In principle, it’s great news that new high tech jobs are being attracted to a country with very high levels of poverty. Yet, the reaction in the British press is to talk about the loss of jobs in the rich Western countries - 1 million jobs in America, 200,000 jobs in the Britain. You can understand of course that people are concerned at the loss of jobs in this country. The mentality we have is these are our jobs. It’s a view based on national and personal interest, rather than viewing the need for jobs from a world citizen perspective. It is ‘SCARCITY’ mentality – there are only so many jobs in the world – if someone else gets them then we lose them. No matter that the gainers are one of the poorer countries of the world. No matter that we claim concern for creating a fairer world with less poverty in the third world. WE are losing jobs and we don’t like that.
Steven Covey who wrote the book ‘The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’ discusses how we can work with other people so that there are no losers – so that in any encounter all people win.
He describes the views that I described about jobs in India as a ‘SCARCITY’ mentality – resources are limited so in order for me to WIN then you must lose. It’s a mentality which is rooted in getting the best for me and not worrying about what that costs other people.
Covey compares this ‘SCARCITY’ mentality with what he describes as an ‘ABUNDANCE’ mentality. The ‘ABUNDANCE’ mentality is a paradigm which sees a world of plenty for everyone. ‘ABUNDANCE’ mentality he declares comes from a deep sense of personal worth and security, which enables a person to turn outward, appreciating others and recognizing the unlimited possibilities for growth and development and benefit for all, when we work with each other in a supportive manner.
I’m reminded of the children’s song about love which declares:
“Love’s just like a magic penny,
Hold it tight
and you won’t have any,
Lend it, spend it, give it away,
You’ll end
up having more.
Love, in a ‘SCARCITY’ mentality is about holding it tight for our personal benefit. The God of the Bible does NOT have a ‘SCARCITY’ mentality. In John’s Gospel today we hear of God’s ’ABUNDANCE’ mentality when Jesus shows his love and generosity to people by feeding the 5000.
There is no ‘SCARCITY’ mentality here with Jesus. Despite the fact that there are only the few loves and fishes, his abundant generosity and power create enough food for more than 5000 people..In the Ephesians reading today, St Paul rather declares very powerfully that our God is abundantly generous. Whenever Paul reflected upon what God had done for the Gentiles, he is driven to prayer to give thanks for the abundant generosity of God:
In Chapter 1: he gives thanks for Redemption and Forgiveness and the riches of his grace which God has lavished upon the Ephesians..
In Chapter 2: he gives thanks that the Gentiles are now no longer strangers, but are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. God, in his abundant generosity, has redeemed the Gentiles as well as the Jews.
In Judaism it was customary to stand for prayer, but kneeling was a sign of deep emotion and earnestness. Paul writes in this passage ‘I bow my knee before the Father’, indicating his earnestness and seriousness about what he has to say. So, here in Chapter 3, he continues his prayers of thanks in great intensity, reflecting on the magnificence and abundance of God who is the ‘Father’ of the whole universe (verse 15) with a magnificent and generous plan for Jewish and Gentile people. He has reflected on God’s act of Redemption under the Old Covenant – freeing his people from the power of the Egyptians in the Exodus. During their long travels he gave them a sign of his love and generosity by feeding his people with manna.
He has reflected on God’s act of Redemption under the New Covenant – the death and resurrection of Christ - freeing God’s people from the power of sin and leaving them with the sign of love of the breaking of bread in the Lord’s Supper. Paul is very clear that God’s purpose in giving generously to the Ephesians is that they are rooted and grounded in love, able to know the love of Christ and able to experience the power at work within us which is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine. Paul is concerned that the inward life of the Ephesians may be transformed and strengthened.
But, the abundant generosity of God to his people is not just to do with redemption; it is also to give abundantly of him-self to those who turn to him, so that he dwells in our hearts and share in our life so that God’s generosity can be shared with all people.
So, Paul repeats in verse 3 the theme from his prayer in chapter 1 (when he talks about the riches of God’s grace) and prays that “according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with the power through his spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love”. The Ephesians are being empowered to share God’s abundant love with other people.
But, Paul is also emphatic that a true knowledge of God is not just an individual experience of one person with God: he declares true knowledge of God is unattainable without the experience of love in the fellowship of the church (verse 3.18).
Let us therefore as individuals and as a church, give thanks to God for his abundant generosity. Let us share with all those we meet, God’s abundant generosity and, in turn, our own abundant love and generosity, through what we have received from God.
The love that Paul talks about is intensely practical.
ü It comes to expression in the love that we show to Christ and to others in their daily life in good times, and particularly in their experience of sorrow, trial and suffering.
ü It’s shown when we reject a ‘scarcity’ mentality with our money and practice an ‘abundance’ mentality – giving generously to others in their need.
ü It’s shown in how we give our time to God and to others.
ü It’s shown in our attitude to local and national and world politics when we reject narrow personal interest in favour of an abundant generosity to others.
Let us pray today that we may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth of God’s love for us ….. so that we may be filled with all the fullness of God, in order that we can share in our daily life, the abundant generosity that God has given to us.
But, let us also give thanks, with St Paul, that our God is one of such abundant generosity and let’s pray that narrowness, meanness of spirit, selfishness and lack of generosity may forever be banished from our midst.