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 6:10
We have all heard this scripture quoted — and misquoted — a thousand times. You don’t even have to be a Christian to have heard this Bible verse.
The standard message in relation to this verse focuses on the dangers of pursuing wealth and riches. Christians should be focused on eternal things and should not be concerned with money. Life and, more importantly, the kingdom of God is not about money. We should build up treasure in heaven rather than seek to amass treasures on earth.
I agree with all of the above statements. I have heard them a thousand times and will gladly hear them a thousand more, as they keep me focused on God and his kingdom.
My problem with the above message is that I don’t believe it goes far enough!
Christianity is so focused on the love of money that chases after riches that it never pauses to address the love of money that keeps millions of believers trapped in a life of poverty and constant financial struggle.
Why is this dangerous? Because, debt and financial struggle take our faith hostage.
It is Satan’s best play against the first-world, hard-working believer. As long as believers remain trapped in a place of financial struggle, they are destined to live inconsequential lives, never fulfilling God’s purposes. Instead, they are overcome by the cares of this world (Mark 4:19). Forced to focus all their time and energy on simply making ends meet. Living paycheck to paycheck.
Christianity is so focused on the love of money that chases after riches that it never pauses to address the love of money that keeps millions of believers trapped in a life of poverty and constant financial struggle.
Rich Abba, Holy Abba
How can we, as believers, truly seek first the kingdom of God in our lives if all our time and energy is focused on making ends meet?
There are 84 daylight hours in a week. How many of those are spent seeking the kingdom of God? How many are spent seeking a paycheck? As the saying goes, you do the math!
Christians Against Poverty
So how do we escape this love of money trap? We need to become Christians against poverty, so to speak. I am not saying that every Christian should be rich. But I believe every Christian should be free!
Free to seek first the kingdom of God. Free to pursue God’s will and purposes for their lives. Free to go wherever God sends them to share the good news of the gospel. Free to act whenever God directs them to reach out and share his love and compassion with others. Unencumbered by debt and financial bondage designed to restrict that freedom.
To do this simply requires the ability to make wise financial decisions instead of poor ones. Fortunately, God’s word is packed with wisdom on the subject — if only we bother to look.
For any believers hoping to become Christians against poverty, this Book — The Wise Man & the Fool, is a great place to start. It is a really easy read; a light-hearted parable that takes a journey through scripture to explore what the Bible really teaches about money.