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The Economic Solution?

Todd R 2 Comments

What if only one verse from the Bible could solve all of the world’s economic problems?  If one could, it would probably be Ephesians 4:28, where Paul wrote:

“Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”

What if everyone followed the three rules suggested by this one verse?

A fig tree. Photo by Jametlene Reskp on Unsplash

First, imagine if there was no crime.  “Let the thief no longer steal.”  The Bible tells us that in a perfect world, God’s people “shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid”[1]  Every person will reap the rewards of their effort – their own wine and figs – with no concern for it being taken away from them.

Next, imagine if everyone’s job was productive and meaningful; that each person did “honest work with his own hands.”  What if everyone approached their job as an act of worship, offered to God who sees and knows all?  No dishonesty, no scandal, no nasty office politics, no slacking.

Last, imagine if everyone’s needs were taken care of from the surplus of others.  Imagine if we had the mindset that working in order to have more to share is better than working in order to accumulate for ourselves.

What a world that would be!  So, let’s make these rules into law, enforce them strictly, and we will have a perfect society, right?  Wrong, because rules and laws are not the solution to the world’s problems.  People don’t consistently follow rules, especially when they require that we abandon our selfish ways.  At the root of Adam and Eve’s sin – the sin that taints us all – is that they wanted to do things their own way, making their own choices between good and evil, rather than trusting God to know it for them.  When rebellion is the problem, more or better rules can’t solve it.  Rebellion against God can’t be solved from the outside of us, only from the inside.

However, while sin will always taint us in this world, we are called to, and able to, live differently.  Paul declares in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”  The principles of Ephesians 4:28 apply to God’s people now.

Christians are called not to follow this world’s economic models and incentives, but to “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”[2]  Because in heaven the thief will “no longer steal” and we should desire that God’s “will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” we should no longer steal now.  We should know that in any job we should “work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men”[3] and we should share with those in need because Jesus told us “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”[4]

Is this possible?  Yes, and Paul modeled some of this for us in his own life.  In Acts 20:34 he said, “You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me.”  While as an apostle he could have asked each church he founded to fully support his ministry and cover his costs, instead he worked as a tentmaker to show us the principles of Ephesians 4:28 at work.

Maybe one verse can solve all of our economic problems, but only when everyone lives like God knows best.  Our Savior Jesus offers us a world just like that.  All good things are possible.

“Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”

[1] Micah 4:4
[2] Matthew 6:20
[3] Colossians 3:23
[4] Matthew 25:40

A Psalm of God’s Strength and Power

Todd R 3 Comments

The Bible software I use (Accordance) has the ability to highlight text, but so far I’ve only used it once, for Psalm 21.  In just 13 verses, David wrote “you” or “your” 25 times, referring to God as the source of his success and blessings, past, present, and future.  The short 13 verses of Psalm 21 provide a plethora of praises we can offer to confess that God is powerful, faithful and just.  Here is the entire Psalm, and I’ve bolded all the “you”s and “your”s, which I highlighted in Accordance:

“To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

O LORD, in your strength the king rejoices,
            and in your salvation how greatly he exults!
You have given him his heart’s desire
            and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah
For you meet him with rich blessings;
            you set a crown of fine gold upon his head.
He asked life of you; you gave it to him,
            length of days forever and ever.
His glory is great through your salvation;
            splendor and majesty you bestow on him.
For you make him most blessed forever;
            you make him glad with the joy of your presence.
For the king trusts in the LORD,
            and through the steadfast love of the Most High he shall not be moved.

Your hand will find out all your enemies;
            your right hand will find out those who hate you.
You will make them as a blazing oven
            when you appear.
The LORD will swallow them up in his wrath,
            and fire will consume them.
You will destroy their descendants from the earth,
            and their offspring from among the children of man.
Though they plan evil against you,
            though they devise mischief, they will not succeed.
For you will put them to flight;
            you will aim at their faces with your bows.

Be exalted, O LORD, in your strength!
            We will sing and praise your power.”

What statements did you focus on while reading this?  Did you take the time to think about all 25 “you” statements (and the rest of the Psalm)?  Read it again.

The first section in this Psalm describes how our God is “faithful” in some ways, and the second describes “just.”  The first may come easier, with David giving God credit for all of his strength and success, but the middle section on justice may come across as harsh and harder to swallow.  However, it reminds us that only He knows for sure who His (and our) enemies are.  “Your hand will find out all your enemies.”  Only He determines the fates of others, including some who look like enemies now, but will come to faith in Him later.  With any enemy we can “wait upon the Lord”, as David often urges us, knowing God will either save them, or their plans will come to ruin by His design.

Yet, for those in Christ, “he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  Therefore, we echo David:

“Be exalted, O LORD, in your strength!
            We will sing and praise your power.”

Bible in a Year: Week of January 22-28

Todd R Leave a comment

Fellow travelers:

Below are the chapters to read this week if you’re following along my Bible in a year schedule, divided into morning and evening readings.  This week, we’ll finish our first book – 1 Samuel – and start 2 Samuel.

Monday, January 22
Morning: Psalm 22, 1 Samuel 28
Evening: Genesis 22

Tuesday, January 23
Morning: Psalm 23, 1 Samuel 29
Evening: Genesis 23

Wednesday, January 24
Morning: Psalm 24, 1 Samuel 30
Evening: Genesis 24

Thursday, January 25
Morning: Psalm 25, 1 Samuel 31
Evening: Genesis 25

Friday, January 26
Morning: Psalm 26, 2 Samuel 1
Evening: Genesis 26

Saturday, January 27
Morning: Psalm 27, 2 Samuel 2-3
Evening: Genesis 27

Sunday, January 28
Morning: Psalm 28, 2 Samuel 4-5
Evening: Genesis 28

The Zealot and the Tax Collector

Todd R 1 Comment

Mark 3:18 lists among Jesus’ 12 disciples “Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot.”

Matthew was a former tax collector for the Roman Empire, while Warren Wiersbe notes that “The Zealots were a group of Jewish extremists organized to overthrow Rome, and they used every means available to advance their cause. The historian Josephus called them ‘daggermen.’ It would be interesting to know how Simon the Zealot responded when he first met Matthew, a former employee of Rome.” They learned to prioritize following Jesus, but I suspect it took some time and patience on Jesus’ part.

No enemy of God is beyond His grace, and no enemy of yours is beyond His grace either!

Photo I took at the entrance to Westminster Abbey in July 2022.

Ebenezer in the Wilderness

Todd R Leave a comment

In the ESV Bible, the phrase “but God” appears 43 times, changing the direction of the story.  An Ebenezer is a “stone of help,” or reminder of God’s benefit to His people in the past, providing strength for the present and future.  Ebenezer the squirrel, this blog’s mascot, represents these “but God” memorials the Bible records of God’s intervention in the world and in our lives.  As a squirrel can unexpectedly draw our attention, I write about these moments to draw our attention to God as a reminder that adding God to our circumstances can change everything.  One of these instances comes at a key point in David’s life.

Prior to becoming Israel’s second king, David may have spent a decade in exile, running from Saul, Israel’s first king.  Saul was extremely insecure and jealous of David and sought to kill him for years.  In 1 Samuel 23 there is a story about Keilah, a border town in Judah that was near the Philistine city of Gath.  Bands of Philistines were stealing grain from Keilah and David heard of it.  This small border town may not have interested Saul, but David prayed to God about whether to rescue it.  After getting affirmation from God, David and his men rescued the town.

Saul, with spies everywhere, heard that David was staying in Keilah and planned to besiege the town, probably to starve the people until they gave David up.  In other words, Saul hated David so much and wanted him dead that he would attack a town in his own territory.  Saul was persistent and not interested in seeking (or following) God’s guidance.

David, informed by God that the people of Keilah would give him up to Saul, fled into the wilderness again, then we get to verse 14 of the chapter:

“And David remained in the strongholds in the wilderness, in the hill country of the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God did not give him into his hand.” (emphasis added)

Saul sought David “every day, but God” was on David’s side, and “did not give him into his hand.”  It wouldn’t matter how hard Saul tried – hunting David while he should have been minding his kingdom – David would not be caught unless God allowed it.

As the story continues, Saul is informed that David is hiding in the wilderness of Maon (verse 25).  Then, “As Saul and his men were closing in on David and his men to capture them, a messenger came to Saul, saying, ‘Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid against the land.’  So Saul returned from pursuing after David and went against the Philistines. Therefore that place was called the Rock of Escape.” (verses 26b-28)

While the news of this Philistine raid may seem like mere coincidence, I don’t believe it was.  First, the timing worked out just right, as David seemed cornered by Saul and his men.  Second, Saul was not concerned about raids on Keilah – why is he concerned this time?  “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will,” says Proverbs 21:1.  Perhaps this was one of God’s ways to “not give him into his hand.” While Ebenezer means “stone of help,” David found a “Rock of Escape,” and God can be our escape as well.  When we feel threatened by enemies – physical or spiritual – remember that God watches over His people.  Those enemies may seem overwhelming, “but God” will not give us into their hand unless He knows it will benefit us and our faith, for “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).  God changes every story for the betterment of His people.

Amen.