So, tonight some friends began talking about money and church. Some interesting thoughts cropped up. It made me begin to dwell on this old saying “when much is given, much is expected.” Tonight, I brought up the idea that we like to talk about money as “ours” rather than acknowledging that everything is God’s and we are actually stewards of his possessions. Yet, another idea has been invading my mind.
In the Bible, there’s a lot of “us” and “them” language. Many images of the big bad kingdom (Rome, Egypt and so on) and the vindication that “we” will experience when our God comes and un-seats the powerbase…aka Messiah. I know that’s simplistic, but you get the idea. For much of my life, I read these verses all the while thinking that I am “we” and not “them.” That has changed. The more I understand about our economy, the environment, and my role in them I realize that I am a willing and more-and-more unwilling participant in the kingdom of the world. Within this new understanding of my place in the world, I must admit to myself that there is a reason (perhaps temporary) that our kingdom (America) has been entrusted with more resources than most, and how we steward and share them is part of how we are to be judged.
So often, we fall into a self-centered spiritual world-view. It starts with my salvation, is navigated by my “spiritual life” and ends with me going to heaven when I die. However, the thing that we continually loose sight of is that we are part of a greater whole. My faith without community has little purpose. My presence in the lives of others says something about the God I follow.
I just wonder what the world would look like if “we” all began to live out faith as “us” and if we tried to steward God’s resources and leverage them out to the least?
Chad M. Farrand 