[Wednesday's Devotional] - Share and Enjoy

Share and Enjoy What guiding principles form, or should help to form, the way that our society works? Over the centuries one of the battles has been between those who have emphasised human freedom and those who have argued for equality.  Crudely, one can see this struggle played out in our age through commitment to free markets [and the acceptance of inequality] versus commitment to mutual support [and the acceptance of regulation and control]. It is not unusual to find people arguing for a 'bit of both'; a balance is needed because human flourishing involves both. Maybe the story of Israel and the announcement of the Kingdom by Jesus provide us with a foothold or two in this debate. Israel was in the wilderness for forty years.  During that time they had to depend on God for their basic needs.  Their entry into the 'promised land' was guided by God through the Torah, his directions.  Joshua led the allocation of land to the twelve tribes, their clans and families, as described in Joshua 14-19. The land was seen as their inheritance from God, which they held in trust. Each clan was given a fair share to enable them to flourish. A degree of equality was the basis for the share out. Given the initial fair shares, it is clear from Leviticus 25 and Deuteronomy 15 that 'life's up and downs, agricultural production and trade', conducted freely, would lead to inequality.  So the Torah provided for a Sabbatical Year, every seventh, when the land would be rested and debts would be cancelled. Every fifty years [after seven Sabbaticals] a Jubilee was declared when the original land allocation to families was restored.  In every generation a time came when the freedoms of the previous fifty years were suspended to re-establish fair distribution. Scholars argue over the extent to which these provisions were implemented, even then!  But surely there is food for thought and prayer here to encourage twenty first century Christians that there is a time for 'freedom' and a time for 'mutuality'. Where should the balance be now?   Richard Farnell      Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!