Friday, February 01, 2008
Turning tables....
And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves...and the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple and He healed them. -Matt. 21:12-14
February is Black History month, and I will be posting some stuff in honor of those thousands of Black American's both men and women, who have made America what it is. I think the issues that are often more vocalized in black churches, communities and from black leaders need to be expounded and proclaimed. Often the issues emerge from the the voices of the poor and disadvantaged, a fact that often irritates more than mobilizes those who have more than their fellow Americans. I don't think the answer is throwing more money at the problem alone. We need to harness the gifts, talents and God given passions that reside in the human heart and mind and help unleash those forces to generate empowerment, dignity and wealth.
The cry of the poor...is a call to the believer.
The gospel of Jesus has a powerful way of turning over tables. The gospel has a revolutionary effect on the economic structures that tend to establish themselves in ways that are not the best for the community. As in the Temple they get erected in places they shouldn't be. The pursuit of wealth can end up displacing those who should be allowed in the temple and instead it ends up pushing the poor outside. The church/temple should be a place where justice is lived out, where she is found living among both the poor and the rich. Where the tables of ecomomic empowerment have seats for everyone. Open access is a gift of the gospel. Those values translate into the way we do business, handle our wealth and structure communities.
A new kingdom is pressing in on the old one.
A new way of living is dawning in the dusk of the old patterns of this world.
A new community is outliving a different set of values than this world is pushing.
We find in the house of the Lord...a new sound, a new song, a new life, a new way of living together.
Jesus is still turning over tables. He still hates injustice and the oppresion of the poor.
He is still weaving whips to drive out those who have turned His house into a place where profit instead of piety is the driving issue.
I fear that the blind and the lame are still waiting out there somewhere...for the church to once again return to the Lord, who turned over the tables.
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2 comments:
I am so glad to hear you about your involvement with the black community and hear how God has put it on your heart. I have confidence that wherever God leads you there will be some measure of change for the good. No doubt, having a grandson that is mixed race, black and white, I occasionally think about his future and how his race could affect him. But when I get those thoughts, which I rarely have, I brush them off and return to influencing him in the way I explained to his father. This conversation with his father came up because it is important to him that his son realizes he is black and has a rich heritage. I understand that but my approach is different. I talked with his father and simply said, ‘I just want you to know that I do not consider race in my influence and upbringing of my grandson. (He has lived with me on and off through much of his life) I raise him to be an American; not white nor black, but simply an American, and I influence him exactly the same way I do all my children and grandchildren-- be a Christian, be a man or woman of independence, learn from those that have gone before us and made their mark on the world for Christ and the good of mankind, and get busy about the business of life. Race does not play a part in my thinking. I was raised that way, I know little of my heritage, and feel none the less for it. Now I realize the very real problems that black America faces, and I am sympathetic to all, regardless of race, who suffer and struggle. I may be somewhat more interested in black issues because of my grandson, and because of that, I know exactly what to do with him, that is as I stated above, be a man and look at all others on equal ground. You will have to fight, strive and face the “tyranny of circumstance”, regardless of who you are or where you are born. But we have an undying hope, which will not leave us, we live in the land of opportunity, take advantage of it to the fullest, and prepare yourself so as the opportunities of life come along, you can seize them. Give back more than you take.
It is hard to reduce it to a snippet in a post like this, but this is my first blush.
Love Dad
All I can sat to this post is AMEN!!! And to your dad too! I have to agree with you 100%
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