Gospelism.org

Proverbs 16:11  The Lord demands accurate scales and balances; he sets the standards for fairness.

There is a moral standard for fairness. Although most people would rather not acknowledge it, their exists a moral agent who is impartial and requires that everyone operator in fairness.

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It is generally acknowledged that the Bible establishes clearly the concept of private through God’s issuance of the ten commandments - specificallly, commandment number eight, “Thou shalt not steal.” [Exo 20:15]

We can learn a stern lesson about money from the story of a certain rich man that Jesus told the Pharisees in Luke 16:19-31.  The Pharisees were strictly religious but they loved money.  And in the context of the Jewish culture of their day, they equated money and material possessions with being under God’s blessing (there is nothing new under the sun).

Jesus paints a drastically different picture than what you might hear preached by those promoting the prosperity gospel.  In the story, you have two men, living in two different classes, with two different lifestyles.  In the end, both would die, but they would arrive at surprisingly two different fates.  The rich man, who lived with complete satisfaction of his desires in wealth and luxury, found himself in scarcity and torment while Lazarus, whose name means, “God is my helper,” was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom in paradise.

The rich man had material possessions and wealth but was spiritually bankrupt.  His love for wealth and luxury blinded him to his sin and his complete ignorance and lack of understanding of the scriptures.  He was in desperate need of a savior, but so consume by the worship of “mammon,” he never established a relationship with God.  In the end, he lost the asset he could not afford to lose the most – his own soul.

Meanwhile, Lazarus found comfort and satisfaction in paradise.  While on earth, the most compassion he received came from the dogs that would lick his sores.  Yet, to everyone’s surprise, it was Lazarus who was rich through his utter dependence of God and his mercy. 

From this story, we can see that true wealth is found in having a rich relationship with God.  Being wealthy, in and of itself is not a sin.  But we all must beware of the tendency that wealth and privilege has in masking our own sin and dulling our hearts to his Word.

There are beggars outside our gates today.  We will not get a second opportunity to show godly compassion once this life has ended.  Has your wealth hardened your heart to accepting the forgiveness and gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ?

Luke 19:1 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

We can learn a lot about the impact the words of Jesus, his preaching of the gospel, had on his hearers about observing their behavior.  How did people respond to the message Jesus preached?  What was his impact on their lifestyle, on their perspective, when they hear the words of our Savior?  What can we learn about the way we live our lives from their example?

Zacchaeus was a rich man.  In fact, the bible says he was the chief tax collector in the region, so he meets Jesus from a position of wealth and power.  Yet we find that the presence of Jesus brought out of Zacchaeus a sense of humility, repentance and great generosity in response to the invitation of Jesus.  To those that knew Zacchaeus, he reputation preceded him; he was a sinner.  But to Jesus his actions proved his faith such that the Lord proclaimed, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.” 

The proclamation of the gospel should increase our desire to know Christ and love others (especially the less fortunate) while decreasing of desire for the materialism and wealth of this world.  Our hearts should be convicted to the point where we are overflowing with joy and generosity such that people can see the love of Christ gushing(!) from our hearts.

Economics as a discipline has been deemed “a dismal science.” Yet its impact has far reaching affects to our everyday lives. It under girds the determination of domestic and foreign policy, the allocation of resources, and the standard of living for rich and poor alike.  In moments of inflation crisis, such as what is currently happening with the repetitive bursting of financial bubbles and rising gas/food prices, people are becoming more and more curious in understanding the causes and the source of the economic dilemmas we are facing.

The church must be careful in its approach and attitude towards money.  We must take great care in understanding what we truly value and how we make choices for sacrce resources.

A key and relevant scripture selection is found in Jesus’s letter to the church of Laodicea, in the book of Revelation (which we are encouraged to listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches).  Jesus writes, “¹⁵ “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! ¹⁶ But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! ¹⁷ You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. ¹⁸ So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. ” 

Laodicea was on the trade-route from Ephesus to the east and known for large manufacturing, medicinal and banking operations.   

Jesus rebukes the church for its lukewarm attitude.  Their comfort and complacency have replaced the fervor and zeal, which characterized Jesus during his earthly ministry. [Psalms 69:9]  Ironically, one of the pictures of where we see the most passionate demonstrations of the zeal of Christ is in John 2:13-17 where he turns over the tables of the money-changers and sellers, driving them out with a whip telling them, “Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!”

One of the most discussed concepts in the discipline of economics is the model of a simplified, rational economic man, “Homo economicus.”  The basic idea is the model of an economic agent acts purely to maximize his personal “utility function” or well-being, at the least amount of work or cost.

There are several debatable issues that have already been raised with this model, such as Homo economicus’s limitations to extrinsic motivations, assumptions of perfect knowledge, lack of granularity between short-term and long-term goals, and most concerning, the tendency for this model to be self-fulfilling.  A good example is found in the observation of students of classical economics becoming more self-centered and amoral themselves.  Critics have basically classified Homo economicus a psychopath.

In contrast to the model, I’d like to develop a corollary model in the form of a born-again, spiritually regenerated believer of the gospel, “Homo gospelicus.”  The key differences are obvious (see matrix below).  

1. Unlike Homo economicus, Homo gospelicus is moral aware and makes decisions based on moral absolutes, biblical principles and the law of Christ (love).
2. Homo gospelicus is more complex; capable of operating merely according to their self-interest but also capable of choosing intrinsic motivations, such as reverence, obedience and compassion.
3. Homo gospelicus is relational, both with God (as a child of God) and other believers (brothers and sisters in Christ). 
4. Finally, the man operating according to Gospelism, Homo gospelicus inspiring and encourages maturity and morality.

Granted, some limitations with this model come to mind:

• Hypocrisy - Acknowledged.  Most Christians are guilty of some hypocrisy, at least in some areas.  This is also natural, being as believers are perfect - just forgiven.  Part of the answer for this limitation is the fact that there is such an awareness of its possibilities, that this limitation promotes the need for transparency.
• Authenticity - Acknowledged. Only God can know a person’s heart. The guide for assessing a person’s authenticity is to monitor their behavior over a long period of time.  Jesus said, “You will know a tree by its fruits. [Matt 7:15-20]
• Fundamentalism - Acknowledged. Man has a natural tendency to spiritualize and misunderstand God’s intentions.  In the same way it is unrealistic for Homo economicus to have perfect information, Homo gospelicus is limited by knowledge of God’s Word, its principles, and their practical application.  In this case, time spent walking in faith, growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ leads to maturity.
• Religious - Acknowledged. Man’s natural tendency is to digress into religion rather that operate in relationship.  This is where a significant contrast between the secular Homo economicus and the spiritual Homo gospelicus makes the most difference.  Homo gospelicus operates within fellowship of believers and is encouraged to love God with all his soul and to love his neighbor as he loves himself.

Well, for now, that’s the rough idea…

Proverbs 23:4  Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit. 5  In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle.

In making economic choices, the believer must take into consideration the biblical perspective of his or her own mortality. Ecclesiastes 5:15 says, “We all come to the end of our lives as naked and empty-handed as on the day we were born. We can’t take our riches with us.”  You can’t take it with you but you can send it up ahead of you.  In this life, God sets before us a daily opportunity cost posed by the question, “What can I do today while I am still living that will benefit me for eternity in heaven when I die?” 

John Maynard Keynes once remarked, “In the long run, we all are dead.”  We all may die (some of us will be changed in the twinkling of an eye), but I plan on living the resurrected life.  In the long-run, we live!  The believer, in his walk of faith, has more to look forward to in the age to come, than the unbeliever (and that is an understatement of the highest proportions!).  So it would follow, that we should have a framework, a construct that allows us to maximize of faith and please God our Father with the precious time that we have.

Think about it.  Some of us have 20 or 30 years left to live.  And even then, tomorrow is not promised to us.  We only have a finite amount of opportunities to choose to express our faith for Christ.  Think of how many opportunities we have already wasted!  I encourage you not to allow another day pass without appreciating how rich you are in Christ and what a glorious opportunity you have to impact the souls of others on his behalf. 

The way traditional economics is taught by compartementalizing “positive” or emperically based decisions versus “normative” or ideology-based decisions is a tool that conspicously frees the agent to make economic choices while seemingly escaping any culpability or moral accountability for those choices.  This presumposition is a lie.  If we make the choices, inherently we are accountable for the consequences. 

Since this is the case, we must have a new framework (for believers at least) to make faith-based, spirit-filled, moral economic choices.

It all belongs to God. He owns everything.  And the man God says he will bless is the one who is humble and contrite, who trembles at his word.

Isaiah 66:2 My hands have made both heaven and earth; they and everything in them are mine.  I, the Lord, have spoken! “I will bless those who have humble and contrite hearts, who tremble at my word. 

He is the most richest man in the world…

A recent article by a Duke Sociology Professor Lisa A. Keister examines how religion affects the wealth of believers.

Durham, NC — Conservative Protestants tend to save less and accumulate fewer assets than other Americans, and their religious beliefs contribute to their low wealth, according to a new study by a Duke University sociologist.

Read the article in its entirety here: http://dukenews.duke.edu/2008/03/cprelease.html 

We know what the sociologist may not understand.  This world is not our home and we are looking forward to a city not made by human hands, but from God.