Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” ⁶So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” —Hebrews 13:5-6
Around the age of 10 or 11, if someone had asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would have quickly responded that I wanted to be a millionaire. At that point in my life, my worldview had been shaped to believe that an ample supply of money would lead to happiness, contentment, status, and carefree living—and that the lack thereof would lead to unhappiness, stress, and a life unfulfilled. I spent the next 20 years of my life proving how completely wrong and empty that worldview was and is.
To be clear, God is not against us having money. Money is referenced hundreds of time throughout the Bible. Money is God’s design for how we buy and sell things in this world and can be a wonderful means for supporting ministry. Money in and of itself is not evil. However, as verse five clearly tells us—it is the love of money that we must be wary of. When we love something, we are often consumed by it. It ends up driving our actions, energy, and motives.
As followers of Christ, our greatest love and passion must be for the Lord Jesus Christ. Why? Three simple reasons:
God commands us to love Him above all other things. Exodus 20:3 says, “You shall have no other Gods before me.” Our God is a jealous God who wants all of our hearts. We cannot love God and money the same.
God will provide for us. Philippians 4:19 says, “and my God will provide for every one of your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” In this world, we can have the tendency to believe that money will provide for our needs. It is not money that provides for our needs, it is God. He is our loving Father who knows and provides for our every need according to His will.
Money isn’t ours. We often forget that nothing belongs to us. Nothing—not our money, not our time, not our family. It all belongs to God. He asks us to steward all things for His glory. And He will reward us according to how we stewarded what is ultimately His.
Love Jesus. He is all you need.
For Reflection
What do you love?
What are you teaching your children to love, either directly or indirectly, by what you talk about, rejoice over, and worry about?
How are you stewarding the resources God has bestowed on you? Are using them in ways that store up treasures in heaven or are you accumulating the treasures of this world where moth and rust destroy?