Love for money
Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me? Hebrews 13:5-6 NLT
The writer of Hebrews knows that those who will make wealth their priority will easily be affected by difficulties and hardships in life. They will be the first one who will turn aside their call to serve God for they will have a hard time giving up their love for money. Love for money will take us away from our commitment to God. This is why Jesus gave this warning: “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” (Matthew 6:24). There will be so many things that will compete for our affection and one of those that will be used by the enemy is the desire to accumulate wealth. We won’t be able to take whatever we have accumulated here on this earth when our time to leave this earth comes. This is why it is God’s desire for you to “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” (Matthew 6:20-21). Wealth has its disadvantages when one becomes dependent in it. It can enslave us when our comfort, pleasure, and recreation are the primary things that motivate us to live the life that God gave us. We can fall into a trap where our desire to live for God will be hindered by these selfish desires. Our spiritual growth will stagnate and the fruit that God desires for us to produce will not be realized. “The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced” (Mark 4:18-19). Paul was familiar to what happened to those who used to follow God and because of the lure of amassing material things, they had abandoned their first love. “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows” (1 Timothy 6:10). Let us learn to be content and satisfied with what God had blessed us with and let us be faithful stewards.
Blessings,
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