Amos 6:1-7, I Timothy 6:6-19 and Luke 16:19-31

It’s possible…..anyone could fall into hard times and be left with just food and clothing. No one wants to imagine it though. We often read of starvation, poverty, unemployment, homelessness, but few reading this have been there. Yet, life is full of “what ifs….” What if I had been born in a very poor country ? What if I fall ill and can’t work? What if I give until it hurts?

In Jesus and Paul’s time with calls to “seek ye first the Kingdom of God,” and the shift from identifying only as a Jew or only as a Gentile to being a follower of Christ, the real risk of falling into one of the above desperate conditions e.g. poverty, unemployment, was ever present. It made for an exciting life but with potential hardships.

This Sunday will be a call to empathize with those like poor Lazarus at the gate. And a call to beware of the “lure of riches” or rather “the love of money” which are considered to be threats to a life of faith, and, not to put too fine a point upon it, the root of all evil. Strong language indeed!

Yet, the joy of what Christ has done for us is the motivation here! The demanding language is always in the context of God’s grace bestowed upon, unmerited favor. What will we do when grace “sinks in?!” Awareness of grace is the starting point! What follows should be amazing too!

Blessings in your walk with Christ!

Pastor Barry