June 2, 2022 – Words of Wisdom, Alvin Toffler

Unlearn and Relearn

“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” Alvin Toffler.

“Then someone came to him and said, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.” When the young man heard this, he went away in sorrow because he had great wealth. Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is difficult for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of heaven…””  Matthew 19:21-23

Unlearn and Relearn

Alvin Toffler was an American writer (Future Shock) and futurist, known for his works discussing modern technologies, including the digital revolution and the communication revolution. When I read his quote today it really hits me hard. We are truly a society that cannot relearn our place in society – or we have too many who choose not to consider that everything changes.

The power of the story from Matthew 19:21-23 comes in the young man’s inability to realize he must unlearn his view of life – and that begins with his comment “What must I do to earn eternal life?”  You get a sense from his comment that he is uncertain – uncertain about his present and his future. Jesus tells him to sell his possessions and give the money to the poor, and then he can follow Jesus. And the man goes away in sorrow because he is rich and Jesus has told him to dispossess himself from his many possessions.  In first century Judaism, much like it is today, to have wealth and possessions was considered by many to be a sign of G-d’s blessings. To have money and possessions puts one into a different class.  No one would consider it a good idea to sell your possessions and give all that you have to the poor. The poor were the poor – they were a class all to themselves and were never considered able to change their status. What Jesus was asking the young man to do was unthinkable – it went against everything he had learned about his society, his class, his status, his position in life, and his place on the “blessed” scale.  Jesus was trying to teach a radical new way of being.

We have seen many societies over the millennia who were unable to unlearn and relearn their place in the world. But the bible is filled with people who did just that – Joseph when he is sold into slavery; Job when he lost everything; even Nicodemus and the other disciples. In fact his disciples will go on to ask Jesus “If what you are teaching is basically impossible for any of us to “achieve”, then who can be saved?”  Jesus then drops the most important lesson on them: “For people it is impossible – for G-d all things are possible”. In other words they must forget about their former teachings about who is considered blessed and righteous, and learn a new lesson – especially about whom G-d loves.

It takes daily focus on the Grace of Jesus Christ to remind ourselves to “unlearn” how we “think” G-d works, and to “relearn” the idea that G-d loves everyone – not just white people, not just Jews, not just Christians – G-d loves all people.

Let us pray,

Lord Jesus, we come to you with eternal concerns – and with our fears that we are losing our place in society. Help me remember how much you love all people, and give me the strength to share that love. Amen.

Pastor Dave