Saturday, March 1, 2014

What the Lord taught me about Money

Many of you know that for most of our lives, my husband and I have lived paycheck to paycheck. We weren't "poor", we had enough to live a good life, but nothing "extra". Then my husband got laid off and we had basically nothing except what the Lord provided and He always provided, "just enough". He was finally able to find another job, and although it paid less, at least we could still pay the bills if we were very careful. The next stage we went through was unexpected and a surprise, but we wound up inheriting a decent amount of money. It really wasn't a lot of money. Anyone who makes more then $40,000 a year would probably laugh at the amount we inherited as though it was some kind of bad joke. But for us, it was a wonderful gift. Or so we thought at the time.

Especially after the strain of being unemployed, this money seemed like a great blessing from the Lord. Yet I have to tell you that within 3 months of getting this money, I was on my knees, begging the Lord to never, ever, give me a lot of money again! (or at least what seemed to us a lot of money lol) I told Him that while I appreciated the gift, that I'd learned a huge lesson from it. I'd always dreamed of someday "being rich" and all the things I'd do with the money. The people we'd help, the nice house we'd have, the things we'd do and give our children and grandchildren to help them, etc. And of course, the big part, not having to ever worry about paying the bills again. While we hadn't received anywhere near the amount of money that would allow us to do the kind of things in my daydreams, we still wound up with the headaches having such an amount seems to bring. And we didn't even tell people we had it, but somehow, people seem to be able to sense it I guess and they just come out of the woodwork.

People we hadn't seen for years, suddenly showed up or called to tell us their woes; problems that only money could solve of course.
Neither of us have any problem giving money or anything else away, but we do like to be sure that we're doing the Lord's will and not simply wasting it. We've always handled our money, however much or little we had, according to what God says in His Word about it. One of the first things we did was pay our bills all up to date, which was very gratifying, although I have to admit, that it honestly didn't take much at all to do that since the Lord had always provided just enough to handle our bills. Still, I do have a bad habit of putting off paying hospital's and doctors, so that's what we paid off.

Another problem was that suddenly my husband went on a buying spree. I wasn't particularly concerned about it at first. I realized that it was a release for him after all the time we'd had to scrimp and not buy anything except essentials, and I admit too that it was very tempting for me to do the same and I also indulged myself a little in it. I watched that money dwindle very quickly. Oh, it lasted quite awhile, but because too many decisions were made on the spur of the moment, and without discussing them and asking questions of what the Lord intended for us to do with that money, it was soon used up.

Sadly, my very first thought when we received that money was, "I wonder what the Lord has given us this for? I knew He rarely gives us anything "in advance", and I knew that whenever He gives us anything, there's a very good reason for it. I always had a "feeling" for lack of a better word, that we were missing something important. I really felt that we should be saving the majority of that money, but because it wasn't "mine" as my husband had been the one to inherit it, I was afraid to push him about it or insist on anything concerning it.
I no longer remember all the particulars, but I do vividly recall feeling very frustrated and stressed when we had that money; feelings I had never had when we were simply depending on the Lord to pay our bills! I remember constantly thinking that money was more of a curse then a blessing.

The Lord let His displeasure of how the money had been handled be known quite quickly too. No sooner was the money gone then many of the things that had been bought with it, stopped working or broke! And now we couldn't replace them. (It was also interesting to see which things broke and which didn't)
Then things that we knew we should have used the money to repair or replace broke down. Yet, even then I still had this idea in the back of my mind that the Lord had given us that money for a reason and that the "reason" hadn't yet made itself known. It was another 6 months or so before I discovered the reason. My husband had a massive heart attack and was out of work for almost 6 months because of it.
The money he had inherited would have been exactly enough, plus some "extra" (for those things we should have fixed) to provide for us during those months he was out of work.

The Lord was merciful and didn't abandon us or leave us in a lurch even though the financial problem was very much one of our own making. We had misused the funds He'd sent us for this purpose, but we'd also learned some valuable lessons from it.
When you don't have to be concerned about whether or not you'll have enough money to pay your bills, or to buy enough food for the next week, or to get the medicine you need that month, or kind of basic necessities, you tend to leave the Lord out of the decision making. Sometimes it seems like you tend to leave common sense out of it too... at least at times.


For example, it never occurred to me to ask the Lord if we should buy this microwave or the other one, much less whether or not we should buy one at all! After all, why shouldn't we buy one? We had plenty of money! We didn't need one. We had a small one that my daughter Michelle had given us for Christmas 14 years earlier and it still worked just fine. But...it was very small, and it didn't do much except warm things up. Funny...up until then, we'd always been very grateful for it, but all of a sudden, it just didn't seem to be good enough for us anymore. (and yes, that's one of the things that stopped working after we bought it and of course after the warranty ran out ) It did teach us a good lesson though, as did everything that happened. Many little lessons and many big lessons over all. I've learned (I hope and pray!) to be content with what I have and not constantly be wanting more, and more then that, for I don't want to "just" be content, but to be thankful for it. 
I had been before we got that money, but suddenly greed reared it's ugly head, and we didn't even recognize it! Everything we bought had seemed "good" at the time. Nor did it seem "extravagant". I even fooled myself just as Bruce did, into thinking we "needed" some of it. Looking back though, I can see that 95% of it was nothing more then greed. Just as bad, we left God out of most of what we bought, and at times we even left each other out of it. We bought what we wanted, when we wanted, regardless of cost, because we no longer had to consider cost; so we no longer (we thought) had to consider what our partner would think about it, or what God would think about it.

We did repent of our sins, once we began recognizing them, and I asked the Lord to show me anymore that I'd missed. I sure didn't want to have to go through this lesson again! And, like I said at the start, and still mean with all my heart, I don't ever want to have "a lot of money" again! I've learned the great wisdom of this proverb: Proverbs 30:8–9 —Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. *Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. *

Hebrews 13:5Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” *
Proverbs 23:4–5 —Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. *When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven. *

The Dangers of Materialism

The Dangers of Materialism

The soul is a spiritual thing, riches are of an earthly extract, and how can these fill a spiritual substance? How man does thirst after the world, but, alas, it falls short of his expectation. It cannot fill the hiatus and longing of his soul. THOMAS WATSON

The type of man most likely to grow very, very rich is the type of man least likely to enjoy it. MAX GUNTHER

The poorest man I know is the man who has nothing but money. JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER

Surrounded by wealthy socialites, a beautiful young woman sat at a dinner party on a luxury boat. To her surprise, a millionaire sitting near her passed her a note asking, “Would you go to bed with me tonight for ten thousand dollars?”
Blushing, the woman paused for a moment and then wrote back, “Yes.”
A few minutes later the two left the party. When they were alone the man asked the woman, “Would you go to bed with me for ten dollars?”
Outraged, she asked him, “What kind of woman do you think I am?”
Matter-of-factly he replied, “We’ve already determined what kind of woman you are. Now we’re just trying to find your price.”

Idolatry and Adultery
Satan works on the assumption that every person has a price. Often, unfortunately, he is right. Many people are willing to surrender themselves and their principles to whatever god will bring them the greatest short-term profit.

The Old Testament portrays Israel as a bride who has turned into a prostitute. She abandons her rightful husband, God, and sells herself to the highest bidder. The prophets develop this metaphor to embarrassing extents (Isaiah 57:3-9; Jeremiah 3:1-10; Ezekiel 16:1-48). The nauseating descriptions of Israel’s waywardness exemplify God’s hurt and horror at the spiritual adultery of his people as they chase after other gods.

The New Testament tells us that “greed . . . is idolatry” (Colossians 3:5). Idolatry is worshiping and serving anything other than the one true God. Everything material we have, including money, is either a tool or an idol. If we fail to use it as a tool for God’s intended purposes, it mutates into an idol. For the Church, the bride of Christ, idolatry is the same as adultery—a wanton betrayal of a husband who loves us enough to die for us.

Herbert Schlossberg addresses the idolatrous nature of materialism:

The common expression that describes such a value system as “the pursuit of the almighty dollar” is soundly based in the recognition that the exaltation of possessions to the level of ultimacy is the end of a religious quest, one that seeks and ascribes ultimate meaning. Like all idolatries, it finds ultimate meaning in an aspect of the creation rather than in the Creator. And like all idolatries it finds outlet in destructive pathologies that wreck human lives.

Scripture speaks of these destructive pathologies:

People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. (1 Timothy 6:9-10)

Note the self-destructive nature of money love. It’s a life of self-mutilation in which we repeatedly pierce ourselves with grief after grief. The good we seek destroys us. We load our idols with expectations they cannot deliver. The happiness we try to wrest from them can only be found elsewhere.

Jesus said the rich are at a spiritual disadvantage (Matthew 19:23-24). The problem, of course, is not that God doesn’t love the rich. The problem is that the rich don’t love God. They simply have too much else to love. Who needs God, we think, when we’ve got everything? This is why Jesus didn’t say, “You should not serve both God and Money,” but “You cannot serve both God and Money” (Matthew 6:24, italics mine). Why? For the same reason a woman cannot have two husbands. When we carry on a love affair with the world, we commit spiritual adultery. We place God in the role of the jilted husband. He loves us and longs for our return but will not allow us in his intimate chambers when we are prostituting ourselves to another. God will not be a half husband. He will not be comforted by the fact that we call him “Savior” when we refuse to follow him as Lord.

Materialism consists of the two things God hates most—idolatry and adultery. The magnitude of God’s abhorrence for materialism surfaces in the final act prior to the return of Christ—the destruction of the money-loving system of this world, called “Babylon the Great.” It’s said of this Babylon, “The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.” A voice from heaven pleads with God’s people—a voice that we would do well to heed today:

Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. Give back to her as she has given; pay her back double for what she has done. Mix her a double portion from her own cup. Give her as much torture and grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. (Revelation 18:4-7)

The images of the World Trade Center—that towering symbol of our financial prosperity—falling to the ground are forever etched in our memories. As terrible a tragedy as it was, the collapse was a reminder of the truth that, one day, God in his justice will bring down all the centers of human achievement and prosperity that do not humble themselves before him. When financial Babylon comes down, the merchants who gained their wealth from this corrupt materialistic philosophy will say, “Woe, O great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls! In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!” (Revelation 18:16-17).

We might expect all heaven to mourn at this devastation. But in fact, all heaven will rejoice at the destruction of materialism’s stronghold: “Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets! God has judged her for the way she treated you” (Revelation 18:20). God will eventually break the stronghold of materialism, but we must seek for it to be broken now.

I was scheduled to preach on giving at my church. I was overwhelmed with a sense that many people would not be ready to hear the message because of Mammon’s grip on their lives. I was scheduled to begin this series the week after Easter Sunday, when more than one hundred people had come to Christ in our services. During one of the Easter services, Nanci and I had been part of a prayer group in a little room off the front of the auditorium. We experienced God’s power through prayer. We learned how the prayers that morning dramatically affected what happened in people’s hearts. A week later, I couldn’t imagine getting up to preach without knowing that people would be in that little room praying. A friend recruited fifty-five people to pray, divided among the six services I’d be preaching.

Why was prayer just as important that weekend as the weekend before when the gospel was being shared? Because there’s a battle over ownership and lordship of our lives that’s just as intense as the battle for salvation. The grace that saves us is also the grace that sanctifies and empowers us. God’s power isn’t just needed by unbelievers to be converted. It’s needed by believers to be obedient and joyful. The grace that has freed us from bondage to sin is desperately needed to free us from our bondage to materialism.

Alcorn, R. (2003). Money, possessions, and eternity.

Is “Prepping” Biblical?

Is “Prepping” Biblical?

Q.
In Luke 22:36 the Lord told the disciples to prepare themselves for their upcoming life in ministry. Also, in Matthew 24: 15-25 Israel is warned how to respond to coming dangers at the Mid Tribulation point. What I have not been able to find is any reason for the church to stock up and prepare, beyond a reasonable amount, for difficult times we may endure before the rapture. Wouldn’t Jesus have warned us as well if this is the case? Am I just missing it or is “prepping” actually a lack of faith in the Lord’s ability to protect and provide for his children?

A. Like you, I haven’t found any Biblical support for what’s being called “prepping”. On the contrary the Bible repeatedly calls on us to be generous in sharing what we have (2 Cor. 9:6), and not to worry about tomorrow, but to trust in the Lord for our provision (Matt. 6:31-33). Rather than storing up excess here on Earth we’re to exchange it for “treasure in Heaven” (Matt. 6:19-21). And remember, when these things were written discretionary income was nearly unheard of. Most people struggled just to get by.

Rather than calling it a lack of faith, I think of prepping as a human reaction to an uncertain future borne our of our need for self-reliance. If we were only looking toward a temporary time of difficulty it would be more understandable, but the way I understand it when things start to really go bad they will never get better.

Learning to live by faith takes some time, so the best way to prepare for hard times is to start practicing before it becomes necessary. And truth be told, living by faith is something we should have been doing all along.

posted with permission
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/is-prepping-biblical/ 

 Faith Or Fear, Follow Up

Q.
In response to “Faith or Fear” I certainly understand everyone’s natural fear for the future what with all the events happening in our world today. Your short response of essentially: “don’t worry, have faith … God will provide” bothered me greatly. Yes, we are to maintain a solid faith in our Lord and His faithful provision for His own. However; there should be a balance. I believe He expects us to be “Preppers” once He has forewarned us! What’s wrong with preparing for the future with whatever wisdom you have? I can think of several times that the Lord sent word to His people to prepare. Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, and David were all given warnings and told to prepare. It’s a godly thing to prepare. Being a “Prepper” is stepping out in faith. I’m a Berean.

A. The response I gave, “don’t worry, have faith … God will provide” was a direct quote from Jesus (Matt. 6:31-33).

Bereans searched the scripture to find the truth. What you’ve done is searched the scripture to find verses that justify your opinion. None of them are comparable because all of them concerned a temporary condition on Earth. What we’re dealing with is a permanent departure to Heaven.

Saying there needs to be a balance is like saying we need to mix faith with self reliance, which is not Biblical. If you want to exercise your faith by preparing, then stop storing up treasure on Earth and start storing it up in heaven (Matt. 6:19-20), because that’s where you’re going.


posted with permission
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/faith-or-fear-follow-up/ 

 Preparing For Hard Times Ahead

Q.
Like everyone else, I’ve been intently watching the headlines, wondering what’s next for our country, our world. I’m a pre-trib believer, but I’m also realizing that my family is not prepared for the “tough times” we’ll probably experience before the Lord comes for us. I’m wondering if you could give some advice, insight, references regarding what we can do today to make sure we are as prepared as we can be regarding finances, food, fuel, etc. Like many others, money is a little tight for us right now; but I feel like I could be doing more to prepare us for what lies ahead.

A. The best preparation for the times ahead is building a stronger faith. We haven’t been promised an escape from hard times in general, just the last 7 years of them. So the most important thing to do is to practice living by faith. That doesn’t mean going on as if nothing is happening and then trusting God for the money,etc. It means taking everything to prayer, and not doing anything that you don’t feel specifically led by the Lord to do. It also means listening to His voice more carefully and being guided by it. This includes everything from non-essential purchases, changing jobs or moving, to responding to His promptings in your giving and evangelizing.

In the financial sense, it’s critical that you reduce spending and eliminate as much of your monthly debt obligation as possible. In tough times cash is king. Do whatever you can to stop discretionary spending and use that money to pay off things like credit card and other debt with variable or high interest. The more of your monthly income is necessary for debt repayment, the less freedom you have to react to sudden changes in your lifestyle. Simply put, it’s economic enslavement. The fact that it’s of our own making doesn’t make it any less so. If you’re not already doing so begin tithing immediately, not out of a sense of duty or obligation but as an act of gratitude for all that He’s given you. God loves a cheerful giver and will bless you for your faithfulness.

I’m not an advocate of hoarding. I think it demonstrates a lack of faith. God has promised that He will see to our needs if we seek Him. (Matt. 6:31-34) Where I live, the nearest grocery store is nearly an hour away, and when it rains the roads are impassable, so we keep a little extra on hand, but in my opinion the idea of trying to stock up a year or two worth of supplies demonstrates a lack of faith in the Lord’s willingness to keep His promise.


posted with permission
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/preparing-for-hard-times-ahead/

More On Storing Up Food

Q.
One of your posts said that in preparing for tough times ahead, that we shouldn’t “horde” things, and that storing up food or supplies to last a year or two isn’t putting our trust in God. Since we see what we think is coming, shouldn’t we take these things as a warning to start “squirreling” away somethings for when times get worse? After all, Joseph was smart and helped Pharaoh store food for when the famine hit. If we make no preparations at all, isn’t that just asking to be enslaved even more when we see many signs in front of us that our economy is about to collapse?

A. First, let’s remember that Joseph required the people to bring their harvests into Pharaoh’s storehouses during the 7 good years and then he sold it back to them during the bad ones so they weren’t storing up things for themselves (Gen. 41:48,56).

The net result is that Pharaoh wound up owning all the wealth and property of Egypt and the people were effectively reduced to slavery (Gen 47:20-12). This can’t be used as a model for storing up against hard times.

The Bible doesn’t encourage us to store up things in preparation for hard times. Jesus said we should store up treasure in Heaven, not on Earth (Matt. 6:19-20). He clearly told us not to worry about the possibility of hard times. but to seek His Kingdom and His righteousness. He said if we did this, God would provide all our needs (Matt. 6:25-34).

Also, food storage is meant to be the solution to a temporary problem. The coming hard times will not be temporary, so people will not be able to store up enough to get through them. Learning to learn to live by faith is a much better solution.


posted with permission
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/3924/

The Famine In Egypt

Q.
In your article entitled, “And All These Things Will Be Given To You As Well” you said, “No matter how we try to justify it, storing up is an act of selfishness”; I have to disagree. Of course the Bible speaks out about “hoarding” and “not sharing/helping others” but it also speaks out about preparing for possible rough times to come. I have attached an article by (another Christian writer) for your information. It’s about the lesson on preparation for hard times from the Famine of Egypt. It pretty much “hits the nail on the head” regarding the topic.

A. I think the writer ( and apparently you) missed the real meaning of the story of Joseph and the Famine of Egypt. To understand it, see how the story ended. Remember, this was a government mandated storage plan into which the people were required to contribute 20% of their crops during the good years. When the famine came they had to buy back the food they had contributed. When all was said and done, Pharaoh had taken possession of their money, their land, their livestock, their seed for the next crop, their very lives. He had reduced the people to servitude, totally dependent on him for their existence (Genesis 47:20-21).

At the end of the story the only free people left in Egypt were the 70 members of the family of Jacob (Joseph’s father). They had not contributed to the government sponsored storage plan, but had been blessed greatly. Beside Pharaoh and the priests they had become the only remaining landowners in all of Egypt. How did this happen? God had used this event to reconcile Joseph to His brothers. They sought him in their time of need, depended on him, and were blessed.

There are over 100 references in the Book of Genesis that show how Joseph’s life was a foreshadowing of the Lord’s. One lesson from the story of the famine is that it demonstrates His promise to us in the Sermon on the Mount.

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matt. 6:31-33).

In the soon coming hard times many of those who depend on the ways of the world will lose everything. But those who seek the Lord’s kingdom and depend on Him will be blessed.


posted with permission
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/the-famine-in-egypt/

Are We Hedging Our Bets?

Are We Hedging Our Bets?

by Jack Kelley

You may have read some of what follows before, but please read it again. In the clearest message the Lord has given me in a long time, He said to write these things now. I was in bed and half asleep when the message came to me. Fearful of forgetting it, I got up and made a bunch of random notes and then went back to bed. When they still made sense the next morning I decided it must have really been Him. Here’s the message I received.

Man’s religion tells us:

For our salvation, it’s faith plus works. For our health, it’s faith plus modern medicine. For our life, it’s faith plus self reliance.

The majority of religious people believe that faith is only part of the equation that leads to success. They think it’s a good beginning, but it has to be supplemented by human effort to produce the result we want.

But God’s Word tells us:

You can’t serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). A double minded man shouldn’t expect anything (James 1:7-8). Don’t store up treasure on Earth (Matt. 6:19). Sell everything you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in Heaven (Mark 10:21).

According to the Bible faith is not just one part of the equation, it’s the whole thing. We’re either walking by faith or we’re not. There’s no middle ground, no balanced approach, no hedging our bets.

And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

“This is how it will be for anyone who stores things up for himself but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21)


This called the Parable of the Rich Fool for a reason. He was preparing for a future that would never come and in the process missed a bunch of opportunities to express his gratitude for the way the Lord had blessed him (being rich toward God). Who among us can guarantee that the future we’re preparing for will come to pass for us? In the meantime how many opportunities to express our gratitude to God through our generosity to others are we missing? There are people in every community who don’t have enough to eat today. How can we justify storing up for ourselves against the possibility of hard times in the future when there are urgent needs all around us today? The Lord told us not to worry about tomorrow because tomorrow will worry about itself. Instead we should seek His Kingdom and His righteousness and let Him meet our needs day by day (Matt. 6:31-34).

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (2 Cor. 9:6-8)

The Lord hasn’t called us to store up goods for ourselves in case we’ll need them in the future, but He has called us to share what we have now, promising to give us more as we do. And before you say, “What about Joseph in Egypt?” read Genesis 41 again.

Upon learning of the coming famine, Joseph didn’t tell the Egyptians to begin storing up their excess. Instead, he imposed a 20% levy on the harvest and collected the all the extra grain in Egypt during seven years of plenty. When the famine came he sold it back to the very people he had taken it from. When he had all their money, he took their animals, and when he had all their animals he took their land, and finally he took them. By the end of the famine the people of Egypt were destitute slaves who literally belonged to Pharaoh (Genesis 47:13-21). Joseph had made him the richest man in the world.

The only free people left in Egypt were Pharaoh, the priests he supported, and the 70 members of Jacob’s family, who had never contributed anything to Egypt but were given its most fertile land. Until a few years ago it was most likely the biggest government orchestrated transfer of wealth in history. I’m convinced the main purpose of the famine was to move Jacob’s family to Egypt and restore Joseph to them. It certainly wasn’t meant to improve the lot of the Egyptian people.

“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.” (Matt. 6:19-21)

But even if you don’t consider the outcome, the famine in Egypt is not a model for our times. Unlike Joseph, we’re not being told to store up treasure on Earth to prepare for a temporary time of hardship here. We’re being told to store up treasure in Heaven to prepare for a permanent relocation there.

Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep. (Matt. 10:9-10)

This was the Lord’s instruction to the 12 disciples as He sent them out to preach the good news. When you’re working for Him, He takes care of the expenses. Even when He was alerting them to the difficult times ahead, as in Luke 21:12-19, He never advised them to create a secret stash in the mountains, but to stand firm in their faith that He would keep His promise to them. And His warning to people in Israel when the Great Tribulation begins is to not take anything with them when they flee (Matt. 24:15-18).

Paul complimented the Macedonian churches when out of their own severe trials came overflowing joy at the opportunity to help others, and who in their extreme poverty demonstrated rich generosity. Paul called this a manifestation of God’s grace (2 Cor. 8:1-2). They had every reason to save up what little extra they had against an uncertain future but instead delighted in the opportunity to help others even worse off than they were.

Some who advocate storing things up for the future claim it’s a demonstration of good stewardship. But the Bible’s definition of stewardship is to think of ourselves as a distribution channel for the Lord’s blessings. Give and it will be given to you, Jesus said, for with the measure you use it will be measured to you. (Luke 6:38). Our job is to begin the process by giving out of our excess. The Lord, who loves a generous giver, will send us more so we’ll have more to give.

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. (2 Cor. 9:6)

A farmer knows the size of his harvest will ultimately be determined by the manner in which he sows the seed. Would he therefore sow as little as possible and hide the rest for fear that he wouldn’t have enough in the future? Sowing generously brings a bountiful harvest assuring there will plenty for consumption now as well as sufficient seed for future sowing.

Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. (2 Cor. 9:10-11)

It’s the same with God. Generously sowing the blessings God has given us will assure a bountiful harvest. We’ll have more than enough for ourselves leaving plenty to share with others. And the more generously we sow, the more generously we’ll reap.

No where is this advice conditioned upon making sure we first have our own future needs met. Instead we’re told that generously sharing what we have now is the one thing that can guarantee our future needs will be met.

You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. (Deut. 8:17-18)

Like the Israelites, you could say, “It’s my money and I can do whatever I want with it.” Once again, the Bible disagrees. There are plenty of people just as smart and just as talented as you are. They also work as hard as you work, but what they have doesn’t come close to what you have. The difference is you were blessed by God. It may have come in the form of an opportunity you happened upon, or the family you were born into, or even the country in which you live. But whatever it was, there is no exclusive connection between your capability and your reward. You are not the proverbial self made man. The fact is you’ve been blessed and your generosity is a demonstration of the extent to which you understand this and are grateful for it.

After a previous message like this someone asked, What are we supposed to do? Give away everything and just live hand to mouth? Based on Mark 10:21 the answer would be yes, but remember, it’s from God’s hand to our mouth and we can depend on Him.

This doesn’t have to begin as a big deal and you don’t have to work through your church if you don’t want to, although some churches have great programs for helping others. If yours doesn’t have such a program you could help start one, or you can go through a local Food Bank, Homeless Shelter, Rescue Mission or equivalent. You could start by just reducing your stock of “emergency” supplies and making a contribution to one of these organizations. Or you could hold a garage sale and get rid of a bunch of stuff you don’t use any more and hand them a check.

While you’re there ask some questions to find out what they do and how great the need is. Check out all the local programs and pitch in where you see the Lord working. I promise you it will soon become the most personally rewarding thing you do, and you’ll thank the Lord for blessing you so richly.


posted with permission

http://gracethrufaith.com/selah/are-we-hedging-our-bets/

Jesus Warns Against Materialism; A Study on End Times Survival

Jesus Warns Against Materialism (Luke 12:13–21)
 

Luke 12:13–21 (NIV) —13 * Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” *14 * Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” *15 * Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” *16 * And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. *17 * He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ *18 * “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. *19 * And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’ *20 * “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ *21 * “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” *

Purpose
The purpose of this parable is to warn mankind in general, and the Church is particular, of the folly of materialism.

Exposition
Jesus was in the midst of a deep spiritual discourse (§161) when a member of the crowd, rather insensitively interjected a mundane material question. We can readily criticize him, but how often do we allow material or worldly concerns to eclipse our spiritual commitments? While at first flush the addressees for this instruction appear to be the crowd in general, it is actually confined to believers, for they alone can accumulate treasures in Heaven (v.
21 * “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” * ).

Jesus used this interruption to give a pithy precept, ‘a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses,’ and then He taught a parable to explain why. The problem that the Parable of the Rich Fool addresses is thus the insidious grasp that materialism has on the human soul. This parable teaches that material things only last for the few years until the grave which is followed by a never ending forever which obviously and logically should be man’s focus. So, again, Jesus repeated a warning He had given in the Sermon on the Mount (§63), a warning against materialism. This theme was aired frequently by our Lord and Creator who knows us better than we know ourselves. He sees fit to remind us repeatedly against the insidious erosion of spiritual priorities by materialism, so this obviously must be a pitfall to which we believers are prone. He challenges us to heed His warning.

What is ‘abundance’? The Greek word means an overflow, more than enough; but where does ‘surplus’ begin? Here, I think, we need to recognize that this decision should be left in God’s hands. His evaluation had been given a few days earlier (§156,
Luke 11:3Give us each day our daily bread. * ), which, in turn, is a reminder of the expanded teaching given in the Sermon on the Mount (§63, Matthew 6:31–34 —So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ *For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. *But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. *Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. * ), and in that definition surplus is defined as anything more than the day’s needs!

The parable is summed up in v. 21 * “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” * and is simply another way of expressing the command of 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. * . Remember, this is an injunction in Matthew; it is an order from the believer’s commander-in-chief! It is so easy to identify with the man in this parable: he has worked hard, he has been successful, and now intends to enjoy a well-earned retirement and the fruits of his God-blessed labors. The disturbing part is that God is critical of the man and condemns him as a fool. Well, if you can identify with him, as I find myself doing all too easily, you, like me, have to face the fact that God classifies you as a ‘fool.’ Why? The answer is found in v.
21 * “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” * : this man’s focus was on material things and he had done nothing to earn a spiritual reward. Now, as the man in this parable impoverished his eternity, he is clearly presented as a believer, for it is impossible for the unregenerate to accumulate treasure in heaven (where they will not be); so this warning unmistakably addresses Jesus’ disciples.  Mills, M. S. (1999). The Life of Christ: A Study Guide to the Gospel Record 

 Beware of Covetousness (Luke 12:13–21)
At this point, a man in the crowd interrupted Jesus and asked Him to solve a family problem. Rabbis were expected to help settle legal matters, but Jesus refused to get involved. Why? Because He knew that no answer He gave would solve the real problem, which was covetousness in the hearts of the two brothers. (The “you” in Luke 12:14 is plural.) As long as both men were greedy, no settlement would be satisfactory. Their greatest need was to have their hearts changed. Like too many people today, they wanted Jesus to serve them but not to save them.

Covetousness is an unquenchable thirst for getting more and more of something we think we need in order to be truly satisfied. It may be a thirst for money or the things that money can buy, or even a thirst for position and power. Jesus made it clear that true life does not depend on an abundance of possessions. He did not deny that we have certain basic needs (Matt. 6:32; 1 Tim. 6:17). He only affirmed that we will not make life richer by acquiring more of these things.

Mark Twain once defined “civilization” as “a limitless multiplication of unnecessary necessities,” and he was right. In fact, many Christians are infected with covetousness and do not know it. They think that Paul’s admonition in 1 Timothy 6 applies only to the “rich and famous.” Measured by the living standards of the rest of the world, most believers in America are indeed wealthy people.
Jesus told this parable to reveal the dangers that lurk in a covetous heart. As you read it, test your own responses to this farmer’s various experiences.

How do you respond to the wealthy farmer’s dilemma? Here was a man who had a problem with too much wealth! If we say, “I certainly wish I had that problem!” we may be revealing covetousness in our hearts. If suddenly you inherited a great deal of wealth, would it create a problem for you? Or would you simply praise God and ask Him what He wanted you to do with it?
There are perils to prosperity (Prov. 30:7–9). Wealth can choke the Word of God (Matt. 13:22), create snares and temptations (1 Tim. 6:6–10, 17–19), and give you a false sense of security. People say that money does not satisfy, but it does satisfy if you want to live on that level. People who are satisfied only with the things that money can buy are in great danger of losing the things that money cannot buy.

This farmer saw his wealth as an opportunity to please himself. He had no thoughts of others or of God.

How do you respond to the decisions of the rich man? Are you saying, “Now that is shrewd business! Save and have it ready for the future!” But Jesus saw selfishness in all that this man did (note the eleven personal pronouns), and He said the man was a fool. The world’s philosophy is “Take care of Number One!” But Jesus does not endorse that philosophy.

There is certainly nothing wrong with following good business principles, or even with saving for the future (1 Tim. 5:8). Jesus does not encourage waste (John 6:12). But neither does He encourage selfishness motivated by covetousness.

How do you respond to the farmer’s desires? Are you saying, “This is the life! The man has success, satisfaction, and security! What more could he want?” But Jesus did not see this farmer enjoying life; He saw him facing death! Wealth cannot keep us alive when our time comes to die, nor can it buy back the opportunities we missed while we were thinking of ourselves and ignoring God and others.

Jesus made it clear that true life does not come from an abundance of things, nor do true success or security. This man had a false view of both life and death. He thought that life came from accumulating things, and that death was far away. On March 11, 1856, Henry David Thoreau wrote in his journal, “That man is the richest whose pleasures are cheapest.” He also said, “A man is rich in proportion to the number of things which he can afford to let alone.”

Finally, how do you respond to the death of the boastful farmer? We are prone to say, “Too bad this fellow died just when he had everything going for him! How tragic that he could not finish his great plans.” But the greatest tragedy is not what the man left behind but what lay before him: eternity without God! The man lived without God and died without God, and his wealth was but an incident in his life. God is not impressed with our money.

What does it mean to be “rich toward God”? It means to acknowledge gratefully that everything we have comes from God, and then make an effort to use what He gives us for the good of others and the glory of God. Wealth can be enjoyed and employed at the same time if our purpose is to honor God (1 Tim. 6:10ff). To be rich toward God means spiritual enrichment, not just personal enjoyment. How tragic when people are rich in this world but poor in the next! (see Matt. 6:19–34) The Bible exposition commentary

A greedy heart (13–21). Imagine being so greedy that you would interrupt a sermon to ask for help to get more money! The weeds were certainly growing in that man’s heart (Matt. 13:22). We all need a certain amount of money to live, but money is not a guarantee of security. If anything, it creates a false confidence that leads to foolishness.
With the Word Bible Commentary

WILL YOU GET WHAT’S COMING TO YOU?
Luke 12:13–15 The man we read of in Luke 12:13 appealed to Jesus for justice. He wanted to make sure that he was going to get his inheritance. But Jesus turned the issue from the material to the spiritual. He was far more concerned about the man’s covetous spirit than his family’s estate.

The Old Testament, which governed Hebrew life, had a great deal to say about family estates and the succession of land and property. Sometimes Christians have understood such teaching as merely foreshadowing the spiritual inheritance of New Testament believers. But our earthly, material estates are not to be treated as insignificant. An inheritance is a responsibility that God wants both parents and children to view and manage properly.

Here, Jesus showed grave concern that the man did not view his physical inheritance properly, but rather with a greedy attitude—a major problem because it threatened his spiritual inheritance, his eternal destiny.

The Lord’s response and the parable following it (12:16–21) challenge us to ask: What is our perspective on the inheritance coming to us in this world? Will it be a blessing and a resource to be managed responsibly before God? Or, like this man and the man in the parable, are we trying to fashion a life out of the abundance of our possessions? If so, we need to pay attention to verses 20–21.

Jesus frequently changed the subject from material concerns to spiritual ones. See, for example, Luke 4:5–8; 8:19–21; 10:38–42; 11:27–28. Word in life study Bible.

WATCH OUT FOR GREED!
12:15 Jesus gave a direct, unequivocal command to guard against covetousness (Luke 12:15)—longing for something we don’t have, especially for what belongs to someone else. He was not telling us to watch for it in others, but in ourselves.

According to this verse and the following parable, covetousness, or greed, is based on the foolish belief that what matters in life is how much one has. It may be money (as is the case here), or status, power, intelligence, beauty, even spiritual blessings; it is possible to covet anything that can be acquired. The idea is that having that thing will make us content. But biblically, only God can—and will—satisfy our real needs, as Jesus goes on to show (Luke 12:22–31).

To covet is to be discontented with what God brings our way. Yet our consumer-oriented culture excels at stoking the fires of discontent. In subtle yet powerful ways, we come to believe that whatever we have, it’s not enough. We need more, we need bigger, we need better.  So more than ever, we need to pay attention to Jesus’ warning: Watch out for greed!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “COVET”?
Exodus 20:17 Many people think of coveting as having wrong desires. The biblical word translated “coveting” often means that, particularly when it is a strong desire for anything that belongs to your neighbor (Ex. 20:17; compare Deut. 5:21). And coveting is not limited to someone else’s property, either. One can covet one’s own property by having an inordinate longing for or attachment to it.

It is also possible to commit the grievous sin of coveting what belongs to God. A man named Achan did this when the Israelites entered the Promised Land, by taking plunder from the ruins of Jericho, which God had said belonged to Him (Josh. 6:17–19; 7:20–21). This sort of desire amounts to idolatry. It means craving a certain thing so much that one values it more than God. Scripture warns us to “put away” that kind of covetousness.

However, the word used for “coveting” does not always mean a wrong desire. Sometimes the Bible uses the word for a good desire. For example, God’s judgments are to be “desired” more than gold (Ps. 19:10). Perhaps the key, then, as to whether one’s longings are right or wrong depends on the object of one’s affections. To love anything more than God is to fall into covetousness and idolatry.

What’s wrong with wanting more? Paul warns us to watch out—we could be worshiping idols!

DO-IT-YOURSELF IDOLATRY
Most of us think of idolatry as a pagan bowing down to an image carved from stone or wood, reciting mysterious incantations, and carrying out peculiar rituals. But Paul says that idolatry is much more familiar to us than we realize. All it takes is simple greed (Col. 3:5).

Does that mean it’s wrong to want a bigger house, a newer car, a more prestigious job, a more dynamic personality, a more noticeable spirituality? No, none of these things is evil, in and of itself. The question is, what is the heart attitude that makes us want any of these things?

The difference between desire and greed is the difference between a small, blue circle of flame that cooks food on a gas range, and a raging inferno that threatens to burn down the house. Simple desire can be constructive; it motivates us to work and be productive. Proverbs 16:26 says that “a worker’s appetite works for him.” But greed is dangerous and destructive. It is desire out of control.

Control is the real issue. Will the thing we want serve our needs, or will our needs serve that thing? That’s why Paul says that covetousness—or greed—is idolatry (Eph. 5:5). To covet is to surrender our will to a thing—in effect, to make it our master, our god, the thing that we serve. But God insists: “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Ex. 20:3).

Greed means that we want something other than God. He is not enough for us; we need something more to satisfy. It also means that we don’t trust Him to follow through on His promises to supply what we need (Matt. 6:33; Rom. 8:32). Everyday greed, then, is nothing less than an attack on the very character of God. No wonder Paul warns so sternly against it! ♦

MODERN-DAY IDOLS
Perhaps you think of idols as objects of wood, stone, or metal worshiped by ancient civilizations or primitive peoples. That perception is accurate, but from the Bible’s point of view, idolatry fundamentally involves allowing anything or anyone to stand in the place of God.

The ancient Babylonians fashioned many idols for both public and private worship (Is. 46:6–7). But the Lord ridiculed this practice, for the gods of Babylon were impotent: they had to be hand-carried, as they were unable to move on their own, they were mute, and they were powerless.

Yet as we read the Lord’s rebuke in Isaiah, it’s worth considering the extent to which people practice forms of idolatry today. For example, modern society has come to rely so heavily on technology and government to solve its problems that many people no longer feel a need for God. They seem to place as much faith in human ingenuity as the ancients placed in their carved images.

Likewise, certain psychotherapies practically do away with any need for the God of the Scriptures. Instead, they rely on their own principles and methods to deal with guilt and sin, and to make people healthy and whole. They hold out the promise that people can become all that they were meant to be apart from God.


A third form of modern idolatry is actually a relic of ancient idolatry. Many people today dabble in occult practices using physical objects such as Ouija boards, Tarot cards, and crystals to tell fortunes and receive supernatural messages. Likewise, horoscopes are as popular as ever, and those who promote them even boast in the fact that astrology, on which horoscopes are based, was heavily practiced in ancient Babylon.

Forms of idolatry such as these may be more sophisticated than the metal shrines set up by the ancient pagans, but they are idolatry just the same. They have been made to stand in the place of God.

The Lord will not allow those who practice these things to go unpunished. Consider His judgment on the Babylonians (47:10–15). Is there any reason why He would not pour out just as much wrath on idolators today? He still hates idolatry (Deut. 7:25–26). The First and Second Commandments are still there (Ex. 20:2–6). And the Lord is still who He declared Himself to be to the ancients: “I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me” (Is. 46:9).

Perhaps the most common form of idolatry is simple greed. The New Testament gives us a sober warning about coveting, because it ultimately means desiring something more than God. 
Word in life study Bible.
Philippians 4:10–13 —I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. *I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. *I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. *I can do everything through him who gives me strength. *