Your Privilege This Summer
page 1 of 3by Scott Bessenecker
The Real Great Commission
The following is a speech delivered to the students of the 2003 Global Urban Trek, at their orientation conference.
This is page one of three. Go to page: 1 2 3
I was at a missions conference of East Asian student ministers when the speaker, Vinoth Ramachandra, a Sri Lankan missiologist, asked us to open our Bibles to the Great Commission. Of course, everybody hurriedly thumbed through the pages until they arrived at Matthew 28. Then Vinoth looked at us inquiringly and asked, "What passage did you turn to?" and we knew we were in trouble. The trap had sprung. "Who said that Matthew 28 was the 'Great Commission'?" He asked. "Does it say 'Great Commission' anywhere in the passage?" Vinoth then went on to lead us into Deuteronomy suggesting that God's laws to the nation of Israel were really the "Great Commission." Vinoth wanted us to appreciate the fact that God's initial plan was less about sending Israelites out to the nations and more about sending the nations to Israel. God's intent seemed to be to gather the nations to Himself through the exemplary ways in which His people governed themselves and cared for others. Their "Great Commission" was simply to conduct their affairs in a way that proved the excellence of God's character. Vinoth's missionary challenge to us was that the Church needed to regain her power to win the nations out of the influence of her godly conduct. In essence Vinoth was saying to this room full of student workers who were ready to mobilize a missionary army, "Tell your students to stay home and act like citizens of a heavenly kingdom before you send them off to export their sins to the rest of the world."
This story, you may think, is a curious way to begin a message designed to motivate a group of students just days away from departure to far flung places. But please stay with me.
I do, in fact, want us to open up to Deuteronomy, though to a different section than Vinoth had shared with us that day. Let's look at Deuteronomy 15:1-11.
1 At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. 2 This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel the loan he has made to his fellow Israelite. He shall not require payment from his fellow Israelite or brother, because the LORD's time for canceling debts has been proclaimed. 3 You may require payment from a foreigner, but you must cancel any debt your brother owes you. 4 However, there should be no poor among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you, 5 if only you fully obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commands I am giving you today. 6 For the LORD your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.
7 If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. 8 Rather be openhanded and freely lend him whatever he needs. 9 Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: "The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near," so that you do not show ill will toward your needy brother and give him nothing. He may then appeal to the LORD against you, and you will be found guilty of sin. 10 Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. 11 There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.
Every seven years, those who owed you money were to be forgiven their debt. Likewise, any money you had borrowed was to be canceled. The exception was that this would not apply to those outside the community of Israel. This makes sense since the only way this would work would be if everyone played by the same rules. Canceling the debts of foreigners who were not in turn canceling your debt would create huge national economic problems. But within the family of God, there was to be no debt lasting more than seven years. What an incredible equalizing effect. Nobody would get excessively rich (at least not from interest income) and no one would be excessively poor. Imagine how many fewer credit card appeals we would get in the mail if this were in effect in America. Credit card companies are earnestly hoping that you and I will borrow more in a year than we can pay back so they can rake in the interest. The households that have credit cards are averaging $8,000 a year in debt and are paying $1,400 every year in interest. Imagine the disincentive to make money off of interest if you were required to forgive all debt every 7 years.
Verse 4 says, "However, there should be no poor among you." Some translators have suggested that the spirit of this verse might be interpreted, "As a result of above debt forgiveness policy, there should be no poor among you." Others have noted that this statement was more like a command than a prophecy. The fact is that when God was setting up a social order, his intent was that no one among them would be poor.
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