Lose That You May Find (Part 1)

Wednesday, Mar. 4, 2009 Posted: 5:08:46PM HKT

"O come O come Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel, that mourns in lonely exile here, Until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel."

"You are a Christian only so long as you constantly pose critical questions to the society you live in . . . so long as you stay unsatisfied with the status quo and keep saying a new world is yet to come." – Henry Nouwen

1. Reflections on money, sex and power
I recently purchased a second-hand copy of Richard Foster's book, The Challenge of the Disciplined Life: Christian Reflections on Money, Sex & Power. First published in 1985, Foster's work was originally titled as, Money, Sex & Power. The original title conveys a rather provocative, "in your face” tone. The revised title however, better links Foster's text to the greater theme of his life's work and message. Foster sought to help Evangelicals appreciate the enduring relevancy of historically enduring spiritual disciplines found within and across the greater Christian Tradition. The broader concern of Foster's text is Christian ethics; how Christians should develop and make ethical or moral choices, regarding issues of money, sex and power. Foster is not suggesting that money, sex and power are inherently evil. On the contrary! Foster is rather warning us that this is a triad of social arenas that are polluted and enslaved by very real "principalities and powers" (e.g. Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 1:16); powers such as greed, lust, and pride.

Foster begins by describing the inseparable links between money, sex, and power. In their unredeemed state, "Money manifests itself as power. Sex is used to acquire both money and power. And power is often called 'the best aphrodisiac." Each of these issues profoundly affects the social or institutional as well as the private realms of human life. Money primarily relates to the "business" sector, meaning the task of producing goods and services that may either bless or oppress humankind. But in the world, the predominant human posture towards money is dominated by greed and self-indulgence. Sex relates foremost to "marriage," and thus has the power to either facilitate "the deepest possible intimacy or the greatest possible alienation" amongst humans. Again, the human posture towards sex is driven primarily by the passions of lust and exploitation. The issue of power foremost works through the arena of human government. By government, Foster means "the enterprise of human organization that can lead toward either liberty or tyranny." Throughout history, this triad of money, sex, and power has always occupied a central concern in Christian ethics. And as Foster notes, spiritual revivals have usually been accompanied by clear, bold responses to the social fallouts of wrong postures towards money, sex and power.

What prompted me to enter this posting was how Foster begins his "Epilogue" with Henri Nouwen’s admonishment: "You are a Christian only so long as you constantly pose critical questions to the society you live in . . . so long as you stay unsatisfied with the status quo and keep saying a new world is yet come." I've only given a quick scanning of Foster's book thus far. But I've concluded that Foster's message remains and has become even more relevant for our present day. This is a message that needs to be re-visited and re-read by 21st century Christians, particularly by 21st century first-world, Evangelical middle and upper class Christians.

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Rev Monte Lee-Rice
The Christian Post (Singapore) Guest Contributor