Friday, March 2, 2018
Serving mammon
Matthew 6:24
No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Jesus appears to have a real problem with money and wealth. He told one young man to “Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” Luke 18:22. He told another to get his mind off of the family inheritance, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” Luke 12:15
When Jesus saw that the first of these two young men was disturbed by His statement He made another, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Luke 18:24,25
There have been times historically when persons have interpreted these verses to mean that they must shun all material things and live like paupers in order to gain the Kingdom of Heaven. But, of course, like we discussed yesterday, many of us have real responsibilities to take care of.
The King James Version translators left us with this old English word, mammon. Mammon is a difficult word to understand even for those scholars working in the Ancient Greek and other languages of the time. We tended, most of the time, to simply take it as an old word for money, and by extension, wealth.
A careful study of where Jesus was going with this and other passages about wealth would seem to suggest, however, that Jesus didn’t mean merely money. Money was vital for life and Jesus constantly needed it for His day to day function. Notwithstanding that, He could also miraculously locate it or compensate for not having it.
When it was time to feed the five thousand the disciples pointed out that their financial resources were inadequate to the task, “Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little.” John 6:7. Jesus resolved that matter with the miracle of the loaves and fishes.
When it was time to pay taxes at the temple, Peter was challenged but Jesus gave him a solution, “go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you.” Matthew 17:27.
We also know that Jesus met the day-to-day needs of His ministry not by working a series of miracles but by depending on those who had substance. There were many who accompanied Jesus and His disciples from village to village on His ministry, and among them were wealthy women who provided the financial resources for day-to-day operations, “Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.” Luke 8:3.
We do understand mammon to mean money and wealth but, we understand it as wealth that has become an evil influence or idol, a false object of worship and devotion. Which is why we must be careful when quoting 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.” It is the love of money, it is money that has become an object of worship and devotion.
Paul made that declaration in his letter to Timothy while discussing the matter of the appropriate approach to money and material things. In the section, he writes, “godliness with contentment is great gain.” 1 Timothy 6:6. Then he leans on Job for context, Job, upon hearing of his life’s calamity said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return there.” Job 1:21 Paul writes, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.” 1 Timothy 6:7.
It is here that Paul goes on to explain to young Timothy that the motives of the heart and the attitude to money and wealth are the issue not money in itself, “those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.” 1 Timothy 6:9
In the wisdom of the book of Ecclesiastes, we see a rapid succession of advice. There it says “money answers everything” Ecclesiastes 10:19. Jesus was well aware of all this when He warned that “you cannot serve God and mammon”
Worship of God is exclusive, and God is our provider. Absolute faith in God is the only way that we can have a right approach to money and wealth. Conscious that money is the answer for everything, we are driven to acquire it to provide basic needs, and then to set it aside for our security. For as long as we think we could acquire money by our own efforts we will struggle with absolute faith in God for our needs today and tomorrow.
That is why when Jesus wanted to make that point He resorted to the non-human examples of faith in God as examples for us. “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” Matthew 6:26
Once anything becomes an idol to us, like mammon, we take our eyes off of God. That was the point Jesus was making. Not that we check out of our responsibilities in this world, but that we “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33.
Think on these things:
- What is your relationship with money?
- Has your need for money ever affected your judgement, choices, or actions?
- How do you keep the focus on faith in God while making the best decision for providing for your needs and responsibilities?
Prayer focus:
Let us pray today that we would place priority on the worship of God and depend on His leadership to properly meet all of our responsibilities.
In His Grace
Pastor Alex