A prayer I first read here that I LOVE:
"Oh God, to those who have hunger, give bread; and to those who have bread the hunger for justice." --Latin American prayer
And speaking of the parable of the unjust servant (Luke 16:1-13)-- "Stegemann (1984: 63) concisely captures the contemporary application of verse 9: 'We affluent Christians, too, can make friends for ourselves by means of unrighteous mammon. We can become poorer in a purposeful way by giving away part of our wealth to benefit the poorest people of the world.' But we must do so in the name of Jesus as we proclaim a gospel of spiritual as well as physical wholeness." (122)
I appreciated Blomberg's explanation of the sermon on the mount, particularly the statement by Jesus that has baffled me often: "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33). I understand the point that spiritual is more important than the physical, but one does not have to look very far past the comfort of our country to see that many of God's people in this world who cry out to him for daily bread do not have their most basic needs met. Of the thousands of people that die every day from hunger, we must not think that none are Christians, because if they really had faith and asked, God would have provided. This is my problem with Matthew 6:33.
Blomberg points out that the Sermon on the Mount was given to a community of his followers. Then he says, "Either one must entirely spiritualize this promise or relegate its fulfillment to the eschaton, neither of which fits the immediate context of one who is worrying about current material needs; or else we must understand the plurals of verse 33 as addressed to the community of Jesus' followers corporately (as indeed the entire sermon is--[Blomberg had explained this earlier]). As the community of the redeemed seeks first God's righteous standards, by definition they will help the needy in their midst" (132).
Oh, how much does this speak to the Christian community in the West today? It is easier than it has ever been to connect with people around the world. We hear of their plight indeed, but often we ignore it. We are content as long as we are doing okay. May we realize all the blessings we have, and all the ways the "excess" can be given to others. I think of Galatians 6:10-- "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially those belonging to the family of believers." The family of believers includes those outside our local church, though we should be generous toward them as well.
I find Blomberg's explanation so encouraging. Listen to the conclusion to the section about Jesus' teaching in the gospels: "The good news of the gospel is consistently holistic, according to the teaching of Jesus. Material substance without spiritual salvation proves meaningless, but the liberation that God in Christ grants regularly includes a physical or material dimension to it as well. The only way God's people can consistently obey all of his commands is as the entire Christian community worldwide, and any local expression of it, in its midst" (145).
