Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions. (Luke 12:15) We live in a culture that is obsessed with things; having things. As followers of Christ we too struggle with materialism; we struggle to find the balance of enjoying the things of this world but not becoming so attached to them we are drawn away from the things of God. We are constantly asking, where do Biblical values and the demands of Christ in discipleship and Lordship fit in all of this?
Jesus said…No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. (Matthew 6:24)
You can serve God and use your resources for His glory, but be careful, that line can become easily blurred. John Stott has written: We cannot maintain a good life of extravagance and a good conscience simultaneously. One or the other has to be sacrificed. Either we reduce our affluence by giving generously and helping those in need, or we keep our affluence and smother our conscience. We have to choose between man and God.
Someone has said: It is good to buy things that money can buy but it is better to have the things money cannot buy. We understand, things will never satisfy the deep needs of our heart. We know better, many continue to work relentlessly and strive to satisfy their appetite for pleasure or success or possessions. But there is the law of the appetite that says, the more you feed it the stronger it gets. We may think that one more possession, one more vacation or the chase for that elusive ‘it’ will ultimately satisfy but instead we only create a monster that is insatiable.
Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. (Ecclesiastes 5:10)
We were made for more; the best things in life are not things! We have some choices we can make that will give us freedom from materialism and bring us contentment and joy.
Develop the habit of giving things away. Jesus said, freely you received, freely give. You can’t take it with you!
Learn to enjoy things without owing them. Owing things is an obsession in our culture. If we own it, we feel we can control it; and if we can control it, we feel it will give us more pleasure. The idea is an illusion. Many things in life can be enjoyed without possessing or controlling them. Share things. Enjoy the beach without feeling you have to buy a piece of it. Enjoy public parks and libraries. (Richard Foster)
Cut down on things that control you. Money is a wonderful servant but a terrible master. If it gets on top and you get under it, you will become its slave. (Stanley Jones)
Express daily gratitude for those things you have and enjoy. Paul wrote to Timothy, everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving. Enjoy the gifts you been given, keep them in perspective; cultivating a heart to gratitude will do that for you.
Don’t confuse temporal benefits and eternal blessings; keep one eye on eternity. Live more for the world that is coming than the one we must one day leave. Hold things loosely; when they are taken from you, they won't take you with them.Everything you give goes with multiplied benefits, everything you keep dies with you.
Ask yourself these two questions: What did I do today that helped someone else? What did I do today that will live on beyond the grave?
If we give, we will be blessed; if we pray, our needs will be met—this is the promise of God, (Philippians 4:19). If we live according to God’s Word, we will find great joy in things of God and we will lessen our dependence upon the things of this world as our source of joy—He will be our Treasure.
Jesus said…No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. (Matthew 6:24)
You can serve God and use your resources for His glory, but be careful, that line can become easily blurred. John Stott has written: We cannot maintain a good life of extravagance and a good conscience simultaneously. One or the other has to be sacrificed. Either we reduce our affluence by giving generously and helping those in need, or we keep our affluence and smother our conscience. We have to choose between man and God.
Someone has said: It is good to buy things that money can buy but it is better to have the things money cannot buy. We understand, things will never satisfy the deep needs of our heart. We know better, many continue to work relentlessly and strive to satisfy their appetite for pleasure or success or possessions. But there is the law of the appetite that says, the more you feed it the stronger it gets. We may think that one more possession, one more vacation or the chase for that elusive ‘it’ will ultimately satisfy but instead we only create a monster that is insatiable.
Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. (Ecclesiastes 5:10)
We were made for more; the best things in life are not things! We have some choices we can make that will give us freedom from materialism and bring us contentment and joy.
Develop the habit of giving things away. Jesus said, freely you received, freely give. You can’t take it with you!
Learn to enjoy things without owing them. Owing things is an obsession in our culture. If we own it, we feel we can control it; and if we can control it, we feel it will give us more pleasure. The idea is an illusion. Many things in life can be enjoyed without possessing or controlling them. Share things. Enjoy the beach without feeling you have to buy a piece of it. Enjoy public parks and libraries. (Richard Foster)
Cut down on things that control you. Money is a wonderful servant but a terrible master. If it gets on top and you get under it, you will become its slave. (Stanley Jones)
Express daily gratitude for those things you have and enjoy. Paul wrote to Timothy, everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving. Enjoy the gifts you been given, keep them in perspective; cultivating a heart to gratitude will do that for you.
Don’t confuse temporal benefits and eternal blessings; keep one eye on eternity. Live more for the world that is coming than the one we must one day leave. Hold things loosely; when they are taken from you, they won't take you with them.Everything you give goes with multiplied benefits, everything you keep dies with you.
Ask yourself these two questions: What did I do today that helped someone else? What did I do today that will live on beyond the grave?
If we give, we will be blessed; if we pray, our needs will be met—this is the promise of God, (Philippians 4:19). If we live according to God’s Word, we will find great joy in things of God and we will lessen our dependence upon the things of this world as our source of joy—He will be our Treasure.
RSS Feed