St. Luke, Evangelist

October 18 - 24

Deuteronomy, Gospel of Matthew

As the Lord continues to prepare his people for entrance into the promised land, he tells them, “There shall be no poor among you.” All of God’s chosen people will be cared for. At specific, recurring times, debts must be forgiven and slaves must be set free. This directive isn’t merely about good social policy. God has led his people here, and he wants his his grace, mercy, and providence to be reflected in the way they care for one another.

Thousands of years later, in another desolate place, Jesus seeks time alone to mourn the gruesome execution of his cousin, John the Baptist, but the crowds continue to follow him. The disciples want to send them home, not only to protect their rabbi, but also to allow ample travel time for the people to find food. He does not send them away. He heals. He teaches. He miraculously provides for the thousands gathered. There is not one among them who is left poor, either physically or spiritually.

Of course, all of this is made possible not by human ambition or careful planning, but by the infinite grace and compassion God has for us. The LORD takes great care to stress this to the Israelites. They have not survived in the wilderness or under the hand of Pharaoh by their own efforts. They belong to the Lord. He cares for his people, and he does not want them to forget it.

There should be no poor among us, either. There should be no lack of desire to seek out the Word of God, even if we have to go to unpleasant lengths to hear and learn it. Jesus’ compassion upon us should be repeated in the way we treat our brothers and sisters. With the full knowledge that Jesus has rescued us from the bondage and desolation of sin, our generosity should be continuous, in both word and deed, physically and spiritually. Our day in the promised land is coming, too. Let us be prepared for it by holding fast to the treasure of God’s Word and living it out together.

Pentecost 22

October 25 - 31

Deuteronomy, Gospel of Matthew

As Moses nears the end of his life, he warns God’s people about a particular type of idolatry. He describes it as a person who “blesses himself in his heart” when he hears the Word of the Lord. In the Gospel of Matthew, this idolatry reappears in multiple figures: the Pharisees, a wealthy young man who approaches Jesus, and even Jesus’ own disciples, all of whom have seem to have their hearts turned inward, in hopes that the Word will bring them personal gain or glory.

God reveals a clear consequence for this idoaltry. Those who spurn the true temple of God to worship in the temple of self will get their wish. Plucked them from among God’s people, cast out, and turned over to affliction, they sit on a throne of worldly glory, spiritually empty and miserable.

But Jesus pulls us down from that throne and forces us to look intently at an ordinary child, who does not believe conditionally, but with a whole heart. He leads us to the blind outcasts, who don’t merely go through the motions of prayer, but cry out boldly and persistently to the Lord for mercy, acknowledging exactly who the Savior is with full confidence in him.

We can do this because we know how Jesus made himself one of the lowly for our sake. His humiliating death and glorious resurrection have moved the mountain of sin and cast it into the sea. He restores us withered trees to make us alive to bear fruit.

And this is only the beginning. The full reward is in the kingdom to come, a place where the earthly treasures of wealth and prestige pale in comparison to what he has in store. And, unlike this world, not one in this kingdom will ever be cast out. Until then, we can be lowly, but spiritually full, healed and alive.