Written by Jonathan Melton
Luke 3:10-11 (NRSV) And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.”
John the Baptist is giving mundane instructions to those who believe that the salvation of God is near. Of course, just because instructions are ordinary does not mean we are good at following them. So we begin with coats—simple and ordinary.
Remarkably, John regards all of our second coats as more than chances to make a charitable donation; John thinks our extra jackets actually belong to our non-coat-having neighbors. Further, John thinks the very possession of these second coats names our mistrust of God’s continuing provision for our lives, lived out at our neighbors’ expense.
I wonder what it means to imagine the material world as a medium through which our trust in God is measured and expressed. Would that turn the world upside down? I pray to know my neighbor’s poverty as a sign I am called to grow in my trust that the kingdom of God has come near.
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