How to Download When Rice Shakes The World: The Importance Of The First Grain To World Economic & Political Stability MOBI
Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot, people were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building...Luke 17:28A study of the economic activity in the first four books of the New Testament, this little book presents a view of the Gospel Economy and with it analogies to current day mixed economies and Capitalism. It is meant to paint a picture of Jesus and his followers as economic participants in the Roman society they found themselves. In so doing, it is a presentation of Jesus as a man rarely, if ever, examined. In this book Jesus is not so much the Son of God, but rather just a son.The economy we see in the Gospels, when broken down and analogized to today, seems familiar in many ways. It’s easier in some ways to notice the things that aren’t there. But what we see is that much of what we take for granted was there, albeit in more simple states: Agriculture? Check. Housing? Check. Lawyers? Of course. Lamps, musical instruments, tables, chairs, curtains, garments, jars, spices, servants, linens, coins, plenty of bread, wine, etc. are all mentioned.What’s not there? – too much to mention. For instance we can identify no wheeled vehicles, no chariots or wagons. Even horses aren’t mentioned, aside from the occasional colt. So, no cars, planes, superhighways, skyscrapers, and a million other things. What you would see if you had wandered around with Jesus would be a world with lots of housing, roads, boats, buildings, crop filled fields, markets, vineyards, etc. He and his disciples appear to have lived simply. From what we can read He lived on a diet of bread, fish, water and wine, with an occasional fig. As pigs and other livestock are mentioned we can extrapolate that there was meat in the diet so, again, it’s not hard to place oneself in the time - and feeling right at home. Eggs are also mentioned so a breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast could well have been put together.Many professions and jobs are mentioned in the Gospels, most all of which are still around today. Management and capital are also exhibited. There were definitely some very rich people about, and they tended to be mentioned as landowners. Property management skills are prized, as we see in the parables.The Gospels don’t really complain too much about how unfair the system is – not surprisingly perhaps as Jesus’ message was so focused on a heavenly kingdom – not a kingdom (or empire) of this world. Instead the rich are spoken to in ways that are more warning than envy. The poor are well represented - there were obviously many. They also appear to be accepted as part of the society, and left to fend for themselves. There is no safety net to be discerned though we can perhaps see the roots of one as taking care of women and children especially were of the utmost importance to Him. It is, in the end, a book about economics and the study of the Gospels provides “nuggets” of relevant economic commentary – some of the earliest Jewish thought on money that the world has. The economic lessons are not paramount to the writers, for the most part – and yet there they are. So obvious, and yet largely over-looked.
