The Faith...in the Economy

Lately there’s been news about the Slave Bible from 1807 that reduced the whole Bible of more than 1,100 chapters to a mere 232. It excluded passages that might have incited rebellion. Firstly, there’s the audacity of reducing the Bible to only the non-controversial bits. Secondly, it’s important to realize that there were more than 900 chapters, more than 80% of the Bible, that would have shamed and challenged the slave owners and their practices.

While reading Jemar Tisby’s The Color of Compromise, a historical review that is also about the future of the American church, there were lots of time that the American church and the believers in it could have stopped an unjust system of exploitation. Virginia in 1667 enacted laws that prevented a slave from being freed after being baptized into the Christian faith, a practice that occurred in England and other places. Leading up to the Civil War, many denominations split over the issue of slavery: Southern Baptists from their northern brothers and sisters; similarly the Methodist Episcopal Church, South split away over whether a bishop could own slaves; Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS) was originally the Presbyterian Church in the Confederate States of America.

Many of the ‘heroes’ of the American church owned slaves. Jonathan Edwards during the Great Awakening time (“America’s Greatest Theologian”) from Massachusetts bought his first slave at 28 years old, after taking over his grandfather’s church...and two years before a revival broke out. (It’s another discussion on whether faith revival affirms individual or social practices. For a short example, think about Roman Empire in the time of Christ: which people did God favor and love?) George Whitefield, a Wesley contemporary and ‘intercolonial religious celebrity’, called for more humane slavery practices, and allowance to evangelize among the slaves, but did not call for abolition. To keep an orphanage in Georgia economically viable, he bought a South Carolina plantation so the profits could fund the orphanage and accepted gifts of slaves and petitioned the Georgia colony legislature to amend their laws to allow slavery there. Georgia originally disallowed slavery so that poor Englishmen wouldn’t have economic competition.

There’s more...unfortunately...as America gets through its Civil War (e.g. read the declarations given when the southern states seceded), Reconstruction and Jim Crow and more. If someone had to cut out 80% of the Bible to avoid embarrassment, shame, faith challenges, then something’s wrong. Can the American church now find its relevance on the current injustices in our society? Can we attract the Religion-None and Religion-Done crowds by facing the issues that hurt people, even in the name of economic prosperity?

If you want to learn more about Tisby’s book, there are some nice pre-order bonuses.

Light Is Expensive!

It’s hard for us moderns to look back. Definitely hard to look back 2000 years when I barely remember what the 1970’s, 1980’s, 1990’s were like...before smartphones, before mobile phones, before personal computers...before the internet (!) and MP3 players. I remember having to type (on a typewriter!) memos and send them in Manila envelopes through inter office ‘snail’ mail. An inbox was a physical thing—either on the desk or in the ‘mail room’.

So it’s really hard to think about what life was like in the first century AD. I think even the movies get it wrong. For example, in the movies, all the disciples are middle-aged guys when chances are they were teenagers: they lived long after Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection; only Peter and Y’shua had to pay the temple tax, which meant the others were under 21 years old; a few of the disciples had been disciples of John the Baptist meaning they were of the age to be accepted as disciples coming out of school.

Also in the movies and Sunday School illustrations, we see lights in most of the windows of the houses at night. According to Bill Nordhaus, a Noble Prize-winning economist, it’s not likely that many people would have had candles or oil lamps...an animal fat candle that could burn 10 minutes would have cost a day’s wages. A household would have had to have a lot of discretionary income to afford a candle that could burn an hour. If they did, the candles and lamps weren’t lit every night and not for very long. They would have been lit for special occasions...only. Nordhaus cites that later whale fat as a source was more economic; a day’s wages could buy an hour of light (a 600% increase). The availability of kerosene (from coal) provided 5 hours of light for a day’s wages (500% increase). Today...a day’s wages can purchase 20,000 hours of electric light (more than we need...but also a reason that we have an abundance of light in the nighttime).

When the sun set, it was dark, very dark indeed. It might have been dangerous to be outdoors at night. If it’s like some places, only thieves and criminals are wandering about at night. Nicodemus took a chance to visit Christ and have the famous discussion in which Nicodemus is told he needs to be “born again”. It was probably only safe for Christ and the disciples to go to the Garden of Gethsemane because they were a crowd.

In Matthew 25, Christ tells a parable of 10 bridesmaids waiting for the bridegroom to arrive—five were wise and five foolish in that they didn’t have enough oil for their lamps. I don’t know if olive oil was less expensive than other sources of light but it probably is more expensive than we think of it today. We might look at the parable as merely one of ill-preparedness when the five foolish maids run out of oil for their lamps. The wise ones had extra oil that they could use when it turned out the bridegroom was delayed, and delayed long enough that the lamps burned out and had to be refilled. The wise did not share because there was not enough to be shared with the other five.

I think the parable is also a lesson on treasure. Let’s say they had enough for the lamps to burn a few hours—that’s worth 12-18 days of work. In today’s terms, using the median income, that’s having $2500 to nearly $4000 available for the Lord’s work...and then having extra available in case the Lord’s work ‘is delayed’ and needs more monetary assistance—maybe another $2500-4000.. Since most people don’t even have $400 available for emergencies—car repair, doctor bill, house repair, etc.—this is a big stretch. This parable suggests that we sacrifice some things so that we can help others. This parable is followed by one in which a master entrusts servants to handle his wealth correctly, and another parable in which we are told that if we’ve helped the “least” we’ve actually provided assistance to the King Himself, the Bridegroom Himself.

You probably know that the Lord calls us ‘light’ to the world. If we’re burning all the time, in first century terms, that’s a costly purchase, or redemption for sure.

Do you have treasure working for the Lord and set aside for His work if He needs more?

First Harvest, First Church

43 days after leaving Egypt, Moses and the other hundreds of thousands of Israelites arrived in the wilderness near Mount Sinai. There the Lord fed them with quail and manna. Later, the 50th day--one week after the appearance of manna--would be designated the Festival of the Harvest to celebrate all that the Lord has provided, during which each is to bring a voluntary offering in proportion to the blessings (Deut. 16:9-112). The celebration was with the whole family, all the servants, the priests and...perhaps more importantly all the foreigners/travelers, orphans and widows amongst them. The Festival is also called the Festival of Weeks--as in seven weeks after Passover--Shabuot or the Festival of Pentecost.

Christ had told His disciples, speaking of the need to spread the Good News, that the harvest was plentiful but the workers few. In the gospel of John, Christ is quoted as saying that the harvest is 'white' perhaps like manna. Also that the disciples would be able to harvest where they didn't plant. Unnamed others have already planted the 'good seed' and the disciples just need to gather the manna. Manna was provided by God, through His Holy Spirit; He made the provision and we are asked to just harvest.

After His resurrection, and ascension into heaven, His disciples are gathered in Jerusalem again for the Festival of the Harvest. As promised the Holy Spirit comes to them, empowered them to speak in the languages of the pilgrimage people also gathered in Jerusalem. Those people thought they're drunk but Peter gave an impassioned call to repentance citing the prophet Joel and others. That day, among the pilgrims, three thousand people were baptized and joined the 'church' and began learning what it means to follow Christ. This was a clear sign that God had indeed prepared the harvest and the disciples just had to be faithful and gather the manna.

Two weeks after the appearance of the manna, one week after the date of the Festival of the Harvest, Moses climbs Mount Sinai for the first time to receive instructions from the Lord. Likewise, the believers assembled each day to hear the Good News of the Lord ('the teaching of the apostles') and to have fellowship, to share meals and pray for one another. No longer would they need Moses to clamber over rocks, crevices and bushes to have a conversation with the Lord and come back and report what He said; they merely need to pray and the Holy Spirit was there to intercede for them and they could hear directly from the Lord. They were 'climbing Mount Sinai' themselves to commune with God, and they were doing it together.

When they gathered daily to celebrate new life in Christ, they shared, not just meals, but also means in that they also sold things to provide for those in need--like the widows and orphans. With the coming of the Holy Spirit to live within His people, the celebration was not just annually during the Festival of Weeks. It was daily.

How about you? Are you celebrating with others daily for all the Lord has provided?

Led by the Spirit But Not Listening to the Spirit?

In a recent discussion about the Holy Spirit, a true unsung Hero, I recalled a little discussed passage from the book of Acts, chapter 20:

"And now, compelled by the spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."

I italicized 'spirit' in the first sentence because most translations capitalize it as if it's the Holy Spirit. However the word is 'pneuma' which can also refer to the human spirit. And it's different in the next sentence when the word 'holy' is added a descriptor of that spirit (Spirit).

I believe a good reading of this passage is that Paul is passionate and self-compelled to go to Jerusalem. Otherwise we'd have a contradiction in chapter 21 (see below). Either way, Paul is traveling...and trying to listen to the Holy Spirit.

Paul writes a lot about the importance of submitting to the Lordship of Christ, being led by the Holy Spirit, listening to the Holy Spirit. He seems to be a good role model of this as we understand his missionary career. Can you imagine being a first century career counselor to Paul? "Paul," you might say, "you've been beaten, stoned, jailed, shipwrecked, kicked out of cities, criticized by peers...Have you thought about just sticking with the tent-making business?" And in this instance of feeling the need to go to Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit may not leading him there. This becomes clear later on as we learn:

• in Tyre, fellow believers 'through the spirit or Spirit' urged him not to go
• in Caesarea, fellow believers told Paul that 'the Holy Spirit' (note the distinction) says Paul will be captured and turned over to Roman authorities (something Paul already guessed as shown in the quoted passage above)

Not only does it seem that the Holy Spirit may not be leading him there but it doesn't seem to be mission-successful. The elders in Jerusalem greet him warmly and are enthusiastic about what's happening through Paul's church-planting activities...but there's this criticism that Paul has been telling the Jews they don't need to follow the ceremonial laws of the Hebrew Scriptures, like circumcision. This is similar to the issue of Gentiles needing to be circumcised before becoming a follower of Christ (i.e. becoming a Jew before becoming a Christian) confronted five chapters ago in an earlier visit to Jerusalem, in which Paul defended the position that they don't need to be circumcised. On this last visit to Jerusalem, Paul seems to capitulate that the Jews should continue to be circumcised, among other things, and remain faithful to the ceremonial laws even while following the Christian 'way'...and is ordered or asked to accompany four men participating in purification rites and ordered or asked to pay their head-shaving expenses. So, Paul, you may argue that followers of Christ don't need to pay attention to those things in the Hebrew Scriptures, but you must publicly show that you think they do and you should pay some money too. A week later, Paul is accused of violating the Temple by allowing a Gentile to enter, arrested by the Romans and bound with double-chains (just as the Holy Spirit warned) and mis-identified perhaps as an Egyptian terrorist leader. "Boy oh boy," Paul must be thinking, "the whole city knows who I am as a leader of this Christ-following movement but this guy thinks I'm a terrorist..."

Here the story starts to turn around somewhat as Paul gets back to his mission of testifying. He gets to preach to the crowd, to the Jewish leaders (Sanhedrin council). Even though he remains in jail for over two years, he gets to preach to multiple Roman governors and a Jewish king and is sent to Rome to appear in Caesar's court. In preparation for or presentation in Caesar's court, it is speculated that Luke wrote the two accounts (his eponymous gospel and the Acts of the Apostles) for Theophilus. Therefore, all of church has benefited for several millennia from these accounts recorded because Paul ignored the Holy Spirit or perhaps just the spirit of the believers in Tyre.

We can all take heart that even if we fail to listen to the Holy Spirit, though trying to be led by the Spirit, God makes things work out well for those who believe in Him and creates ways for us to get back on the right path, as many scriptures passage say. In particular, it says, "...He will show you a way out so you can endure." (1 Corinthians 10.13)

More Honored, More Protected, More Hidden

This is another example of still being surprised by scripture even with decades of reading and studying the Bible:

I was reading 1 Corinthians 12 regarding another subject, but a few verses surprised me. Paul is writing about the church and using the human body as an analogy. He discusses how the body has different parts, just as the church is gifted with many talents, knowledge and experiences. Not every member needs to have the same talents; in fact, it wouldn’t survive if the organization only could do one thing. And then he says:

Construction work hidden by facsimile at Stephansdom cathedral, Vienna

And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, 24while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. 25This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. 26If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.

What parts of the church has less honor (but should be given more), should be protected more, should be hidden?
What parts of the church actually are given more honor, are protected more and are more visible?
How have we gotten this backwards in our modern church?

I sometimes challenge church leaders to recognize that we often put successful (i.e. wealthy) business people on our church boards...because we believe they have the favor of God?...even though scripture tells us that rich people have little faith while poor people have much faith. Perhaps we should elevate and honor the poorer people in our congregations. They’re often hidden and they’re suffering. If we honor them, wouldn’t the whole body benefit?

But I still wonder what parts of the church should still be hidden and well-protected. I can’t think of one aspect of the modern church where this is true. So what are we missing from our communal life that the first century church understood?

Inaccurate Scales

I used to think of Performance Appraisals as a pet peeve. Now I'm convinced it may be the one thing that requires confession and pleading for forgiveness as a supervisor, manager, executive and business owner.

Have you ever rated someone lower because you didn't want him/her to think they deserved a promotion or greater merit increase? Have you ever rated someone higher because you didn't want to have that 'awkward' conversation? Have you followed a policy such as 10% of employees are given A's, 80% are given B's and 10% C's, D's or F's? Have you ever rated someone as a Hero because you've always thought of them as a hero even though they messed up four times, and rated someone as a Dolt even though they only messed up four times but you've always thought this of him/her?

At least 90% of an appraisal is based on policies, appraiser biases, prejudices and preferences while less than 10% is based on the person's actual performance.

This may be the very definition of an inaccurate scale--a device that falsely compares two things or two people--and that's something God abhors: see Deut. 25.13ff; Prov. 11.1, 16.11, 20.10, 20.23; Micah 6.11).

If our performance appraisal system is tied into merit increases and promotions, then we may also be guilty of cheating workers of their wages. James 5 (paraphrase) says, "If we cheat workers of wages, there's a special place in Hell for us."

Gardening or Carpentry

If anyone thinks they have the magic formula for raising perfect kids (Dr. Dobson?), they only need to look at God's experience. God the Father is the most frustrated parent ever. Just read the scriptures.

If anyone should know the formula, and be perfect in their parenting, it's God. Yet, immediately in the narrative, His kids went astray. Adam and Eve didn't listen and got into trouble (Genesis 3). Later on, God asks, "What more could I have done for my vineyard that I have not already done?" (Isaiah 5.4) He followed the perfect gardening plan: fertile land, plowed field, best seed, perfect caretaking. He expected sweet grapes (aka perfect kids); instead He got bitter grapes (spoiled rotten kids).

It's the perfect metaphor for raising kids. There is no recipe or carpentry plan that can be followed using the best materials and tools in controlled environments with the result that you get a 'product' that matches exactly what you wanted (i.e. met spec). With children, there are factors that are not under our control, like free will and outside influences: weeds, vermin, pests, drought, flood, etc. stand in for friends, social trends and other cultural currents, authority figures, community dynamics, economic cycles and communal responses of fear/confidence, mentors who encourage abundance-thinking or scarcity-thinking, mentors of clan-first or Kingdom-first, and so on.

I think we need to extend a lot of grace to parents, and avoid putting guilt and shame on them for how their kids turn out. Would we berate God for how His kids turned out?

God's Laws of Compensation

We had an interesting discussion this morning...actually two. One with employees and later with business owners. We wrestled with the very personal and perplexing topic of compensation. How do we pay fairly, pay generously and yet not hinder business growth?

A couple of scriptures were reviewed:

• Deuteronomy 8.17-18: "You may say to yourself, 'My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' But remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your ancestors, as it is today." This is part of Moses' parting speech to the Israelites before they cross over the Jordan into the Promised Land, a land of milk and honey. A land of 'milk and honey' means it could support a lot of cattle and a lot of agriculture. God was providing this land as a fulfillment of a promise. The Israelites were reminded that they shouldn't think they created this opportunity and this success...especially as the generations come and this admonition from Moses may be forgotten. They were considered stewards of the land and riches, charged with ensuring that all people were taken care of--like the Levites who didn't work but shared in the bounty through tithes. Later the land is taken away from them by God because they had forgotten that God ensured their 'success'. Similarly, in business, we could think we've created our own success...rather than realizing that God has entrusted us with His bounty and He could just as likely give it to someone else. Those of us who have suffered some business setbacks, despite our efforts that produced success in the past, fully realize. We are stewards charged to faithfully conduct business according to the Owner's wishes.
• 1 Corinthians 9.9-10: "It is written in the Law of Moses: 'Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.' Is it about oxen that God is concerned? Surely He says this for us, doesn't He? Yes, this was written for us, because whoever plows and threshes should be able to do so in hope of sharing in the harvest." One interpretation of this is that oxen are fed but still enjoy a bonus of feeding on some grain when they do work. They're fed for plowing. They're fed for treading. God is requiring that they also enjoy this fruit of their labor, enjoy a bonus when they're creating something of greater value for their owner. Likewise, the commentator might say that employees should benefit from creating value for business owners, beyond wages.

One article suggest that modern businesses provided for health insurance and retirement benefits out of the owners' benevolence. The author forgot all the labor wars of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Even though it touted ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plans) as a way to provide for employees' retirement in a greater way than a 401(k), one point was forgotten: many ESOP companies may not pay wages as high as competitors because the total compensation for ESOPs is greater when a company contribution to the ESOP accounts are provided. Then the question becomes: Are business owners robbing from their employees' deserved pay in order to pay it later in retirement? Are the families struggling as they wait for the expected payout when their old? What happens if the company expires before these people retire?

On those last questions, I think about James 5.1-6 which says, in paraphrase, that if owners cheat or fail to pay their workers there's a special place in Hell for them. 

God gave us an ability to make our/His companies successful. God gave talents to His employees to work in His businesses. I think we should be paying His workers not only fair, livable wages (i.e. don't starve the oxen or the fields won't get plowed) but also a profit-sharing bonus. One author suggests that the scriptures suggest we need to worry about our employees' retirement in the spirit of New Testament oikos (household--family and servants). Today, with a nomadic workforce, we don't have an oikos; we are hiring street peddlers. There only here for a short time. We need to pay them appropriately. If we can't do that, maybe there's something wrong with the business models--the sales, marketing, production plans.

Think about it.

Faster Spiritual Growth Through Adversity

Last week, I went through intensive sessions with Younique. As we reviewed high points and hard times in our lives, they demonstrated a spiritual principle. Watch the video--particularly at 2:12-- to understand the physics behind the principle that more potential energy can be converted into kinetic energy even with many ups and downs:

Joseph's life in Genesis had many ups and downs: father's favoritism (up), sold into slavery by brothers (down), put in charge of household (up), imprisoned (down), put in charge of Pharoah's court and second-in-command over all of Egypt (up). Instead of taking revenge on his brothers when given the chance, he recognized God's grace in preparing for the moment to take care of his family.

Likewise, James writes that we should, "when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy..."

Come the high points to Psalm 23's green pastures. In a desert clime, they occur at the higher altitudes where the air cools and the humidity becomes rain. It's at the high points where we are building up potential energy, prepared for getting through the valleys. And King David says there will be "valley of the shadow of death" and evil to fear. What a marvelous time to have all kinds of kinetic energy to really 'book' it through that valley!!

Wisdom the Cure-All?

We had an interesting study the other night. We were reviewing a "Respectable Sin" (based on the book by Jerry Bridges): the lack of self-control. Self-control is a promised fruit of the Holy Spirit and something that appears (like love, joy, peace...) if you cultivate your submission to the Holy Spirit. We recognize that we need self-control in our eating (duh!), sedentary lifestyle, use of time and use of money (another duh! especially as you look at credit card usage!). We also need self-control in what we say and what we do in response to things that trigger our uglier emotions.

There were a couple of actions we thought might help with self-control:

• more knowledge (though 60-90% of us don't do what we know we should do, especially in terms of eating and exercising)
• more discipline
• changing habits (e.g. stop driving by the bakery if you want to exercise control of eating donuts--and here we all struggle to change habits even heart disease patients)
• more wisdom on when to apply our knowledge (common definition of wisdom is knowing when to say something and when not to say it)

But then we looked at the life of Solomon in 1 Kings chapter 11. "God gave Solomon very great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge as vast as the sands of the seashore. In fact his wisdom exceeded that of all the wise men of the East and the wise men of Egypt. He was wiser than anyone else...and kings from every nation sent their ambassadors to listen to the wisdom of Solomon." (1 Kings 4.29-34) However, Solomon angered the Lord and caused the kingdom to be split into two after his death. "Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharoah's daughter [and Naamah, an Ammonite woman, at least one year before he became king--11.42; 14.21]...he had 700 wives and 300 concubines [of Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonite and Hittite origins]...and...they did turn his heart away from the Lord...they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the LORD his God...Solomon did what was evil in the LORD's sight; he refused to follow the LORD completely..." (11.1-6)

Solomon had all the wisdom he needed and all the knowledge. God had warned Solomon "specifically about worshiping other gods, but Solomon did not listen to the LORD's command." (v. 10)  He obviously couldn't stop himself from marrying foreign women and being sucked into the evil practice of worshiping their gods.What he needed was self-control...to know when the continued path was leading to destruction and that he needed to change direction. It's like a lung cancer patient who continues to smoke (I've known one) or a heart disease patient who refuses to go for walks and continues to eat bacon and other fatty foods with every meal. It's just too enjoyable and the consequences aren't immediate, are they? 

Our group was struck that even Solomon didn't face the consequences except that the last year(s) of his reign were uncomfortable with Hadad, Jeroboarm and Rezon causing problems for him. God didn't smote him or make him give up the throne (because of God's love for his father, King David). Likewise, if we insult another person or continue in our bad habit of sarcasm and hurt others, we may not face immediate consequences. Yet, we should take warning. "If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging." To continue isn't going to make it any better.