Amos 6:1a, 4-7 and Psalm 146
1 Timothy 6:6-19
Luke 16:19-31
Some women tell me that men don’t see dirt.
In my case, I think it’s partly true. I seldom notice socks and shoes on the floor in the lounge, or towels lying on the bathroom floor.
I often put shirts on with big grease stains and I don’t notice the creases when I forget to iron my shirts.
I just don’t see stuff that I’m immune to, but I do quickly see stuff that I like.
* * *
People have an interesting ability to tune into the things and people that matter to them, and tune out the things and people that don’t matter.
* * *
In the gospel Jesus tells a story about a rich man and a poor man. The poor man’s name is Lazarus - which means (roughly translated) “God is my helper.” The rich man feasts daily and wears the most expensive clothes purchasable, while the poor man lies at his gates with his sores licked by dogs.
They both die, and Lazarus is taken to a place that looks a bit like heaven. And the rich man is taken to a place that looks a bit like hell.
* * *
In the Old Testament reading the prophet Amos paints a beautiful picture of people living in blissful ignorance of the injustice happening in the world around them… lying on beds of ivory, eating lambs from the flock and listening to music - (probably praise and worship music).
In response, Amos preaches Hell fire and brimstone!
He reminds the people of
Amos warns that because of their injustice and unrighteousness they will soon be weakened and conquered by other nations as they are taken into exile.
This action will be understood as God’s punishment to the Israelites.
(Amos’ prophecy reminds me of Bishop Tutu’s warning to South Africans a couple of years ago, saying that South Africans are sitting on a powder keg, as the poor in our country become less and less satisfied with their conditions.)
* * *
The rich man of the Lazarus story and the wealthy people of the Amos prophecy just don’t see what’s going on.
They’re like us. We do what we do, carry on as we are, without ever noticing that some people are suffering, while we are flourishing.
* * *
Like I don’t see dirt, or creases in clothes and grease marks but always see the things that interest me; we hardly ever ‘see’ the things and the people we don’t want to see.
It was true nearly 3000 years ago when the prophet Amos wrote his prophecy. It was true 2000 years ago when Jesus told this parable. And it is true today.
* * *
The parable Jesus told talks about two things; the obvious lesson is the lesson about caring for the poor: A lesson that would not have been news to the Pharisees; they had read the Old Testament - in fact they were experts in it and they knew (as we do) that they had a responsibility to care for the poor. (And just like us, they probably didn’t do much about it (Luke tells us: ‘they were lovers of money.’)
On the other hand, given the context that Jesus is speaking in - the parable is also a parable about our need to be generous with God’s grace:
* * *
An important thing in reading Bible passages is to take notice of the context in which they appear:
In Luke’s gospel the parable about the rich man and Lazarus is included in a set of stories and teachings which Jesus gives when the religious people of his day (The Pharisees) grumble about the kind of people with whom Jesus keeps company: Sinners, tax collectors and prostitutes… a group of people that could simply be described as: “Those considered unacceptable to organised religion.”
Jesus was the kind of person who went out of his way to find these people and share the good news of God’s grace with them - and they gathered enthusiastically to hear what it was that he had to say. (While the rest of the ‘church’ grumbled about who he hung out with.)
The stories Jesus tells in this section, from 15:1 to 17:10 talk about how: If a sheep gets lost - surely the shepherd will go out of his way to find it and return it to the flock. If a woman loses a coin - surely she will look for it and return to where it belongs. If a father’s son rejects him but he returns home one day, surely the father will be so overjoyed to see him again that he will forget all his anger and pain and welcome him back into the family?
If people in business know how to be generous in forgiving debts then surely God must also be?
* * *
All of these stories appeal to a person’s sense of what is right, common sense examples from life that speak about the nature of people, and what it is to be a responsible and good human being.
* * *
Then Jesus tells the story about the rich man and Lazarus. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the kind of story that Pharisees would tell each other as a kind of warning?
It is in line with their theology, they would have agreed that the rich man’s neglect of Lazarus was sinful, and that he got the fate which he deserved… They would have said Amen to that! (Just like us.)
But in the context of what Jesus was talking to them about hopefully they would have realised that they were just like the rich man in the story when it came to sharing not only their wealth, but also God’s grace and love with others.
Like the rich man would have walked straight past Lazarus, ignoring him, perhaps not even seeing him; they would have walked past tax collectors, sinners and prostitutes - as if they didn’t exist.
* * *
Perhaps, if they had seen them (or God forbid - they arrived at church or synagogue) they would have given them that disapproving look that we normally reserve for naughty children at polite dinner parties… Or for people who talk loudly on their cell phones in movie theatres. (Cf Lk 18:9)
* * *
Just like we do to people today they would have quite subtly treated people in a way that let them know that God didn’t like them at all… and I guess the tax collectors, sinners and prostitutes would have figured that if religious people (who knew their Bibles) thought that God didn’t like them - then it must be true.
* * *
But Jesus, the son of God - the perfect revelation of what God is like is the one who goes out to all these so called unacceptable people, forgives them and brings them home - showing that God does actually like them, and even love them.
Jesus is so convinced of this kind of controversial love that he is willing to die for it.
* * *
As I reflect on this long passage in which Jesus chastises the religious people of his day for not welcoming the people they thought of as sinners:
I wonder: How many people have we chased away from this household of God’s grace because of our reluctance to share with them what we have been given so generously by God?
How many times have we been the ones who give that look - the one reserved for naughty children at polite dinner parties - to people whom we might have judged to be sinners - what about gay people; street people; teenagers who dress too sexy; parents who’s children make too much noise; people who drink too much; people who suffer from mental illness; and those people who struggle to believe the same things that we do?
* * *
I wonder how many people wouldn’t dare to speak to their minister or their church community about the experiences that they go through. About their personal lives; about doubts and crises - because we Christians have given them the impression that if we really knew them - we wouldn’t like them.
And because they think we know God - we’ve given them all the impression that God wouldn’t like them either.
* * *
Like the dirt that I don’t see on my kitchen counters, the socks I don’t see in my lounge - we just don’t see these people anymore.
We don’t see them - because they’re not here - many years ago we made it quite clear that they weren’t welcome here. We gave the impression that Jesus who loves us - wouldn’t like them if he knew who they really were.
Pregnant teenagers, people dying of HIV and AIDS (for whatever reason), gay people, divorced people, alcoholics, people who think and ask questions about creating the world in 7 days and whether we can trust the Bible - we’ve managed to make them all disappear.
And sadly we’ve even convinced ourselves that Jesus wouldn’t really love us if he really knew us either - we’ve even learnt not to see those bits of dirt that live in our lives because they are somehow inconvenient to us.
* * *
The parable of the rich man and Lazarus and the prophecy of Amos are a challenge for us to share all of the grace that we have been given, spiritual and material, in order that people might know that they are all and we are all perfectly loved by God, even though none of us are perfect in any way.
* * *
In a book I read recently, one of the friends of the author said: “If Christianity were a person - I guess he wouldn’t like me.”
Later, when she read the gospels she realised that if Christianity were a person, that person should be Jesus shaped - and that person - would like her and love her no matter who she was and where she was.
* * *
It’s my hope that we will begin to see people the way that Jesus sees them, that Christianity will be known for treating people like Jesus would, accepting them and loving them like God’s own children. When we do; then I believe we will begin to see the
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