3A: attitudes towards wealth Flashcards
1
Q
Attitudes towards wealth passages?
A
Mark 10:17-25
- Matthew 6:25-34
- Luke 12:33-34
- Timothy 6:10
2
Q
Mark 10:17-25 - context:
A
- comes from a section of Mark where Jesus is teaching the meaning of discipleship.
- Jesus is Jewish and therefore his answer to the question of how to ibstain eternal life is also Jewish: to keep the Mosaic Law. The man asking the question is also Jewish - he has been raised in the Law his entire life but this has not led him to the answer he seeks.
- traditional Jewish teaching on wealth sees it as a sign of divine favour and urges those with wealth to be generous.
- however Jesus says to give up all possessions and join the Jesus-movement. This answer is out of step with the traditional approach
- the idea of dispossessing oneself of all possessions won’t have been unheard of in Jesus’ time but may not have been the expected answer from a respected Rabbi.
3
Q
Mark 10:17-25 - main message:
A
- passage is clearly about Mindy and material possession.
- Jesus is teaching that it is impossible to enter the Kingdom of Gid if one is wealthy. He uses the striking image of a cameo going through the eye of a needle. Did Jesus mean this to apply to everyone or just to this man? This has been debates through the centuries.
- however what is clear is that for Jesus the kingdom if Gid is of infinitely more importance than money and wealth.
4
Q
Mark 10:17-25 - scholarly detail:
A
- the laws that Jesus lists are mostly from the second half of the Ten Commandments concerning one’s relationship with others. The commandment to ‘not defraud’ is not, however a oart of the 10 Commandments. But is a variation on the theme of theft.
- to defraud is to gain money through illegal means and see scholars see including ‘defraud’ as an a example of Jesus going beyond the letter of the law to insights about its spirit.
5
Q
Mark 10:17-25 - interesting fact:
A
- some early manuscripts use the word kamilon (rope) instead of kamelon (camel)
- also a story circulated that there was a passage into Jerusalem only open at night called ‘The Needle Gate’; if one had a camel, it would have to be divested of its luggage in order to crouch down and make it through the entry.
- however this is most likely a fanciful medevial legend meant to inpress pious rptiruists to Jerusalem rathe than a historical fact.
- the camel going through the eye of the needle is so striking and grotesque that many scholars believe it is likely the earliest.
6
Q
Matthew 6:25-34 - context:
A
- this passage is a part of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus outlines what it means to live in the presence of God.
- one of the main thesmes of this sermon is that righteousness must be defined in a new way, going beyond the letter of the law to an all-embracing lifestyle of love and commitment.
7
Q
Matthew 6:25-34 - main message:
A
- Jesus urges his followers to have the right priorities
- the enemy of any priority is anxiety; in this case it is anxiety about food or clothing.
- Jesus’ audience aren’t espciarly rich or powerful, in fact they were kokel6 living a hand-to-mouth existence. Yet he still insists the priority is not food and clothing, but spiritual things.
- he commands this as he has faith in the provision of God, as reflected by God’s goodness in the natural world.
8
Q
Matthew 6:25-34 - scholarly insight:
A
- the term anxiety is used in this passage more than in any other place of the New Testament.
- it has to do with being afraid in such a way to cause distress.
- some passages that may have been known to the Gospel writers include Sirach 30:24 and 1 Maccabees 6:10
9
Q
Luke 12:33-34 - context:
A
- earlier in Luke is the parable of the rich fool: a wealthy man celebrates the fact that he has hoarded enough material wealth to secure his future.
- the problem is that death now c8mes to hum and he has made the mistake of not providing for his spiritual life. This passage now recommends execitly the opposite lifestyle
10
Q
Luke 12:33-34 - main meaning:
A
- the striking aspect about these verses is the requirement gtabt Jesus’ followers sell their possessions and five the proceeds to the poor. In fact this is the et that reveals whether one is living for God’s Kingdom.
- the decision one makes reveals that they are on the path of the rich fool or on the path of eternal life.
11
Q
Luke 12:33-34 - scholarly insight:
A
- the book of Acts shows the followers of Jesus living out this instruction to sell their oissessiins. Giving to the poor is very important in Jewish thought at the time of the New Testamwnr.
- did Jesus expect all his followers to live this way - the passage seems to suggest this but Jesus commands Zacchaeus to give away only hand if this wealth in Luke 19:1-10
12
Q
Luke 12:33-34 - interesting fact:
A
- some Greco-Roman thinkers would have agreed with the sentiment of this passage.
- Dio Chrysostom write that wealth can lead to self-indulgence and should be put to use for human need.
13
Q
Timothy 6:10 - context:
A
- the Pastoral Epistles are concerned with heretical teaching and lax morality entering thr Cburch. - the author wants the Churhc to keep to the true faith, avoiding obscure beliefs and developing a strong moral centre.
14
Q
Timothy 6:10 - main meaning:
A
- money is not evil or ‘dirty’ in its key. The real danger is the ‘love of money’ or greed.
- this greed has motivated false teachers to ignore the plain truth and drift from the faith.
- material prosperity comes with a warning label, thighs it is the eagerness to be rich rather than riches it else that is the real danger.
- wealth makes faith more challenging as it distracts a person from God.
- worship of money in place of God is what causes trouble.
15
Q
Timothy 6:10 - interesting fact:
A
- it was common for ancient philosophers to change their opponent with teaching for lay and therefore seeking to please rather than to present the whole truth.
