Frontline Devotion for Monday, March 8, 2010 by Fritz Foltz
Luke 6: 43-45 ‘No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit; for each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.
At first this seems so trite and easy. Only good people with good hearts do good deeds. Yes, I believe that, just like I believe, “Faith without works is dead”. That’s how I first read the saying, wondering what I would write, because after all everyone believes this one.
Then I made a big mistake. I read the context of this passage and the ten or so others that use the same language. I began to see the particulars of what Jesus meant. And OUCH, THAT HURTS. Jesus speaks directly to where we are right now as we are slowly learning earthly treasure is not trustworthy. Jesus says, “Don’t trust it, because it is always vulnerable to rust, moths, and thieves”.
But the OUCH THAT HURTS goes beyond cursing the thieves who have stolen the money from the pension and endowment funds in which we invested. The context of the sayings is, “Don’t judge others; judge yourself for investing in order to make yourself wealthy without thought for the poor”.
You see this clearly when you remember Jesus uses the same language when he tells the rich young man who wants salvation that he must sell his goods, give the money to the poor, and follow him in order to have treasure in heaven. Again he uses the language in the parable of the rich fool who uses profit from a good harvest to build barns so he has money in the future rather than sharing his good fortune with the poor. He also uses the same words when he speaks of how difficult it is for the wealthy to get into the Kingdom of God.
Jesus calls us all to be good trees that bear good fruit, to nurture good hearts that produce good words and deeds. And he is clear this happens when we invest our treasures in heaven and the Father of Jesus Christ whom we can trust. The OUCH THAT HURTS comes when we are forced to acknowledge he is talking about real treasures that include our material wealth.
Some of the OUCH is soothed when Paul reminds us we have God’s treasure in earthen vessels. However, the prayers of our devotions should always be asking for the courage to do God’s will and follow his ways. Let our prayers be to use the opportunity given us to realize whom we can really trust and to invest ourselves and all we have there.
Let us pray: Thank you, Father, for all the blessings you have poured out on us, including the opportunities given in an affluent society. Help us to share these blessings with others. Enter into our hearts that we might invest our treasures wisely. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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