At a recent prayer breakfast President Obama gave a speech on the need to help those who are less fortunate. In the context of helping others he stated, “But for me as a Christian, it also coincides with Jesus’ teaching that ‘for unto whom much is given, much shall be required.’ It mirrors the Islamic belief that those who’ve been blessed have an obligation to use those blessings to help others, or the Jewish doctrine of moderation and consideration for others.”
The scripture he quoted can be found in Luke 12, verse 48. Jesus is talking to his disciples about being watchful. He was paralleling his return with a parable about a servant who is given authority over his master’s dominion. The King James Bible quotes this part of the verse as thus, “…for unto whom much is given, of him much shall be required: and to whom men have committed much of him they will ask the more.”
The New King James Version puts it like this, “for everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.” Looking at the verse Mr. Obama quoted we must ask ourselves, “much what?” Mr. Obama used this verse to say that if you are given much prosperity then it should be shared with others. This was the main theme of his speech. But upon further observation we see that what Jesus was talking about here was not things, money or possessions. It was authority. If your boss gives you authority over his business in his absence he expects you to do a good job. The context of this verse has nothing to do with the theme of Obama’s speech.
The high school and college kids I teach call me the “Queen of Context” because they know if they quote a verse, they better be able to give the context surrounding that verse.
We can all agree that it’s important to help our neighbors in need. When we do that out of love for our neighbors, it’s a very good thing. I have not found anything in Scripture that says the government should be the middleman in that relationship.
What is equally important is to know when someone is taking Scripture and twisting it out of context to make it say something it doesn’t.
On March 2 and 3 Precepts Upon Precepts training workshops will be held at St. George Community Church for those who are interested in studying the Bible for themselves. Learning to observe, interpret and apply what is learned helps us to instinctively know when Scripture is being misused. All are welcome to attend these workshops. Pre-registration is required.
Mr. Obama stated in his speech that he wakes up each morning and “say(s) a brief prayer and spends a little time in Scripture.” I applaud his efforts. But if he’s going to quote Scripture, I suggest he watch his context.
Rhonda Tommer is a member of The Spectrum and Daily News writers group and a resident of Santa Clara. She can be reached at r.tommer.writersgroup@gmail.com.
