Where That Came From
Being
a preacher’s son, one Sunday a month we'd go to a member of the church’s home for Sunday dinner. My mother would give out instruction: mind your
manners, eat one bite of everything on your plate, and never ask for
seconds.
My brothers had problems with the first two, my problem was the third. It
never failed that the chubby little boy would be asked. "Would you like seconds? There’s
plenty were that came from." I would stare longingly at a second piece of fried
chicken and say “No mam, I'm full.”
Later, we would go to my grandparents’ house. My grandfather always had a
pack of Wrigley's gum in his shirt pocket. If there were more grandchildren than gum, he would tear
the sticks so everyone would have a piece. He would give it all out and
say “That's all I have, there’s no more where that came from.” No matter how many times he divided a stick of gum, it was more than enough. We’d be happy with all he had.
“There’s
more where that came from,” is a modern phrase. When Jesus preached his
parables, people believed abundance and good things were limited. They only knew, “There’s no more where
that came from.” People who had things were favored by God.
The
only thing in abundance for the poor was misery. Illness and suffering were thought
to be divine punishment. To improve one’s stations in life was unthinkable. If
a person gained something they were suspected of taking it from someone else.
That’s why the shepherd looked for his one lost sheep and the woman searched
for her one lost coin.
In
this world of rich and poor, the rich controlled everything. The rich were
blessed by God and the poor and suffering received divine justice for a sin
they or their ancestors had committed. The poor survived on the generosity of
the rich. The Law of Moses instructed the rich to share their good fortune by
alms to help the less fortunate.
This
brings us to the story of the rich man and Lazarus. In a world about the
powerful, wealthy, and beautiful people, it is a story with great irony. To see
only beauty, the world ignores the people it considers unimportant or nameless
like the poor and suffering.
The
irony of this story, it is the successful we don’t know; but, we learn the name
of the poor and suffering, Lazarus. Christ is the paradox that puts a name to
the nameless and brings beauty to those the world has thrown away. Though He was rich, he became poor, so that by his poverty you might
become rich. Rich and abundant is His
grace, mercy, and love.
God
did not condemn the rich man. The world saw him as a favored by God. The rich
man condemned himself by forgetting his God given responsibility of caring for
the poor. He created an abyss between himself and the poor and suffering.
He
lived in opulence all his earthly days. In that, he created a chasm between
himself and Lazarus. He ignored the poor and suffering man not even offering
scraps from his table. His destiny of torment began at the door that separated
the two on earth and grew to a great abyss in the next.
The
difference was who stood on the favored side.
In
life Lazarus was a forgotten person. No one even cared enough to “shoo” the
dogs away. He lived on the poor side of the door; yet, he never begged or asked
the rich man for anything. After death, Lazarus was received in the bosom of
Abraham, a table of righteousness filled with God’s love, grace, and mercy.
After
death and in torment, the rich man begged. 'Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his
finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these
flames.'
Lazarus
is a precursor image for Christ raised from the dead; but, Lazarus did not preach
repentance. Christ preached repentance and sends his disciples with the
same message.
The
message for us is don’t chase the riches of the world. Instead, “Pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and
gentleness. Compete well for the faith.”
This
is mercy. This is love. Rich and abundant is His grace, mercy, and love. Like my grandfather's piece of gum, in his grace He gives us all.
Pursue
Christ’s abundance. “Lay hold of eternal
life, to which you were called…” We
are his disciples. As Christians, we took his name. Go out to learn the
name of the poor and suffering. With great love, bring His riches. The Lord
will give us all. If your goal is to love, give all that you have.
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