The Great Equalizer

Life isn't fair my parents would tell me growing up.

Okay. Got it. Yep.

But as I look around at how the world is responding to Coronavirus, I can't help but feel angry, resentful and helpless. Not for myself, I'll be fine, but for others.

Countries around the world are passing trillion dollar aid packages that privatize profits and socialize losses. Airlines, hedge funds, you name it, they are getting a bailout, while non-business owners are getting a $1,200 check in the mail. The idea that will cover your rent or job-loss is laughable.

In America today, it's capitalism in the good times and unequal socialism in the bad times. In the good, profitability of corporations are strictly for the benefit of shareholders. But when those companies fail, the losses and recovery become the responsibility of the general public.

Needless to say, all this has me really worked up. Back in 2008, I was in junior high, so this is my first time experiencing these issues first hand.

Being worked up, I've tried to take a step back, take a deep breath and reflect. In a world that is unjust, unfair and unequal, what is the great equalizer?

First I thought of Ecclesiastes. "Death comes to godly and sinful people alike." Everyone dies. Sure that's equalizing, but it's not very encouraging.

Then I thought of Proverbs. "The rich and poor have this in common: The LORD made them both." Better. It's a great truth that everyone matters because they were made in the image of God. But if we all matter, and we do, then what can give us hope for right now?

Then it hit me. In his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warned his followers:

“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full."

That's mysterious. What does Jesus mean by "they have received their reward in full?"

Matthew 16:26 makes it clear. "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?"

In a world where so much is outside of our control, Jesus says that what is important is the condition of our soul. Yes there are people with great wealth, fortune, and power who do terrible things, but their souls are twisted and perverted. They have their reward.