Our Hearts Follow Our Money
- Matthew 6:19-21 — “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” [cf. Luke 12:34]
- Matthew 6:24 — “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” [cf. Luke 16:13]
- Deuteronomy 17:16-17 — “The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the LORD has told you, ‘You are not to go back that way again.’ He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.” (cf. 1 Kings 10:14-11:13)
- Ecclesiastes 5:12 — “The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep.”
- Matthew 6:1-4 — “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
- Proverbs 18:10-11 — “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. The wealth of the rich is their fortified city; they imagine it an unscalable wall.”
1 comment:
Matthew 19:21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
My heart is grieved. I don't feel a great calling (as of today) to become a missionary or anything, but even if I wanted to, I don't think I could. It feels inappropriate to give the coat off of one’s back when one could actually still be paying it off. Jesus told this rich guy to sell everything, give to the poor, and follow Him. How does that work in America when people could literally sell everything they have and still be in debt? I would gladly leave all my junk behind - but I'd still have stuff to pay off (a lot less than most people, I hear.) Are Americans are in a trap? American Christians bought into the religion of financing; America's middle class and poor can have it all for no payments and interest for a year or low monthly payment for the next 20 years or more. Our worship is financed to the god of capitalism.
How can one follow Christ if, even after selling everything, there is still more to owe? What would a Jubilee look like today? (Leviticus 25)
I fear for my students right now. Some are freshmen and are planning on fully financing their college educations with student loans and are pursuing low wage jobs. One wants to be a teacher - if this student finances 4 years and makes payments on all loans after graduating, more than 1/2 of their salary will go to student loans! They want to go to a Christian school - which is basically going to put their grandchildren into debt so they can teach.
What does God want for situations my students will face - and my current one?
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