That Which is Not Bread

There’s a lot of conversation lately about meaningful work. Many who were furloughed by the pandemic have found that their work schedules have been radically changed, often for the better. Some have found a new identity beyond What They Do. “What am I working for? Is this really important?” Scripture to be read during worship on the coming weekend expands our conversation about the value of Work–and the incomplete idea that our personal worth depends upon what we “do”.

ISAIAH of Babylon wrote to remind the returning “exiles” of both the nearness of YHWH and their need to prioritize God in their daily lives (55:1-9). “Why do you spend your money on that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?” Many of these exiles have sold out to the comforts of Babylon and have glossed over the divine life set out for them long ago. The prophet says that we no longer need to shop at other markets: this one has all we need–and it’s FREE! The wicked ways spoken of are those which siphon our strength and our resources and claim our devotion to the singleness of YHWH.

Our foray into I CORINTHIANS 10:1-13 can be off-putting; but remember that Paul was trying to form a community from members of many different cultures and values. So he tells some of the Exodus story, dangling it as a common bond of ethics and belief. He’s calling these folks to center on a radical life-style, rather than co-existing with old-time tradition and superstitions. These are not so much obvious evils as they are creeping temptations. In a way this is idolatry: running after bling at the expense of justice and righteousness. Casey Thompson asks, “Can the church stand against such idolatry without lapsing into it?” (FEASTING on the WORD, C 2:88)

LUKE 13:1-9 portrays a very serious Jesus, on his way to Truth & Power in Jerusalem. His rhetorical observation, “unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did”, is addressed to those who are trying to have it all, those living the Good Life while giving only a portion to God. “Repent” means to turn life/ behavior around, to rethink a plan, to go another (better) way. Some of us fast for Lent by not eating cookies or candy bars. But Jesus is telling us that our goals and self-reliance are too shallow for the Kingdom of God.

Walter Brueggemann, in his fine book of Lenten devotions, “A Way Other Than Our Own”, opines that “the crisis in the U.S. church has almost nothing to do with being liberal or conservative; it has everything to do with giving up on the faith and discipline of our Christian baptism and settling for a common, generic U.S. identity that is part patriotism, part consumerism, part violence, and part affluence.”(p.3) Since it’s the Ides of March, I can justly add, “And you??”

In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King

Meet me at horacebrownking.com every Tuesday and together we’ll greet the Scripture Lessons assigned to be heard on the upcoming weekend…