Paul writes to Timothy about the learning and teaching the wrong path that leads to wandering away from God and some of the draw to go that way involves a wrong atittude about riches. I am constantly aware of the love of money being the root of all evil and all that entails. Today I want to look at the right attitude about money and riches and how God can use it for His good. Paul wrote to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6: 10 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. Paul is very clear about teaching the right heart when it comes to money and since I have been sharing about true love and the heart of love over the past fews blogs, I felt it necessary to speak to a very present problem in our world that can actually become a blessing if used for sharing the gospel.
Root (def) - the basic cause, source, or origin of something. Since we are looking at we are at a heart level, it is important to define what is going on in the area of riches or money in general. When we receive Jesus we receive the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit fills us with the righteousness of God. That may seem like preacher talk to you, but in reality it is a major shift at our core, or will. We begin immediately to see things differently and our reason for doing what we do changes completely. 2 Corinthians 5:17 is a very familiar scripture, but do we truly believe it? It means more to me if I also connect verse 16 with it. DUH! Here are the two verses 2 Corinthians 5:16 So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! When we are changed we no longer think of "Jesus" like other people who don't know Him do. He is our Lord and Savior and "everything" is different at the deepest level of who we are. WWJD becomes way more than a saying or bracelet. It becomes "who we are!"
Part of becoming this new creation is a draw for us to be more like Jesus. Paul tells us how to do that in Romans 12: 1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Transform (def) - make a thorough or dramatic change in the form, appearance, or character of.
This doesn't happen in "some" who are born again. It happens in "all" who are born again. We are no longer the same. Part of this change is the last are first and the first are last, as told by Jesus in Matthew 19:30 But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then.
When it comes to wealth and riches the attitude of the heart is where it can all go awry. Greed, aloofness, position, manipulation, and many other ungodly things can come from a heart that has let wealth take control. "*As a sidenote: nothing deserves control, but God." Exodus 34:14 You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you. The love of money will cause money to be your god, and God will not let that stand. On the other hand, a heart that is led by God in the way to use money for good can do a lot in the area of ministry and sharing the gospel. The Apostle Paul did not apologize for asking for support as he went on his missionary journeys and there were churches and people who supported him and made it possible to travel and start churches at an incredible pace. Money was a blessing to him and in 2 Corinthians 8: 1 Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia. 2 They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity. 3 For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will. 4 They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. 5 They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do.
The "wrong" love of money is the root of all evil and we have seen the result of that in our world. But the "right" love of the blessing of money in ministry is very good and very helpful, and as scripture says "God loves a cheerful giver." Conclusion: Whatever God blesses you with in money, use it for the good of the gospel, with the right heart and God will bless what you give to be able to give more. The source of good giving is a heart that is given to God in every area. Get your heart right and God will use what you have for His glory and then the wrong attitude about money will quickly fade out of your thinking because your heart is right or righteous.
Vesselogical Out,
David Warren
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