Mark 10:20-22
And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my
youth.” Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One
thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and
you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” But
he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
Have you
heard the old saying: It’s okay to have nice things; it’s not okay for nice
things to have you. But, who cannot forget Tevye from the play and movie “Fiddler
on the Roof" singing, “If I were a Rich Man” or Madonna’s 1985 hit about a “Material
Girl” living in a material world, who craves the finer things in life and will
manipulate anybody to get them. How about Callaway’s 1989 hit: “I wanna be Rich”,
the O’Jays 1974 hit: “For the Love of Money”, or Pink Floyd’s 1973 Dark Side of
the Moon hit: “Money”. Pastor Jon Payne asks: What instruction, wisdom and
warning does God’s Word provide concerning temporal riches? We must go to the
Holy scriptures, the wellspring of truth and wisdom. Without the anchor of God’s
objective truth, we will be tossed about by the winds and waves of the materialistic
secular world. Contrary to popular belief, the one with the most at the end
does not win.
Matthew 13:22-23
“Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the
cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he
becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who
hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and
produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
Christians
who are seeking to cultivate godly contentment and a right perspective on
earthly possessions face a real and ongoing challenge. I wrote before about my
junior high school teacher who taught us about the intentional deception in
advertising to create a desire and preserved need. Everywhere we turn, a
barrage of ads and commercials that seek to capture our attention by communicating
the alleged need for more stuff. God’s first of ten Commandments is to have no
other god’s, but the One true God, and the last Commandment is to not covet - to
desire inordinately. The two Commandments are bound together in idolatry – an insidious
idolizing crave that willfully supplants the Lord God in the heart to the cares
of this world, bows down to worship it and what it can do for us here and
now. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:24
that “No one can serve two masters. For
you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise
the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”
1 Timothy 6:10
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some
have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through
with many sorrows.”
To have
wealth is not inherently wrong. The Bible teaches that God is the sovereign
Giver and primary cause of all earthly possessions. Even our talents and skills
are gifts from our Heavenly Father. Pastor Jon counsels to, first, be sure to
honor the Lord with our wealth as a cheerful and generous steward of our gifts
and glorify God in our use of them. Second, be sure to make God your joy and
portion, and not earthly possessions. God must be the supreme treasure of our
hearts and the chief object of our affection. Thomas Brooks writes; “No more will
any earthly portion suit the immortal soul. All the soul needs is found in God.”
Therefore, if we are to foster a godly
perspective on having and wanting, the Lord must be the joy and portion of our
hearts, and not the temporal treasures of this passing age. The Lord Jesus
tells us in Matthew 6:19-21, “Don’t store up treasures here on earth,
where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and
steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot
destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is,
there the desires of your heart will also be.” Third, be sure to always
remember the ultimate vanity of earthly riches. Earthly riches can never truly
satisfy, nor do they last. Eternity counts and where you spend eternity matters.
Hebrews 13:5
“Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content
with such things as you have.”
Hold your
wealth with an open hand and have a light hand on your possessions, but cling
to Jesus. Make Christ the glorious Treasure, chief Joy, and blessed Inheritance
of your heart.
In Christ,
Brian
2 comments:
Hi Brian. Yes, we live in a world where money, material acquisition and climbing the greasy pole have largely replaced any real faith in God. Many organised churches seem to be far more about money, success and social status than worshipping Jesus.
Great point Controversial Christian. The first and greatest commandment is to love God with all our heart, mind and strength, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. Nowhere doe it mention to love you money in any way, shape or form. It's about God & others. Well put. Climbing a greasy pole is a word picture we cannot help but imagine.
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