A Moment Aside for 9 October 2020

 A Moment Aside ---- 9 October 2020

“God helps those who help themselves.”

     As often as we’ve heard this, have we realized that it is not in the Holy Scriptures? It said all the time… and it's a load of hooey. (That’s an unusual, technical, theological term.) Helping yourself sounds like a sign at the buffet line: “Help yourself!” My father told me that the army added something to that. “Take all you want, but eat all you take… by order of the commanding general.”

     We need to realize that salvation is not a DIY (“Do It Yourself”) situation. We do not need to work it out ourselves, because it is all grace. Now, living in that grace requires work on our part. God will see us through whatever may happen, even though things might not turn out as we wish. We could pray for good health, but if we don’t do the things that would keep us healthy, it’s best not to expect a positive outcome. We might pray for riches, but if we don’t get out of our lounge chairs, it may not happen. And there is a very real possibility that we may have to re-define what “rich” means.

     There is a stream of theological thinking that says we are “co-creators” of the world with God. This way of thinking says God made the world and we tend it. (Genesis 2: 15) God makes the seed without our help and we harvest the crop, keeping a portion of the harvested seed for the next planting. We build and improve the world around us, although we have to acknowledge and sustain what God has made. Exploiting and destroying the world and the environment is not a God-ly thing to do. It could be that we work with God in the sustaining of the world God has made.

     Faith can truly move mountains and a few dozen people with picks and shovels can do more than only praying at the foot of the mountain without seeing what needs to be moved. If we want peace, we need to work prayerfully for peace. If we want justice, we will need to prayerfully work and move for justice for everyone since justice is not justice if someone is left out. Prayer has to be a part of it, because otherwise we might go off on an adventure of our own, which could be a selfish and self-centered one.

     When it comes to helping others, there are times when we have to fold our hands in prayer and other times we'll have to open our hands and get them dirty in helping. Most of the time, we need to do both. If nothing else, our works – whatever they might be – can be both a practical assistance and a revelation of the mercy and concern of God.

     As Martin Luther wrote: “God doesn’t need our good works, but our neighbors do.”