Matthew 6:24-34
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Scott Campbell is an interesting fellow. He was born in Louisiana but now resides in San Francisco. He was once a bio-chemist but now he is a tattoo artist. Not only is he a tattoo artist but he is also a traditional artist...but his traditional art is not so traditional. He makes laser cut sculptures out of actual U.S. dollar bills. He takes stacks of cash and cuts them into designs that resemble popular tattoo fare: skulls, spider webs, praying hands, intricate hearts, etc. But what is he saying? It is easy to read in meaning into his work because money in itself comes with so many levels of meaning. It is a political object. It is also a commercial object. It can be a dangerous object in that destroying it without permission can be a serious crime. Lastly, it is an art object (it is a print of an engraving/etching). Maybe he is saying nothing at all or just associating the ink work of the printed dollar with that of a tattoo's design. The ambiguity leaves us to fill in the blank. Jesus was less ambiguous on his feelings about money. Matthew 6:24-34 doesn't actually need any explanation. Jesus is frank and descriptive about his feelings and to remove any mystery he adds illustrations (with explanations) to get his point across. Yet there are still different takes on Jesus' thoughts about money/wealth and a Christians relationship to it.
Does Jesus' teaching blend with Prosperity Theology?
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
If you have followed this blog for some time then you may remember my friend Justin mentioning my thoughts about a certain Prosperity preacher in the comment section and my response. I even made a separate post discussing this subject in detail. So you may be aware of my current thoughts on Prosperity Theology's teaching that the Bible promises you health and wealth but you may not be aware that I used to attend a church that taught this belief. Sadly this type of teaching is popular in many Baptist churches today. I was younger, the church was filled with good people and the message seemed to jive with what the Bible said. Plus the pastor wasn't always that heavy handed with it and many of his sermons were based in sound biblical doctrine. But at the end of the day any deviation from Jesus' message can be dangerous...especially something that he's so clear on. When Jesus says "Mammon" he is talking about the personification of money, wealth and greed. He spends several verses leading up to verse 24 discussing the dangers of pursuing earthly treasures and then explicitly states that the single minded pursuit of wealth makes money your master... and you its slave. man is only called to have one master: God. But most people don't seek money out of greed but rather as a way to get the necessities of life: food, water and clothes. Most of my fellow church members at the Prosperity church were honest hard working people (teachers, truck drivers, politicians, retail workers, college students) who just wanted God's hand to help them make a living. But Jesus raises the standard even higher when he challenges even this motive for pursuing money. It is not that Jesus was against money or work, but he was concerned about the worry over possessions. He taught that God would provide those needed possessions but life was more than possessions.
Did Jesus preach Liberation Theology?
“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Many of my friends from high school went on to study at Xavier University New Orleans, he only HBCU that is also a Catholic University. Since it was a religious school they all were required to take a few religious classes. Every lucky Xavier student has a story about their life changing encounter with Father Linden's theology class. He is a proponent of Liberation Theology and the writings of Gustavo Gutiérrez. Often maligned by its critics as Christian Marxism, Liberation Theology sees itself as an "attempt to return to the gospel of the early church where Christianity is politically and culturally decentralized. Liberation theology proposes to fight poverty by addressing its alleged source: sin. In so doing, it explores the relationship between Christian theology — especially Roman Catholic theology — and political activism, especially in relation to social justice, poverty, and human rights. The principal methodological innovation is seeing theology from the perspective of the poor and the oppressed. For example Jon Sobrino, S.J., argues that the poor are a privileged channel of God's grace." Though I disagree with any attempt to marry Jesus to a political movement or even say that he is the sole property of one contemporary theological movement, I do applaud anyone's attempt bring the message of Christ to the contemporary marketplace of ideas and social policy. No, Christ was not preaching Liberation Theology: it is a later historical development with many great points and some faults. The danger of any well meaning theological system can be that it moves away from exegesis into eisegesis: reading our preconceived notions into Scripture instead of gleaning its own interpretation out of it. There is mush that true in Liberation Theology, but when any of us commit unwaveringly to a school of thought we run the risk demonizing our brothers who hold a different viewpoint but still harbor the intention of honoring Christ. Yes this snippet particular snippet from Matthew 6:24-34 deals with clothing, but if you'll allow me a brief luxury of my own eisegetical foolery, notice that Jesus mentions the grandeur of Solomon in this verse: a monarch. If we are to be honest, the Bible never recommends any one form government for every case: be it monarchy, democracy, loose tribal networks, theocracy, oligarchy, etc. It does however inspire us to pursue justice, mercy and friendship amongst our neighbors and enemies in whatever type of state we find ourselves in. It encourages us to transform our societies by being transformed ourselves. That is the kingdom of God: its citizens live in many lands and think different ways, some are Bourgeoisie and some are Proletariat but it is our godly love that identifies our true home country.
Was Jesus a Hippie?
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
When I was in tenth grade my buddy Steve (who wasn't raised as religious) asked me "What's with Jesus and all the hippie stuff?" To the anachronistic eye the depiction of Jesus in Western Art does resemble a hippie: long hair, sandals, roaming the countryside with his friends spreading the message of peace and love. Then when you encounter his criticism of wealth, possessions and even caring about clothing he seems even more like the hacky sack playing, Grateful Dead following crowd. No, Jesus wasn't a hippie, but Steve wasn't the first to see a connection between the two. The Jesus People movement 1960's & 70's saw a correlation between the American counterculture and the message/lifestyle of the Gospel. Though the movement itself fizzled out its members went onto form varied Christian groups on the Christian Left and Right such as Calvary Chapel, the Vineyard Churches and even Christian Contemporary Music. This parallel with the hippies hits at the heart of Jesus' message in these verses. Christ doesn't hate money or possessions: he just isn't as interested in them as he is with God. And since God is interested in us, He has promised to take care of us: just as he does with the birds of the air, just as he does with the lilies of the field. he does so because we are His dear children. That is why Christ mentions the Gentiles, who at this point in history didn't know God. The Jews of Christ's time understood that they were not only God's people but also His children. He was not only their King but also their Father. In doing so he would provide for and nourish His children. Their is no need to worry more than needs be about our tomorrow when God is planning it out for us.
Jesus rejected money and possessions being our master, worry and mindset because his was fixed on something greater. It was not on the fleeting but on the eternal: the Kingdom of God. By that I don't just mean "Heaven" the place where well behaved dead folks go. I mean the kingdom of God that is at hand: God's rule in the here and now. When we get distracted by making money or the struggle of just barely "making it" we can miss what God is making in us and with us. God is making a new creation in us. Old things have passed away and he is conforming us to the image of His dear Son. God is creating a culture of forgiveness, joy, peace and love with us. We no longer have strangers and enemies any more. We only have neighbors and brothers/sisters. We can only see this when we are no longer taken by our possessions but rather taken by the God that possess us and the Holy Spirit that we are possessed by.
Scott Campbell is an interesting fellow. He was born in Louisiana but now resides in San Francisco. He was once a bio-chemist but now he is a tattoo artist. Not only is he a tattoo artist but he is also a traditional artist...but his traditional art is not so traditional. He makes laser cut sculptures out of actual U.S. dollar bills. He takes stacks of cash and cuts them into designs that resemble popular tattoo fare: skulls, spider webs, praying hands, intricate hearts, etc. But what is he saying? It is easy to read in meaning into his work because money in itself comes with so many levels of meaning. It is a political object. It is also a commercial object. It can be a dangerous object in that destroying it without permission can be a serious crime. Lastly, it is an art object (it is a print of an engraving/etching). Maybe he is saying nothing at all or just associating the ink work of the printed dollar with that of a tattoo's design. The ambiguity leaves us to fill in the blank. Jesus was less ambiguous on his feelings about money. Matthew 6:24-34 doesn't actually need any explanation. Jesus is frank and descriptive about his feelings and to remove any mystery he adds illustrations (with explanations) to get his point across. Yet there are still different takes on Jesus' thoughts about money/wealth and a Christians relationship to it.
Does Jesus' teaching blend with Prosperity Theology?
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
If you have followed this blog for some time then you may remember my friend Justin mentioning my thoughts about a certain Prosperity preacher in the comment section and my response. I even made a separate post discussing this subject in detail. So you may be aware of my current thoughts on Prosperity Theology's teaching that the Bible promises you health and wealth but you may not be aware that I used to attend a church that taught this belief. Sadly this type of teaching is popular in many Baptist churches today. I was younger, the church was filled with good people and the message seemed to jive with what the Bible said. Plus the pastor wasn't always that heavy handed with it and many of his sermons were based in sound biblical doctrine. But at the end of the day any deviation from Jesus' message can be dangerous...especially something that he's so clear on. When Jesus says "Mammon" he is talking about the personification of money, wealth and greed. He spends several verses leading up to verse 24 discussing the dangers of pursuing earthly treasures and then explicitly states that the single minded pursuit of wealth makes money your master... and you its slave. man is only called to have one master: God. But most people don't seek money out of greed but rather as a way to get the necessities of life: food, water and clothes. Most of my fellow church members at the Prosperity church were honest hard working people (teachers, truck drivers, politicians, retail workers, college students) who just wanted God's hand to help them make a living. But Jesus raises the standard even higher when he challenges even this motive for pursuing money. It is not that Jesus was against money or work, but he was concerned about the worry over possessions. He taught that God would provide those needed possessions but life was more than possessions.
Did Jesus preach Liberation Theology?
“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Many of my friends from high school went on to study at Xavier University New Orleans, he only HBCU that is also a Catholic University. Since it was a religious school they all were required to take a few religious classes. Every lucky Xavier student has a story about their life changing encounter with Father Linden's theology class. He is a proponent of Liberation Theology and the writings of Gustavo Gutiérrez. Often maligned by its critics as Christian Marxism, Liberation Theology sees itself as an "attempt to return to the gospel of the early church where Christianity is politically and culturally decentralized. Liberation theology proposes to fight poverty by addressing its alleged source: sin. In so doing, it explores the relationship between Christian theology — especially Roman Catholic theology — and political activism, especially in relation to social justice, poverty, and human rights. The principal methodological innovation is seeing theology from the perspective of the poor and the oppressed. For example Jon Sobrino, S.J., argues that the poor are a privileged channel of God's grace." Though I disagree with any attempt to marry Jesus to a political movement or even say that he is the sole property of one contemporary theological movement, I do applaud anyone's attempt bring the message of Christ to the contemporary marketplace of ideas and social policy. No, Christ was not preaching Liberation Theology: it is a later historical development with many great points and some faults. The danger of any well meaning theological system can be that it moves away from exegesis into eisegesis: reading our preconceived notions into Scripture instead of gleaning its own interpretation out of it. There is mush that true in Liberation Theology, but when any of us commit unwaveringly to a school of thought we run the risk demonizing our brothers who hold a different viewpoint but still harbor the intention of honoring Christ. Yes this snippet particular snippet from Matthew 6:24-34 deals with clothing, but if you'll allow me a brief luxury of my own eisegetical foolery, notice that Jesus mentions the grandeur of Solomon in this verse: a monarch. If we are to be honest, the Bible never recommends any one form government for every case: be it monarchy, democracy, loose tribal networks, theocracy, oligarchy, etc. It does however inspire us to pursue justice, mercy and friendship amongst our neighbors and enemies in whatever type of state we find ourselves in. It encourages us to transform our societies by being transformed ourselves. That is the kingdom of God: its citizens live in many lands and think different ways, some are Bourgeoisie and some are Proletariat but it is our godly love that identifies our true home country.
Was Jesus a Hippie?
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
When I was in tenth grade my buddy Steve (who wasn't raised as religious) asked me "What's with Jesus and all the hippie stuff?" To the anachronistic eye the depiction of Jesus in Western Art does resemble a hippie: long hair, sandals, roaming the countryside with his friends spreading the message of peace and love. Then when you encounter his criticism of wealth, possessions and even caring about clothing he seems even more like the hacky sack playing, Grateful Dead following crowd. No, Jesus wasn't a hippie, but Steve wasn't the first to see a connection between the two. The Jesus People movement 1960's & 70's saw a correlation between the American counterculture and the message/lifestyle of the Gospel. Though the movement itself fizzled out its members went onto form varied Christian groups on the Christian Left and Right such as Calvary Chapel, the Vineyard Churches and even Christian Contemporary Music. This parallel with the hippies hits at the heart of Jesus' message in these verses. Christ doesn't hate money or possessions: he just isn't as interested in them as he is with God. And since God is interested in us, He has promised to take care of us: just as he does with the birds of the air, just as he does with the lilies of the field. he does so because we are His dear children. That is why Christ mentions the Gentiles, who at this point in history didn't know God. The Jews of Christ's time understood that they were not only God's people but also His children. He was not only their King but also their Father. In doing so he would provide for and nourish His children. Their is no need to worry more than needs be about our tomorrow when God is planning it out for us.
Jesus rejected money and possessions being our master, worry and mindset because his was fixed on something greater. It was not on the fleeting but on the eternal: the Kingdom of God. By that I don't just mean "Heaven" the place where well behaved dead folks go. I mean the kingdom of God that is at hand: God's rule in the here and now. When we get distracted by making money or the struggle of just barely "making it" we can miss what God is making in us and with us. God is making a new creation in us. Old things have passed away and he is conforming us to the image of His dear Son. God is creating a culture of forgiveness, joy, peace and love with us. We no longer have strangers and enemies any more. We only have neighbors and brothers/sisters. We can only see this when we are no longer taken by our possessions but rather taken by the God that possess us and the Holy Spirit that we are possessed by.
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