Proper 9 | Ordinary Time 14 | Pentecost 7 (Cycle C)

Psalm 30

This beautiful Individual Hymn of Praise (considered also in Proper 5 above) glorifies the Lord God for bringing the nephesh (the life, the animating principle) of the psalmist back from sheol (the abode of the dead). In its original setting, this psalm acclaims Adonai for providing a resuscitation of a life that has lost all of its spirit and all of its power, like a rubber tire that is flat, not a resurrection from death to life in which there was no longer a tire at all. The restoration to life proclaimed in this psalm is a manifestation of the power and of the love shown by Adonai. It is intended to encourage people to respond to Adonai with praise and thanksgiving.

Psalm 66:1-9

As in many other texts within the Hebrew Bible, here also God is praised for delivering the ancient Israelites from their Egyptian oppressors by parting the sea so that the escaping Israelites could pass through it on dry land. The Exodus is remembered as one among many instances in which God is said to have used God’s power to keep the enemies of the Israelites away from Israel’s borders, to prevent other nations from oppressing them.

2 Kings 5:1-14

The prayer of Naaman to the Lord God of Israel was persistent not in the sense that the one who was asking for help from the Lord asked repeatedly over a long period of time, but in the sense that so many different people persisted in the prayer process in Naaman’s behalf. The process was begun by the little Israelite slave girl in this story, and continued with Naaman himself, Naaman’s king, Elisha, and Naaman’s servants.

For the original intent of the story, we should study the entire chapter (2 Kings 5:1-27). If we read only the first half of the story, we should focus our attention on Naaman’s desire to be healed and on the persistence of the various people involved. We see that the chain of action would have been broken if any one of the characters involved had not participated in the prayer sequence. This provides an excellent resource for us to consider in our own prayer activities and in our messages about prayers to God this coming weekend.

Isaiah 66:10-14

Although Jerusalem is not fruitful now, the Lord will cause her again to bring forth children and to provide for them abundantly as a nursing mother, not only for her new babies but for her older children as well. The indignation of the Lord is against the enemies of the people of the Lord. Their enemies shall no longer oppress the servants of the Lord.

Galatians 6:(1-6) 7-16

The guidelines for life that are appropriate for followers of Jesus that were provided earlier in this letter are continued in chapter 6. In order that 6:5 may not seem to contradict 6:2, they should be translated carefully in order to distinguish them and their different situations from each other. We might suggest “Be helpful to one another” in 6:2 and “For each person will be responsible individually” in 6:5.

It is possible that the Judaizing Christians were circumcising male non-Jewish background followers of Jesus and insisting that they be circumcised, in part at least, so that they would be afforded the same limited protection that was available to Jewish males by the Roman oppressors at various times during the first century. This may be what Paul meant when he wrote “in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ” (v. 12). We have within Paul’s letter to the Galatians and elsewhere in Paul’s letters only Paul’s side of the issue. We have nothing comparable in the Newer Testament texts in which the rationale of the Judaizing Christians is presented. Paul apparently wanted to die as Jesus had died, if necessary, at the hands of the Roman oppressors, to be united with Jesus in his death, in order that Paul might be glorified with Jesus in the cross and in the resurrection from the dead. For Paul, God definitely identified God’s self with Jesus and with the followers of Jesus who were oppressed as Jesus had been oppressed.

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Comparison of the Synoptic texts indicates that the Lukan writer here as elsewhere used materials from Mark (the Mark 6:7-13 sending of the twelve disciples two-by-two with authority over the unclean spirits), from “Q” material or from an early draft of Matthew (for most of the content of this text) and from the Septuagint translation of the Israelite Scriptures (Numbers 11:16-17 for the number of those who would extend Jesus’ work just as the seventy had become assistants to Moses). The number seventy, or 72 as some important early manuscripts of the Greek text of Luke 10 have it, is used here only by Luke. The dependence of the Lukan writer on the Septuagint translation of the Israelite Scriptures for material to be used with inspired creativity throughout this Third Gospel suggests that “seventy” was the number that the Lukan writer used and that some who later made copies of the Luke 10 text modified the number to 72.

As the literary creativity of the inspired Lukan writer becomes more apparent to us, the likelihood increases that the “Q” materials or Matthean material and the Lukan composition actually depict circumstances not prior to but after the death of Jesus. It was after the death of Jesus that followers of Jesus proclaiming their message within the regions of Galilee about Jesus as the Christian Messiah who is one with God the Father and the Son of God felt that they were going out “as lambs in the midst of wolves” with little success. Their situation was considerably different from that of the proclamation of the Jesus of history as a Jewish Messiah figure talking about God and the coming rule of God, giving hope to the oppressed Jewish people in Galilee before Jesus was crucified.

The expressions of power over demons and of the fall of Satan from his position of authority may be subtle cryptograms, hidden transcripts of hope and liberation in Luke 10:17-20. As such, they would be communicating assurance to oppressed followers of Jesus that through Jesus raised from the dead as the Risen Christ they are given power by God over the Satanic Roman state and its representatives whom God through Jesus as the Christ will soon topple from their positions of authority forever.

This Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 text is permeated by a sense of urgency. The message of the coming rule of God must be proclaimed in spite of all dangers. Apparently the Jesus of history had pointed very effectively to the Lord God and to the necessity of acclaiming the Lord God and not Caesar as the one who should be the ruler in the lives of the people around him. Just as followers of Jesus pointed to Jesus the Risen Christ as the one who had himself pointed to the Lord God and to the necessity of acclaiming the Lord God rather than Caesar as the one who should rule in the lives of the people around them, so let us also acclaim Jesus as the Risen Christ and God this coming weekend and every day.

It is a challenge for us to find ways in which we can apply these texts selected for our use on Proper 9/Ordinary Time 14/Seventh Sunday after Pentecost to the concerns of people in the congregations in which we live and serve many of whom will expect references to the Fourth of July within our Christian worship services this coming weekend. Our biblical texts, including the texts selected for our use this coming weekend, express the mercy of God for the oppressed and the opposition of God to the oppressors, whether they be Canaanite, Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Roman, or within the Israelite or early Christian power structures. If we make applications this coming weekend from these biblical texts to the Fourth of July and to American history and to American Civil Religion, we must be critical of and oppose oppression wherever it occurs, even within our own Church, nation, and culture. We must remember that in the biblical texts it is the Lord God, not any nation or secular power, including our own, who is Supreme.

Sunday between July 10 and July 16 inclusive

Within most of the texts selected for us for this occasion there is a stimulating tension between the importance of adequate faith and right living as prerequisites for “salvation.” This stimulating tension exists regardless of whether “salvation” is perceived primarily in terms of life as we know it here and now with security, prosperity, and happiness for one’s self and for one’s family as in Psalm 25 and Deuteronomy 30, or whether “salvation” includes also the dimension of eternal life, as it does in the Newer Testament texts Colossians 1:1-14 and Luke 10:25-37.

Although the concept of salvation took on the added dimension of a future hope beyond this life as we know it during the course of theological development of the people of God, salvation in most of our biblical texts is perceived to be by the grace of God rather than by our own efforts. Our response to the grace of God is depicted as important, however. Adequate faithfulness to God is itself presented as a gift from God, as is our ability to achieve and to maintain right living.

If our proclamation this coming weekend is to be based on these selected texts, we shall want to share with the people in our congregations something about this stimulating tension between the importance of adequate faith and of right living for our salvation as expressed in these texts, without failing to emphasize that salvation, however perceived, is by the grace of God. The emphasis on “faith alone” may have been needed as a corrective in the theology and practice of the Western Church during the sixteenth century, but it should never be proclaimed apart from the related concept of “grace alone.” To proclaim faith apart from the related concept of the grace of God is to misuse Scripture by arbitrarily selecting certain portions of the Scriptures and downgrading other portions, losing sight of the stimulating tension between the importance of adequate faith and right living in the process. Neither should we pass too quickly to the concepts of God’s love and of our love in response to God and lose sight of this biblical tension.

This biblical tension is essential in our mission among people. Many of the people who will be hearing our proclamation this coming weekend have wondered and are wondering about this tension between adequate faith and right living and perhaps about what and where the grace of God is in all of this. Most people, other than pastors, put a heavy emphasis upon right living to ensure salvation, while many, perhaps most, pastors stress adequate faith, with both frequently tending to forget the overriding importance of the grace of God.

Psalm 25:1-10

Since the Lord (Adonai) is the God of the psalmist’s salvation (v. 2), the psalmist asks for guidance from the Lord regarding the lifestyle that will be most pleasing to the Lord (vv. 4-5, 8-9). At the same time, the psalmist declares complete trust in the Lord (vv. 1-2, 5-6, 8), and recognizes that salvation can come only through the mercy, love, and grace of the Lord, not by the efforts of the psalmist (vv. 3, 5b-7). We note that the understanding shared by the Apostle Paul in his letters that are included in our Newer Testament is very similar to what is written in this psalm.

Deuteronomy 30:9-14

This text is near the conclusion of the great, composite “sermon of Moses” building block of the Deuteronomic History that extends from Deuteronomy 4:44–30:20. If we look at the context, we see that the loss of the Israelite nation and the scattering of the Israelite people are known. Hope is expressed that the Lord will restore the people in their land and provide for them even greater prosperity than their ancestors enjoyed. The commandments of the Lord are depicted as a gift of God’s grace in an accessible form that will help the restored people to live as their ancestors should have lived. The commandments that the Lord provides have been placed into the hearts of the people, and it is said that the people will enjoy living in accordance with them.

Psalm 82

According to this psalm, the evil that God will soon judge and destroy is the evil of those “gods” whose followers on the earth oppress the weak and the fatherless. Then God (as perceived by the Israelites), who is already far superior to those other “gods,” will be supreme and unopposed, and God’s oppressed people will be rescued, free to serve God with no impediments.

Amos 7:7-17

Through the words of Amos, a herdsman and worker among sycamore trees, called to be a prophet of the Lord God with a message of condemnation for the king, priests, and others in the Northern Kingdom Israel who were oppressing the poor people of that land economically and politically, God speaks to warn the oppressors about the judgment of the Lord God against them.

This message is consistent with the message of Psalm 82. The oppressive people whose lives were characterized by neither adequate faith in God nor right living are condemned by the prophet of God as directed by God.

Colossians 1:1-14

The Pauline writer puts considerable emphasis in this text on the importance of good deeds to please the Lord (v. 10), without losing sight of adequate faith in God through the Christian Messiah Jesus and the love for all of God’s people (v. 4). It is only by the grace of the Father, however, that we are qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints in light, in the kingdom of God’s beloved Son (vv. 12-13).

Luke 10:25-37

This Lukan Parable of the Good Samaritan indicates quite clearly that adequate faith alone is not sufficient, since both the priest and the Levite obviously had adequate faith. Where both the priest and the Levite are shown to be lacking in this parable is in the area of right living. It was their responsibility as people who had faith in God to risk their lives, if necessary, to live right by helping the man who had been severely attacked and injured. This they both failed to do, even though they were both people of faith.

The Samaritan is praised in this parable because he demonstrated both faith that God would protect him while he came to the aid of the helpless man and actions that were right for a person who has faith. Therefore, he is praised.

If we limit our proclamation here to a warmed-over rerun of our old, used Good Samaritan sermons, it is likely that we shall provide only a right living emphasis. If we share, however, the stimulating, creative tension between adequate faith and right living that is demonstrated in this and in the other texts selected for us for this occasion, we shall help the people who hear us to grow in their faith as well as in their maturity and ethics, as they reflect theologically over their own lives.

Sunday between July 17 and July 23 inclusive

The stimulating tension between the importance of adequate faith and right living continues from last Sunday. The selections are different, but in these texts also “salvation” is possible only because of the grace of God. Adequate faith and right living are basic essentials expected of the people of God, even though apart from the grace of God these essentials would not produce salvation.

As we move through these texts, we find that in the Lukan characterization of Mary in Luke 10:38-42 the tension between adequate faith and right living is resolved. By sitting near the feet of Jesus and listening to him, she expresses her faith in God, she lives her life right in the sight of God, and she receives the grace of God. She put herself in a position to receive the grace of God. For this she was praised. Because Mary had chosen the good portion that shall not be taken away from her, she is an excellent model for us.

Psalm 52

The person addressed in 52:1-5 has neither adequate faith nor right living and is not receptive to the grace of God. Instead, this person is oppressive to the poor and trusts not in God but in excessive wealth. It is said that God will uproot this person (as a tree is toppled by a storm or a weed is pulled up from among a crop in a garden).

The psalmist, by contrast, in a song of thanksgiving (vv. 6-9), trusts in the unwavering love of God, proclaims the name of God to all who will hear, and gives thanks to God in the house of God. By the grace of God, the psalmist receives the grace of God.

Amos 8:1-12

There is no more incisive prophetic word than this in any of the world’s great religious literature, or one mutatis mutandis more applicable to our own or to any other human situation. The specific setting within eighth century BCE. Israel and Judah is apparent in this text, but the prophetic word of judgment should be applied boldly to our own situation. The firm demand for justice and God’s concern for those who are economically oppressed in this text address our own situation in the United States of greed by those who are excessively wealthy and the difficulty of finding the most appropriate ways to make adequate health care available to every person.

Psalm 15

The ancient Israelite cult used this type of Entrance-to-Worship-in-the-Temple psalm to emphasize the importance of right living. Those who would live their lives as depicted in this psalm would have a secure reputation and position in the community. Those who do what is right shall be honored in the temple of the Lord and will be receptive to the grace of God. In this psalm, doing what is right is fully elaborated; having an adequate faith is implied rather than expressed. It is implied that the person who does what is right will also have adequate faith in the Lord.

Genesis 18:1-10a

In this account also, the emphasis is on doing what is right. Abraham does everything in accordance with the best ancient Near Easter hospitality when the Lord appeared to him in the form of the three men. In this account, as in Psalm 15, adequate faith is implied rather than expressed. Abraham is presented as totally receptive to the grace of God. His wife Sarah, however, appears to be skeptical. She had not received evidence of the grace of God during her child-bearing years, and as a result she did not anticipate that she could possibly be blessed by a pregnancy now in her old age. The text makes the point, nevertheless, that in spite of her understandably inadequate faith, the grace of God will come to her. The grace of God will be marvelous for her and for Abraham; it will be miraculous. Israel, the people of God, is a marvelous miracle in this text, a special act of God’s grace, for through this child to be born, through Isaac, Jacob (Israel) the son of Isaac, will be given life.

Colossians 1:15-28

The grace of God is presented as somewhat provisional in this text, somewhat conditional, contingent on the continuation of an adequate faith, a faith that is firm and unwavering. The writer speaks about Paul’s experiences as being in some sense complementary to the sufferings of Jesus as the Christ. Right living, along with an adequate faith, is therefore considered to be of great importance here. This is one of the most significant ways in which the writer of this “Epistle to the Colossians” differed from Paul himself, even though the person wrote in Paul’s name. Most of the people who will hear the messages that we shall proclaim next weekend would probably agree with the writer of this Epistle that the grace of God comes to us somewhat provisionally, contingent on our having an adequate faith and on our demonstration of right living. Nevertheless, the gospel of God’s unmerited grace is obscured by this kind of thinking.

It would be appropriate to point out in our messages next Sunday that the writer of the Epistle to the Colossians did not maintain Paul’s emphasis on salvation by the grace of God alone, what Martin Luther found to be so meaningful and depicted in Latin as sola gratia. We have the responsibility to maintain the emphasis of the Apostle Paul on salvation by the grace of God alone, without failing at the same time to emphasize the importance of a lived faith (gelebte Glaube).

Luke 10:38-42

In this story, Martha, the good hostess who had invited Jesus to be a very special guest in the house of Martha and Mary, is depicted as doing everything that she can possibly do to make Jesus feel welcome and comfortable. It is not surprising that she is said to have resented her sister Mary’s failure to work with her in her tasks as an outstanding hostess for such an important guest. When we look at this text as it is used here in conjunction with Genesis 18:1-10a, we see that, although hospitality extended to the Lord (to Adonai in Genesis and to Jesus in Luke) is good, receptivity of the message of the Lord is far better than such a great concern for hospitality. It is that better activity of receptivity that should receive our greatest attention during our consideration of these texts. To “sit at the feet of Jesus,” to “listen to him constantly and with our full attention,” is to express our faith, to live right, and to be receptive to the grace of God. In the final analysis, it is not what we do but what God does that is of the most importance. Let us, therefore, be open and receptive to what God does in this world and in all of our lives. This is to be our proper response to the Luke 10:38-42 Jesus with Mary and Martha text.

Sunday between July 24 and July 30 inclusive

The worship services and the messages for next weekend obviously will be focused on prayer. The texts selected for this occasion (especially Psalm 138, Genesis 18:20-32, and Luke 11:1-13) provide models and guidance about how we as people of God should communicate with God. From these texts we see that our prayers to God should be personal and persistent. God is to be perceived as our concerned but transcendent Father and as our generous and always helpful Friend.

Psalm 138

In Psalm 138 prayer is not a peripheral matter, not an action to be performed in a perfunctory, mechanical way. The psalmist is totally involved in the prayer. Although the Lord (Adonai) is perceived to be high above the psalmist in power and in position, the psalmist claims that the Lord is intimately concerned with those who are powerless and in need. The psalmist proclaims the steadfast love and faithfulness of the Lord openly, within the hearing of the kings of the earth. Just as the Lord has responded to the pleas of the psalmist in the past, the psalmist expects the same personal attention in the present and in the future. In a most respectful way the psalmist is persistent, stating that it would not be advantageous for the Lord to neglect the psalmist. The Lord should not neglect the psalmist, for the psalmist is the work of the Lord’s own hands!

Genesis 18:20-32

This text is perhaps the supreme example in all of our biblical accounts of personal and persistent prayer. Those who composed this account provided in 18:17-19 an introspective view of the Lord. In those verses the Lord is said to be pondering whether to share with Abraham the plans of the Lord to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah because of the sins of the people who were living there. (It would be preferable to begin our reading with 18:17 rather than with 18:20 so that this introspective view of the Lord would be included.) The Lord is said in Genesis 18:20-21 to be so concerned about the people of the world that the decision to destroy even the most wicked among them will not be made on the basis of reports provided by subordinates. The Lord will make a personal inspection before the final decision for destruction will be made.

In this story Abraham is said to have approached the Lord closely and to have engaged the Lord in a bold though always most respectful manner in a prayer conversation. In this most interesting and persistent intercessory prayer developed and included within the biblical accounts, Abraham requests that the city of Sodom be spared if fifty, or forty-five, or forty, or thirty, or twenty, or even if only ten righteous people can be found there. Using the same persuasive argumentation that would be used in a human-to-human conversation, Abraham is said to have appealed to the sense of justice inherent with the Lord by making the statement that “It would not be consistent with your character to destroy the righteous with the wicked!” A better model for our own personal persistent intercessory prayers cannot be found.

Psalm 85

The reasoning expressed within this prayer is frequently seen in the psalms of the Israelite canonical hymnal. Just as, the psalmist argues, you, O Lord, have acted favorably toward us in the past, please show your favor to us now. Do not continue to be angry with us. In this psalm the psalmist is confident that the Lord will respond affirmatively.

The psalmist speaks personally to the Lord here, much as a person would speak personally to a dear friend. There is a faith-inducing closeness here, making it easier for us even today to address God in prayer. This is one of the most significant blessings that we receive by using the Israelite/Jewish psalms regularly in our private and in our corporate worship and life.

Hosea 1:2-10

There is nothing specifically about prayer in this puzzling text. Should we understand the text rather literally that God actually commanded Hosea to marry a woman who would have two children during their marriage who would be fathered by other men, in order to illustrate the sinfulness of Israel? Should we consider this to be instead a vivid story to demonstrate dramatically the unfaithfulness to the Lord God of many of the people in the Northern Kingdom Israel? Is the account to be understood as a parable or symbolic action that depicts the message of this prophetic document? Did Hosea actually have an unfortunate marriage situation and used it to speak his words of judgment against Israel? Was there some other purpose for this text? Is this a meaningful and helpful text for us to read in our corporate worship and to reflect upon in our sermons? At any rate, the text is enigmatic, challenging, and illustrative of the tremendous variety of materials in the Older Testament. There can be as many interpretations of the text as there are persons to interpret it.

Luke 11:1-13

In the oldest Greek manuscripts of the Lukan “Lord’s Prayer” available to modern text critics, God is simply addressed as “Father.” God is not depicted as “in heaven” or anywhere else beyond our hearing. The earliest Lukan “Lord’s Prayer” is, therefore, characterized by brevity and simplicity. The context given the Lukan “Lord’s Prayer” puts emphasis on Jesus himself praying and, because of the context of the Luke 18:1-5 story about the cold-hearted judge who finally responds to the persistent pleas of the widow who continues to appeal to him, on perseverance in prayer. The Lukan account also uses the technique of comparison between the lesser and the greater in which human-to-human relationships are used as illustrations of the more vital human-to-divine ones. If a friend will eventually relent and meet the needs of an acquaintance who continues to implore him for assistance and if a father will supply good food for his children, how much more will the far-superior heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who persist in their supplications! God, as the greatest Father, will certainly provide the much greater divine gifts to those who persist in their prayers. Therefore, we should continue to pray to God for good things and never become discouraged and discontinue our prayers. We believe that God is a loving Father and not a cold-hearted judge.

Colossians 2:6-15 (16-19)

This text is the third in a series of sequential readings from Colossians over a four week period and has very little connection with the other selections for this occasion, although there is in Colossians 2:7 the mention of thanksgiving and this text does provide some reasons for prayer. The words φιλοσοφιας και κενης απατης in 2:8 should be rendered in our time by something such as “love of human, self-centered wisdom and vain deceitfulness” so that the academic discipline of philosophy is not discredited.

Sunday between July 31 and August 6 inclusive

The central theme of most of these texts is that it is foolish for us to trust in the transitoriness of the things that we can do but wise to place our reliance on God, who gives wisdom and knowledge and joy.

Psalm 49:1-12

In the opinion of the writer(s) of this psalm, there is no reason to be fearful of any human being, no matter how wealthy and powerful that human being may be, because no one can use riches to purchase additional years of life in order to live on forever. In spite of their splendor, all human beings will perish just as the beasts of the field die from old age, illness, or injury. Even though some people may own and control large tracks of land, their graves will be their homes forever.

Although unlike the writer(s) of this psalm, we believe that God will raise us from the dead, that which is written in this psalm is still applicable today. Those who are wealthy may be able to purchase the best possible medical care and prolong their health to some extent by proper diet, exercise, and rest, but eventually all will die. There are limits to the power of all people, even of those who are the most privileged and wealthy, for today as then all of us will die just as the beasts of the field die. Only God does not die. Only God is worthy to be feared.

Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23

According to the writers of this text, everything about this present life is vanity, transitory, lacking in substance. Nothing is permanent. Apart from God, the writers say, there is every reason to despair; all of the possessions that are gained by the sweat of one’s brow must be left to someone else, who probably will not even appreciate them and will probably change everything that you have done back to the way that it was before you came.

Some hope is expressed beyond this text in 2:24-26. There we read that to the person who pleases God, purpose and satisfaction in life are possible. God may give to such a person wisdom and knowledge and joy, even enjoyment in the midst of toil. Those who are wise will recognize their dependence on God and will work to please God.

Psalm 107:1-9, 43

After an introductory section (vv. 1-3) the problems of various types of pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem are described in this psalm. When serious difficulties are encountered, the members of each group cried out to the Lord for help, and the Lord delivered them from danger. This rather lengthy song was probably sung while travelers made their way toward Jerusalem. They sang in order to pass the time, to express their appreciation to the Lord, and because they enjoyed singing.

Psalm 107:4-9 describes the situation of those who wandered through desolate areas, hungry and thirsty, far from food and streams of water to sustain them. Nevertheless, when they cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord delivered them and led them straight to a city where their needs could be met. The Lord is said to provide water for the thirsty and food for those who are hungry.

Some of us may recall singing together as we traveled on our way to youth camps, Bible camps, youth conventions, and on mission service trips. It is important that we continue to provide opportunities for young people to have these “pilgrimage” experiences. In some instances persons who are retired from their work careers have somewhat similar opportunities to travel together.

Hosea 11:1-11

The love and compassion of the Lord God is so great that even though the people of Israel do not deserve such affection from the Lord whom they have rejected, the Lord longs once more to be like parents who lift their infants to their cheeks to cuddle them and to feed them. The Lord will do this to the children of Israel who return from Egypt and from Assyria to their homes in their land.

Colossians 3:1-11

This Colossians text fits well within the theme of most of the other texts selected for next weekend. Addressed to those who “have been raised from the dead together with Christ,” it directs them to turn their attention to those things that are above, to the new nature that is to conform to the image of the one who has created it. Those who have been raised from the dead together with Christ are instructed to kill within themselves all inclinations to be involved in things on this earth that are evil and of no value, things such as illicit sexual activity, immoral behavior, disgraceful passion, evil desire, and plotting to obtain more and more material things, which is idolatry. The old labels and descriptions of people are no longer applicable; people are now distinguished by whether or not they have “put on Christ” and are raised from the dead together with Christ.

As is often noted, some of this terminology is similar to what we know about teachings of groups of Gnostic Christians at the beginning of the second century. There are differences also, and to some extent Gnostic Christian terminology that was popular at that time was used here to oppose more fully developed Gnostic Christian groups. Basically, “mainline” Christians proclaimed a physical resurrection of Jesus rather than the spiritual resurrection promoted by Gnostic Christian groups.

Luke 12:13-21

This account about the man who requested that Jesus should put pressure on the man’s brother to settle an estate, Jesus’ warning against covetousness, and Jesus’ parable about the rich fool whose lands were surprisingly productive occurs in our canonical texts only here in Luke’s Gospel. The Gospel of Thomas, saying 63, however, should be compared to it. The Gospel of Thomas, saying 63, in The Nag Hammadi Library in English (New York: Harper & Row, 1977, p. 125), is as follows:

Jesus said, “There was a rich man who had much money. He said, ‘I shall put my money to use so that I may sow, reap, plant, and fill my storehouse with produce, with the result that I shall lack nothing.’ Such were his intentions, but that same night he died. Let him who has ears hear.”

Comparison of the Lukan and the Gospel of Thomas accounts indicates that Luke’s account is considerably more developed, embellished, and interpreted than is the Thomas account. The Lukan account may include traditional materials that originated with the Jesus of history, who would most likely have refused to claim authority to enter into a financial dispute among brothers.

The main point of the Lukan text is not that the rich man was evil because his land was productive. Neither is it that the man was condemned because he planned to build larger storage facilities for his abundant crop. The rich man in the Lukan account is condemned for his unwillingness to share his wealth, for his planning to become lazy and gluttonous, and most of all for his placing his reliance on things — treasures on this earth — rather than on God. Therefore, the wisdom theme of this account is that the man was foolish rather than wise. The message to us is clear. We too should be wise rather than foolish. We should rely on God, not on things.