
would have us bring to the world. That message is "God is love." (1 John 4:8) "If
I give all I possess but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love does not boast,
it is not proud." (1 Corinthians 13:3 & 4) The love for others in our
hearts is the only wealth that matters to God. It is the only wealth that
should matter to us as well. May God heal our hard hearts.