Proper 21C + A Life that Really is Life + ACL+ 9.25.22
A Life that Really is Life
Pentecost 16C, 1 Timothy
6, Luke 16
St Paul’s Emmanuel, Santa Paula and
All Saints, Oxnard
The Rev. Alene Campbell-Langdell
If you feel
that Jesus has been talking a lot about money the last few weeks, you are
right. Starting with Luke chapter 15,
Jesus has told parable after parable about those who are rich or well off. People who have inheritances to pass on to
their children. A farmer who owns a
hundred sheep, and a business man who hires and fires managers at will. And today’s gospel starts off yet again with,
“There was a rich man…” At which point,
part of my brain tunes out. I have been
conditioned by the fantasies of American wealth to think of Jeff Bezos or Elon
Musk, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett when I think about riches. (And yes, it is an
interesting commentary on society that all the names are those of men.) I don’t consider myself rich, and so, a part
of me feels that this parable is not about me.
Or is it?
In the writings of ben Sirach,
sometimes called Ecclasiasticus, is this gem, “The necessities of life are
water, bread, and clothing, and also a house to assure privacy” (29:21). Paul in his letter to Timothy appears to be
referencing this saying, “If we have food and clothing, we will be content with
these” (1 Timothy 6:8). Wealth by this
standard is measured by having water to drink, food to eat, clothing to wear,
and a consistent roof over your head at night.
If you fall into that category, congratulations! You are officially wealthy!
However,
those of us who have studied the Bible or been in church a good part of our
lives may find ourselves squirming a bit at that designation. Jesus’ words in Luke 6: 24-25 may ring
uncomfortably close to home, “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received
your consolation. Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry.” And so, perhaps from that perspective, these
parables, while challenging, also contain some good news. My challenges to entering the life Jesus
promises may look different from others with different circumstances, but
there’s a place for me as well. There is
a way for me to avoid the traps and “take hold of the life that really is life”
as Paul says to Timothy.
Paul makes
clear in his letter to Timothy that simply having good things in life is not
the problem. It’s the desire for more
that gnaws at us. We instinctively know
what Paul is talking about. When we
refer to “the rat race,” we acknowledge the stress that makes us feel less than
human. This fear and anxiety pushes us
to work when we feel sick and hold on to every last penny even when it kills
our souls to do so. This is the trap
that the rich man in Jesus’ parable cannot escape.
Here is
someone caught by extravagance. He is
dressed in the most expensive, imported clothing. He is feasting every day, but probably not
because he wants to. Most likely, he feels
that he has to entertain and be entertained in order to maintain his social
standing among the elite of the city.[1] He has no time to even see, let alone help,
the poor man lying at his gate. His
calendar is too full. Finally, when it
is much too late, he recognizes the suffering he is in. Lazarus, who suffered so much in life, has
lived up to his name: Lazarus, el-azar,
he whom God has helped. And yet even in
that moment of recognition, the rich man cannot escape the trap of social
climbing. When Abraham describes the
chasm between them, the rich man requests help for his siblings, others in his
social set. Abraham, send someone to
help them escape this trap before it is too late! Abraham’s reply in this parable strikes one
of the saddest notes in the gospel: “If they do not listen to Moses and the
prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead”
(Luke 16: 30).
Most of us here today find ourselves in the place of the
wealthy siblings, those for whom it is not too late to escape the trap of this
rat race if only we are able to listen to the words of the prophets and of one
who has risen from the dead. So what is
it that prevents us from hearing and heeding this word? (Pause) I can’t answer that question for you. For me, one of the things that gets in the
way is a fear of the future. What if I
need this time/money/thing down the road?
The other major barrier for escaping the trap is a feeling of
impotence. What good will my little
contribution make for the people like Lazarus in my life? In this regard, it is interesting that the
relief being requested in this parable is so small. Lazarus is longing for the leftovers that
fall from the table. And, when the
situation is reversed, the rich man longs for just a drop of water.
For most of us, escape from the rat
race doesn’t start with a grand gesture of giving away everything we own like
St Francis. It starts with actually
seeing those who are hungry and sick or struggling to find a place to sleep at
night. Ironically, we start our escape
by stopping. Take a deep breath and
consider. Do you have enough for
today? Do you have a place to go to
after church where you will be sheltered from the sun? Do you have food for lunch? Do you have drinkable water? Do you have clothing to cover your body? Stop and give thanks. You have enough for today. What an amazing gift!
Next, take a
look at your budget and your daily life.
Are there things that you are hoarding from a fear of the future that
would be better spent now? How many of
us continue to work when we are stressed and our bodies are aching even though
we have sick time accumulating? Or maybe
we think that the extra dollar or two given to the church wouldn’t make any
difference, so why bother? Don’t forget
in this process to notice the things you are already doing. Notice the ways that the practices you
already do--whether it is tithing your income or helping out in the food pantry
or taking care of yourself so that you can be more present to other’s
needs—provide space in your life for gratitude and trust in God.
As for the
rich, Paul says, tell them “to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and
ready to share, thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good
foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really
is life” (1 Timothy 6:18-19). The rich
man’s life, full of food he didn’t have time to time to taste while trying to
impress others in a desperate bid for respect, wasn’t really life. But we are not him, and it is not too late
for us! We can choose gratitude. We can choose generosity. We can choose joy. We can choose life--one small step at a time.
[1] Bruce
Malina and Richard Rohrbaugh, Social Science Commentary on the Synoptic
Gospels (Fortress Press: Minneapolis, MN, 2003), 337.
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