Jesus knew that when we have riches, we inevitably tend to hope in our riches rather than him -- and then we become poor indeed.
So, I'm watching John McCain be interviewed by Rick Warren. In a room filled with christians, in a a church that is one of the biggest in the world, this was McCain phrase drew the loudest applause. "I don't want to take money away from the rich, I want everybody to be rich." This is not a political post, but a post on the state of the many many churches, many many Christians. I think the response would be the same the statement been made in a great many of our churches.
So what's the big deal? My answer, it just made me sad. Not the answer, but the level of applause in a church to that line. It is not an evil line, but the loud cheering response makes me sad.
"I want everybody to be rich." -- Thunderous applause, In a room filled with Christians, people whose Lord, Jesus, would might say if he were there what he said when he was with his disciples, "It is very unlikely that a rich man will follow me."
And you know what? I don't think that Jesus' line would get the kind of applause that John McCain's did. I just don't. Do the people who applaud know that they could just as easily be applauding the line "I want it harder for people to come to Christ."
I know that's not what he said, I know the crowd would not cheer if he said that. But, I also know that the Church in the west is often very very blind to how the idolatry of wealth has caused us not only to lose our ability to see the poor, but also has caused us to lose our ability to hear what Jesus has to say.
1 comment:
Yep, I'm pretty disappointed as well. It seems that all those Christians don't know their Bibles after all. 1Tim 6:8-10 *should* be a stinging rebuke:
But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Jesus, Paul, and of course James (5:1-6) are VERY 'suspicious' (I'm being charitable) about what wealth does to believers.
It seems to me that there are two besetting sins in American Christianity of the early 21st century: narcissism and materialism.
But the political point is this: politicians are most sucessful when they have the pulse of their constituents - and I think McCain was sucessful in recognizing the values of his constituents.
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