Living in the Spirit

September 16, 2020

Scripture Reading:
Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45

O give thanks to the Lord, call on his name,
   make known his deeds among the peoples.
Sing to him, sing praises to him;
   tell of all his wonderful works.
Glory in his holy name;
   let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
Seek the Lord and his strength;
   seek his presence continually.
Remember the wonderful works he has done,
   his miracles, and the judgments he has uttered,
O offspring of his servant Abraham,
   children of Jacob, his chosen ones.

So he brought his people out with joy,
   his chosen ones with singing.
He gave them the lands of the nations,
   and they took possession of the wealth of the peoples,
that they might keep his statutes
   and observe his laws.

Praise the Lord! –Psalm 105:1-6, 43-45

Does God establish privilege for those who follow God? That seems to be the thurst of most of the stories in the Bible that begin with God’s saving grace and transition to a sense of privilege. Ultimately those who travel the path of privilege fail as the Israelites did when they were exiled.

In the scripture above, the Israelites had every right and responsibility to praise God for rescuing them out of slavery in Egypt. Did that give them the right to take other nations’ land, to steal their wealth because the Israelites observed God’s laws? Is taking land and wealth even within the limits of God’s laws? Greed colors our interpretation of scripture.

Exodus 20:15–You shall not steal.
Exodus 20:17– You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Leviticus 19:18– You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

Many of our ancestors left Europe in search of religious freedom only to take the lands of the natives where our ancestors settled. They imported slaves from African as the primary means of producing wealth from that same land. They justified it as God’s will through the theory of Manifest Destiny and the issuance of the Document of Discovery. And we carry the weight of those sins to this day.

Christ came and taught us a new way of living measured not by wealth or privilege but by the love we share as we celebrate the gifts of God’s grace available to all.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us for attempting to cast you as the source of the greed that engulfs us. Free us from its chains and give us the courage to live fully in the abundance of your love. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.