Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Matthew 19:21
“On account of covetousness men lose their natural friendship for one another, and whet their swords and array themselves against each other and like wild beasts fight one another with great ferocity. But how can one relate the consequences of these things? Massive walls are thrown down by engines, cities are taken, women led captives, and children enslaved. The land is wasted and ravaged, and the trees are warred against as though they were wrong-doers. There is great slaughter of those who are in the prime of life, and torrents of blood stream from the wretched corpses; and the wealth of the conquered is the victors’ prize.
There are, moreover, the lamentations of widows, the tears of orphans, who bewail at once both their fathers and their freedom. He who was day before yesterday possessor of great wealth, stretches forth his right hand to beg a bit of bread, and he who had many slaves at the loom, and houses full of garments, now clothed in rags does the work of a slave, forced to carry water and scrape the dung from the stable, and to perform most menial duties. There are besides countless evils which it is impossible to compass all at once. But of all of these, the beginning and cause and root is greed, unrighteous love of the goods that belong to another.
And if any one should extirpate this passion from the human heart, profound peace would be inevitably introduced into our life, and wars and tumults would be banished from among men, and all would return to the natural condition of love and friendliness. On this account, our Lord also carefully heals this disease, once declaring in his teachings; “Ye cannot serve God and mammon;” and on another occasion declaring wretched the rich man who was just about to die, even as he was picturing to himself the protracted enjoyment of luxury; and elsewhere teaching that that man was perfect who divided all that he had among the needy, and went over to a self-denying life, which is the mother and companion of virtue.”
Asterius of Amasea (350-410) in his sermon, “Against Coveteousness.”
We are near the climax of this sermon. Asterius spells out the explanation for the war and bloodshed in his day and in our own with the Russian occupation of Ukraine. It is driven by greed and coveteousness, and it leaves a wake of gloom and carnage.
But there is hope for profound peace. It’s is found only when we obey Jesus and choose the “self-denying” life of sharing what we have with those in need. This is where generosity comes into view as what the world needs most right now.
I don’t just mean sending aid to Ukraine through Mission Eurasia or some other group. That’s part of it, for sure. I mean living differently where God has us to show the world that doing good overcomes greed and caring surpasses coveteousness.
Don’t miss the message from Jesus. Hear it again. “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Anyone out there willing to choose the way of perfection?