September 2008
Greed Not Good
Like many of you, I shook my head in disbelief as news of America’s financial catastrophes unfolded. Lehmann Brothers, bankrupt! Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, AIG, Bear Stearns; bailed out! Merrill Lynch bought out! Washington Mutual and others, hanging in the balance!
What’s goin’ on, I thought. Maybe life does imitate art, as playwright Oscar Wilde once said.
In the 1987 film, Wall Street, Gordon Gekko—played by Michael Douglas—said, “The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed -- for lack of a better word -- is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms—greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge—has marked the upward surge of mankind.”
This worldview espoused by Gekko is becoming painfully apparent. The cause of our real life crisis reeking havoc on Wall Street and financial institutions abroad, according to reliable analyst, political observers and even Christian thinkers, is greed.
But whether in film or in real life, Gekko’s statement is dead wrong! Greed is not good, isn’t right, doesn’t work, and definitely doesn’t clarify. It’s down right deadly!
Jesus was approached on one occasion by a young man who said, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me” (Luke 12:13). Rather than addressing the man’s grievance, Jesus got to the heart of the matter, and issued a warning to him and the listening crowd, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (12:15).
So why do you think Jesus included the crowd in the warning when only the man asked the question? Because Jesus wants us to know that greed is not a vice limited to the rich. It afflicts the “haves” and the “have-nots” alike. Further more, greed is a byproduct of the fall…
I believe greed is what King Solomon had in mind when he said, “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income” (Ecclesiastes 5:10).
As Herbert Schlossberg points out in his book, Idols for Destruction, “All true needs—such as food, drink, and companionship—are satiable. Illegitimate wants—pride, envy, greed are insatiable. By their very nature they cannot be satisfied.”
If what’s driving our nation’s economical power is greed, can anything good come from it if it’s never satisfied? Go figure!
August 2008
Have you “touched” Jesus lately?
Acquainted with suffering
Mark 5: 24b-34 records the story of a woman who knew what it meant to suffer. For 12 years she endued a chronic physical condition that caused frequent bleeding. With such blood loss she was probably weak and tired all the time. Some scholars believe her condition was caused by a fibroid tumor in her uterus. She went broke financially going to the doctor but instead of getting better, she got worse.
Old Testament law (Leviticus 15:25-31) rendered a person with her condition ceremonially unclean. That also included every person and thing they touched. Therefore, this woman basically lived an isolated life. She had limited or no contact with other people, was probably divorced, and could not participate in regular worship at the local synagogue or the temple. Just imagine the loneliness she must have felt.
Psychologists tell us that loneliness can negatively impact our health. In fact, it can make us sick. Writing in Psychology Today, July/August 2003, Hara Estroff Marano makes the following observation: “Friendship is a lot like food. We need it to survive. What is more, we seem to have a basic drive for it. Psychologist find that human beings have a fundamental need for inclusion in group life and for close relationships. We are truly social animals.”
In light of these findings, it isn’t unreasonable to think that loneliness may have contributed to her not getting better. Twelve years is a long time to live in isolation. Yet in spite of her circumstances, she did not give in to hopelessness. In the words of Jesse Jackson, she managed to “keep hope alive.”
Faith in Jesus
One day she heard that a man named Jesus was passing through her neighborhood. But this was no ordinary man. This was a man who had given sight to the blind, cured paralysis, restored deformed hands, and cast out demons. Not willing to let the opportunity pass her by, she said boldly to herself, “If I just touch his cloths, I will be healed.” She then acted on her belief, despite the risk.
Undeterred by the large crowd that followed Jesus, she managed to get close enough to touch the fringes of his robe. Right away her bleeding stopped and Jesus turned around and asked, “Who touched Me?” Jesus’ disciples said rather cynically, “You see the people crowding against you…and yet, you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’” But Jesus knew this was no ordinary touch, it was a “touch of faith.” So he kept looking around until the woman finally revealed herself. Gripped by fear she told Jesus everything that had happened. She expected a rebuke, but instead heard words of love and compassion. “Daughter” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be healed from your suffering.”
A new lease on life
With these words, Jesus restored this woman’s dignity and social standing. She no longer had to live with the stigma of being “unclean.” She was now free to touch and be touched. She was free to participate in normal activates involving family and friends. And she was free to worship in the synagogue and temple again.
In God’s economy, believers are expected to live by faith (Rom. 1:17, 2 Cor. 5:7). It is his sovereignly decreed means by which we appropriate his promises. Derived from the Greek word pistis, faith is defined as belief, confidence or trust. It encompasses hearing, believing, and acting on God’s word. That’s exactly what the woman did. Her touch was a “touch of faith.”
For Reflection and Action
What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith…James 2:14
How’s your faith walk? Have you “touched” Jesus lately? If so, what fears or risks did you have to overcome? Commit to strengthening your faith by meditating on God’s promises. Who will hold you accountable?
Ron C