Summit Drive Church

The Bible is not an economics textbook – for which we are truly grateful. But God has given us some key ideas that relate to how we connect questions about justice and the economy. We often carry with us several unexamined assumptions about “how the world works,” but we don’t often hold those up to the light of God’s revelation in Scripture. This week, we’ll dive into three major assumptions, and the three major correctives that help us to live more thoughtfully, and justly.

Jesus begins his public ministry by citing from the prophet Isaiah and standing squarely within the prophetic tradition of enacting God’s justice. But what is justice really all about? Here, in Luke 4, we see how Jesus' ministry is “good news to the poor” in the spiritual and physical and social sense.

To love God means, among other things, loving what God loves, and God loves the world he made. So “Jesus is coming – plant a tree!” That might sound like a bit of a paradox, but this essay title gets to an important part of Christian faith: the reality that God calls humans, as his “image,” to care for this good world, even as we anticipate God’s coming future. In this message, we’ll explore those connections and what it will mean for us to “do justly” in regard to the environment.

This week, we explore the inextricable connection between justice and the Image of God. We will see that the image of God gives all people an inherent, indelible and humbling dignity. But, it also gives us a responsibility to work for flourishing of each other and creation.

Jesus begins his public ministry by citing from the prophet Isaiah and standing squarely within the prophetic tradition of enacting God’s justice. But what is justice really all about? Here, in Luke 4, we see how Jesus' ministry is “good news to the poor” in the spiritual and physical and social sense.

In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus tells us a surprising story about what it means to be a true neighbour and about who has the potential to show neighbourly love.

Jesus’ parable of “The Unforgiving Servant” addresses the common human problem with forgiveness. Jesus teaches that his kingdom was to be marked by being forgiven and offering forgiveness. In this talk, we look at what forgiveness is and what it isn’t, and apply the test of forgiveness that Jesus lays out for us.

Jesus’ parable of “The Prodigal Son” (which should probably be called something like “the two lost sons”) is probably the most well-known, and well-loved of all his parables – and for good reason. In it, we see God’s heart of compassion, we see ourselves and the true nature of humanity, and we hear an invitation to come home, come to the feast, and to join God’s pursuit of those who are lost. It begs us to answer the question: What will you do with the God of compassion?

Anxiety is a common human problem, and one of the most common forms of anxiety is money. In the parable of the rich fool, and the teaching that follows, Jesus shows us that trusting in God's provision frees us from worry and helps us to make generosity a habit.

This week, we're looking at Luke 16:19-31, where Jesus tells the parable of "The Rich Man and Lazarus," and how the fierce love and justice of Jesus are both found in this beautiful and alarming parable.