There's a story in Acts 19 about a trip Paul made through Macedonia on his way back to Jerusalem. Apparently, in the city of Ephesus, local businessmen were upset at The Way because their whole industry was being affected due to large numbers of people having a change of heart. See, these businessmen were making miniature versions of the temple of Artemis. This temple is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, in case you were wondering. It was a big deal. Not only was it a huge, beautiful temple in a bustling city, it served as the cultural and financial center of Asia. The temple of Artemis was important and the guys who hand-crafted miniature statues of it were making bank.
Well, Paul shows up and tells everyone that "gods made with hands are not gods." Needless to say, that didn't sit well with the capitalistic craftsmen. So, the whole city of Ephesus erupts in this torch-baring riot. A lot of people didn't even know why everyone was mad, they just joined the rioters because everyone was doing it.
Turns out, businesses may not always line up with the Kingdom of God. In fact, they can't even exist in the Kingdom of God. There was no room in the Kingdom for artisans who made statues of Artemis. In order to participate in the Kingdom, they would have needed to completely abandon their businesses.
Maybe in our society there are corporations that can't exist in the Kingdom of God. Maybe it's because they use slave labor in a foreign country. Maybe they are only interested in maximizing shareholder wealth and don't care about the communities they operate in. Maybe they don't promote women. Or folks of color. Maybe they're paying off the FDA in order to keep their toxic products on the shelves. Maybe they market mind-poising filth to children. Maybe they'll buy the Presidential Election in 2012. Maybe they tell farmers they can't own the seeds their soy beans produce. Maybe they're poising countless water sheds in Arkansas because of frac drilling. Maybe they tell the media what to say. Maybe they say climate change is a fallacy and that our dependence on fossil fuels is the only way it can be. Maybe they can't exist in the Kingdom of God.
If the church is functioning as the church, then maybe our cities should be in an uproar, too. Or maybe we'll buy low and sell high like everyone else.
