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| Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that Jesus will make all things right if I surrender to his will; That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with him forever in the next. Amen INSIGHTS FROM SCRIPTURE: When Jesus spoke of worry to his disciples, he had already been with them for a while. He knew what they worried about and why. This sermon about anxiety took place in a crowd of thousands of people, so although it was directed at the disciples, it was not exclusive. Later in Luke 12, Peter asks if the parables are just for them or for everyone. Jesus tells a parable to explain that it is for the person that does what is right with the information he has heard. One might ask if this passage encourages laziness. Probably not. Jesus was giving this teaching in the context of a Jubilee society. Initiated in the wilderness (1280 BCE), Jubilee helped ensure a just society where people who got down on their luck could get a second chance. But, obeying these stipulations required lots of trust in God. Every 7 years, people let the land rest and didn’t plant crops. Every 7 years, all slaves were released with money to get started on their own again. Every 7 years, all debts were cancelled. And every 50 years, the land returned to its original owners. The rich voluntarily gave up what they had to allow those who had suffered misfortune to try to re-establish a decent living. Yet it didn’t kill initiative because it only happened every 50 years. So, when Jesus said not to worry about what one would eat or wear, he may have been speaking in the context of Jubilee. WORKS CITED: Niebuhr, Reinhold ‘Serenity Prayer’ |
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