Luke-Poverty

Luke 10:27

• I love myself enough to do all I can to:

1. In the context of Christ’s time, the material poor are those who
   1. Isaiah 61:1-3
      1. Exegetical Context: Most Jews
         1. Assyrians conquered Israel in the North
         2. Babylon conquering Judah in the South
         3. To be rich meant you and God
            1. To be faithful in this political and cultural context meant:

Forgiving debts on sabbatical year

No farming, work, or production on sabbatical year

No business on Sabbath

Restricted or no access to marketplaces due to pagan worship

Tithe on top of national tax

Giving excess to widows, orphans, and impoverished

• • 1. Modern Church Context:
       1. 20% of the church contributes
       2. Only 22% of “church-goers”
       3. Only 15% of “church-goers”
       4. Average American Christian
          1. Compare to:

American Christians spend more of their excess money on:

Cosmetics

fast food

Alcohol

Tobacco

Entertainment

vacation

• 1. Luke 4:14-21
     1. Christ relates Isaiah 61 to His time
     2. The poor were those who remained faithful and uncompromising to God
        1. Poor man’s offering (Luke 2:22-24)

1. The Poor were also those who were and in
   1. Luke 6:20-26
   2. Greek: Pito-kos
      1. To be destitute, in a humble state, to the point of begging
      2. Generally used figuratively for someone’s emotional or spiritual state
   3. The Gospel is for those who sincerely and desperately confess they need God
      1. Two types of people in Luke:
         1. Those who thought
         2. Those who knew
      2. Luke 18:14
2. Poverty to , Rich in
   1. To and all you have
   2. Luke 5:11 -Disciples dropped everything
   3. Luke 9:57-62 -No looking back….you must be All IN!
   4. Luke 12:13-21 -Don’t invest in building worldly excess, invest in eternal excess
   5. Luke16:1-15
      1. Vs. 15-God , therefore we must abandon ourselves to be
      2. Vs. 13- You cannot serve both yourself and God…pursuing money means
   6. American Context: Can I be all in for God and still be a self-made millionaire?
      1. Life is a zero-sum game:
         1. The , , and to accomplish that requires less of the same to the
      2. If I truly Love my neighbor as myself i.e. be a disciple, is it possible to have that much excess?
3. Christ expects
   1. Luke 16:19-31 -Rich man and Lazarus
      1. To “” means others “”
   2. Is the terms “rich and poor” a heavenly ordained concept?
      1. Alternate Universe example: Cain kills Christ
   3. He came to bring and
      1. The Kingdom is that nobody has need, but fully sustained in Christ
   4. We in God’s mission which is to those injustices
      1. Luke 18:22-25
      2. Acts 2:44-45