Category Archives: Treasures In Heaven

Greed, Guiding Framework, Treasures In Heaven

In God We Trust Indeed… Not In Money

It is far too common that we trust more in our money than in our Creator. Money in the bank helps us feel secure. High salaries help us feel confident and self-sufficient. We must be cautious to use money righteously, as a tool, but to trust only in our Father in heaven.

Psalm 49

The Folly of Trusting in Riches.

For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

     1Hear this, all peoples;
Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,

      2Both low and high,
Rich and poor together.

      3My mouth will speak wisdom,
And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.

      4I will incline my ear to a proverb;
I will express my riddle on the harp.

      5Why should I fear in days of adversity,
When the iniquity of my foes surrounds me,

      6Even those who trust in their wealth
And boast in the abundance of their riches?

      7No man can by any means redeem his brother
Or give to God a ransom for him—

      8For the redemption of his soul is costly,
And he should cease trying forever—

      9That he should live on eternally,
That he should not undergo decay.

      10For he sees that even wise men die;
The stupid and the senseless alike perish
And leave their wealth to others.

      11Their inner thought is that their houses are forever
And their dwelling places to all generations;
They have called their lands after their own names.

      12But man in his pomp will not endure;
He is like the beasts that perish.

      13This is the way of those who are foolish,
And of those after them who approve their words.

Selah.

      14As sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
Death shall be their shepherd;
And the upright shall rule over them in the morning,
And their form shall be for Sheol to consume
So that they have no habitation.

      15But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol,
For He will receive me.

Selah.

      16Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich,
When the glory of his house is increased;

      17For when he dies he will carry nothing away;
His glory will not descend after him.

      18Though while he lives he congratulates himself—
And though men praise you when you do well for yourself—

      19He shall go to the generation of his fathers;
They will never see the light.

      20Man in his pomp, yet without understanding,
Is like the beasts that perish.

We all perish. Money will then be worthless, even if we managed to accumulate a bunch of it. Money can not help us enter into the kingdom of heaven. Put your trust in Jehovah, money is but a tool He can use to bless us or a trap Satan can use to tempt us.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way and use it for His glory rather than your own. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

False Teaching, Greed, Treasures In Heaven

Prosperity and the Love of Money

Many today preach a false gospel about prosperity. They teach that if you have enough faith you can command God and use His power to give you a bigger house or more money. For those who study the Bible for themselves, this can quickly be recognized as foolishness.

There are plentiful examples of wealthy people who served God such as Abraham, Solomon, and David. As a matter of fact, wealth used to honor God can be a great resource. Great wealth was used to build God’s temple. Wealth can be used to help people around the world and of course to share God’s word.

However, there are even more abundant examples of poor people who served God with great faith, such as the prophets and disciples… and even Jesus Christ Himself.

Luke 9:58

58 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.”

Wealth is not an indicator of someone’s relationship with God.

The love of money on the other hand, when it replaces the love of God, leads many to ruin.

1 Timothy 6:6-10

6 Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. 7 After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. 8 So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.

9 But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. 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.

Matthew 6:24 reminds us of the following:

24 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

It is easy to give lip service and say that we serve God and not money. If you truly reflect on how you live and where you spend your time… would it tell a different answer?

Want to look at it more objectively? Take on a challenge for a week. Without doing anything out of the ordinary in your schedule, keep track of where you spend your time. You can, of course, do this for more than a week. At the end sum up by category where you spent your time putting the most time at the top and the least at the bottom. You will likely see things like “sleeping” near the top and that is ok. You will have “eating” and “TV or internet or online  entertainment” and such. You may have a hobby. Many of us will have jobs to include. Mom’s who take care of their children full time should absolutely give them self credit for the category “taking care of children” for this is one of their most important responsibilities before God. Where in the list does “prayer” show up? Where in the list does “Bible study” show up? How about “rest”, as God commanded us to observe the Sabbath? What about “helping others”?

Do not exclude work from the analysis as a “must do”. How much we do and what job we do are choices and they do compete with the time we can devote toward God. If your work is pleasing to God and honoring His kingdom (e.g. ministry outreach formally or informally in your workplace or mom’s taking care of their kids, etc.) do not feel bad that you spend a significant portion of your time there. If, however, work is only a means to gain an income it may have a different consideration. Ultimately you are the “judge” and you should prayerfully consider what changes you should make rather than get defensive and just rationalize why you are already doing everything right. Consider involving an accountability partner whom you trust and who shares a true faith in Jesus Christ.

You can of course complete a similar activity tracking over the course of a month where you spend your money.

For most of us, the results will make us think and more objectively challenge ourselves on how much time we really devote to what we serve. Do we serve money, our own selfish desires, or God?

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Control Debt, Control Spending, Diversification, Ethics, False Teaching, Generate Income, Greed, Optimizing Life, Plan Carefully and Seek Wise Advice, Saving, Speculative Investment, Stewardship, Treasures In Heaven

Biblical Guiding Framework For Financial Freedom

God lays out important principles for managing finances in the Bible. He wants His people to be wise stewards of the resources He provides.

In this article we lay out a high level framework that  provides valuable insight for those who take time to genuinely understand and apply it. I have paired the elements of the framework with some of the scriptures that support them, but there are many other scriptures that could be added.

You can also check out our Resources section of the website for other organizations with a great depth of material on this subject.

1 – Earn Money: Develop a skill and work hard to generate income.

  • Colossians 3:23 – Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.
  • Proverbs 6:9-11 – But you, lazybones, how long will you sleep? When will you wake up? 10 A little extra sleep, a little more slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest— 11 then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit; scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.

2 – Control Spending:  Set a budget that matches your income and stick to it in order to control spending. This budget should include short term “monthly expenses” but also saving ahead for long term expenses like a house, university education, future medical expenses, retirement, and contingency funds for the unknown.

  • Proverbs 6:6-8 – 6 Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! 7 Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, 8 they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.

3 – Control Debt: Carefully consider any debt before committing.

  • Proverbs 22:7 – Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.
  • Romans 13:8 – Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another.

4 – Invest: Choose to invest your financial resources for growth. Don’t stuff your mattress with cash in hopes of avoiding risk.

  • Matthew 25:14-30 – Jesus teaches us through the parable of the talents. Click the link to read the scripture.
  • Ecclesiastes 11:1 – Send your grain across the seas, and in time, profits will flow back to you.

5 – Diversify Investments: Diversify investments to manage risks.

  • Ecclesiastes 11:2 – But divide your investments among many places, for you do not know what risks might lie ahead.

6 –Consider Carefully and Seek Wise Counsel: Whether choosing how you will earn income, how to control spending or debt, or how to invest to grow your finances you should carefully consider your strategy and seek wise counsel.

  • Proverbs 22:3 – A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.
  • Proverbs 15:22 – Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success
  • Proverbs 14:15 – Only simpletons believe everything they’re told! The prudent carefully consider their steps.

7 – Steward Your Financial Strategy: Once you establish your financial strategy you must periodically review and analyze all elements to ensure you are following it and it is effective. This applies to earning income, spending, debt, and investment.

  • Matthew 25:14-30 – Jesus teaches us through the parable of the talents not only that we should invest, but that a good steward periodically checks on the effectiveness of his investments and makes adjustments according to their performance.

8 – Ethics: Following God’s instruction in how we manage our finances is more important than the actual dollars themselves.

  • Proverbs 22:1 – Choose a good reputation over great riches; being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold.
  • Proverbs 22:5 – Corrupt people walk a thorny, treacherous road; whoever values life will avoid it.
  • Ecclesiastes 12:13 – That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.

9 – Do Not Be Greedy: To those who love money, they will never have enough. Money is a tool to serve God and to support yourself and your family. The draw to “get rich quick” brings much risk.

  • 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.
  • Ecclesiastes 5:10 – Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness!

10 – Store Up Treasure in Heaven

  • Matthew 6:20 – Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.
  • 2 Corinthians 9:7 –  You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.”
  • Proverbs 22:9 – Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Control Debt, Control Spending, Generate Income, Optimizing Life, Saving, Treasures In Heaven

Fix Your Thoughts on What Is True, Honorable, and Right

There are many traps that can lead us to fail in executing our personal financial strategy. One of the most common mistakes is to take our thoughts off of what we are trying to accomplish and focus instead on the obstacles in our way or get distracted focusing on what others have that we may want.

We can easily get distracted by lies and frustrations that are not productive focus for accomplishing our goals.

“If I only have a better car, bigger house, newer phone, etc. then I will be happy.”

“I deserve (or need) a better job, and more expensive clothes, etc.”

“I will save more in the future, when I am making more money.”

“I don’t have the job skills I need, so I can never accomplish my goals.”

“Others had an easier road than me. I am just not lucky enough.”

Scripture tells us to avoid the trap of coveting what others have and comparing ourselves to them.

17 “You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.” [Exodus 20:17]

In Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he gives additional guidance to help us.  

8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. [Philippians 4:8]

This instruction applies broadly to all aspects of our lives and is certainly applicable to how we manage our finances. We do best when we focus on what is true and honorable and right. Instead of focusing on what others have or what we think we deserve or our frustrations over obstacles we face, we stay focused on our financial plan and working toward achieving our goals.

Set goals, steward progress, remain focused. Yes, be aware of obstacles enough to plan a way around them… but don’t focus on them as permanent blocks in your path. Instead of focusing on what you think others do not deserve, focus on what you need to do to be successful.

  • Stay focused on and content with what God has provided.
  • Focus on the plans you set to accomplish our goals, or on developing good plans.
  • Steward progress toward those goals.
  • Avoid distractions and traps that could lead you astray.
  • Pray for God’ s help, praise Him as He works in your life, and give Him thanks!

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Treasures In Heaven

Give Joyfully and Generously to the LORD

Let us remember to honor the LORD joyfully and generously with what He has given us. It helps to remember that all we have was provided by Him. We are simply giving some of it back to honor and glorify Him. Let us do so in celebration and not resentment. Let us do so willingly and not reluctantly or out of obligation. Consider the attitude of David and his leaders under him when preparing the temple. It is reminiscent of the generous donations that the people were bringing to Moses when building the Tabernacle.

1 Chronicles 29:1-22a

Offerings for the Temple

      1Then King David said to the entire assembly, “My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is still young and inexperienced and the work is great; for the temple is not for man, but for the LORD God. 2“Now with all my ability I have provided for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, onyx stones and inlaid stones, stones of antimony and stones of various colors, and all kinds of precious stones and alabaster in abundance. 3“Moreover, in my delight in the house of my God, the treasure I have of gold and silver, I give to the house of my God, over and above all that I have already provided for the holy temple, 4namely, 3,000 talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the buildings; 5of gold for the things of gold and of silver for the things of silver, that is, for all the work done by the craftsmen. Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the LORD?”

      6Then the rulers of the fathers’ households, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with the overseers over the king’s work, offered willingly; 7and for the service for the house of God they gave 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics of gold, and 10,000 talents of silver, and 18,000 talents of brass, and 100,000 talents of iron. 8Whoever possessed precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, in care of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the LORD with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly.

David’s Prayer

      10So David blessed the LORD in the sight of all the assembly; and David said, “Blessed are You, O LORD God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11“Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O LORD, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. 12“Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. 13“Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious name.

      14“But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your hand we have given You. 15“For we are sojourners before You, and tenants, as all our fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope. 16“O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided to build You a house for Your holy name, it is from Your hand, and all is Yours. 17“Since I know, O my God, that You try the heart and delight in uprightness, I, in the integrity of my heart, have willingly offered all these things; so now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here, make their offerings willingly to You. 18“O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, our fathers, preserve this forever in the intentions of the heart of Your people, and direct their heart to You; 19and give to my son Solomon a perfect heart to keep Your commandments, Your testimonies and Your statutes, and to do them all, and to build the temple, for which I have made provision.”

      20Then David said to all the assembly, “Now bless the LORD your God.” And all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed low and did homage to the LORD and to the king.

Sacrifices

      21On the next day they made sacrifices to the LORD and offered burnt offerings to the LORD, 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams and 1,000 lambs, with their drink offerings and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. 22So they ate and drank that day before the LORD with great gladness.

David and his leaders are inspirational. It is important, however, to remember we are called to be good stewards of what the LORD has given us (Matthew 25:14-30). That means we should not blindly give our resources to someone in God’s name, but rather test and use discernment and seek counsel to ensure we invest wisely in the kingdom. It often is not just writing a check to the local church. Many who collect money in the name of God spend it for their own glory.

Note: This post was written in partnership with HearingFromJesus.org.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way and use it for His glory rather than your own. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Saving, Treasures In Heaven

It Is Good To Help Fellow Brothers And Sisters In The Faith

It is good to financially help our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ when they are in genuine need. This is not to imply they are not to be striving to provide for themselves or that we must support someone else at the expense of all our financial means, but rather that we would seek our Father to lead us in giving willingly and joyfully to those in need.

In scripture, we see that Paul leads the churches he helped to plant to function as one body of Christ, regardless of distance or familiarity with one another. It is not an individual competition. It is a team event.

1 Corinthians 16

Instructions and Greetings

     1Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. 2On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come. 3When I arrive, whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; 4and if it is fitting for me to go also, they will go with me.

      5But I will come to you after I go through Macedonia, for I am going through Macedonia; 6and perhaps I will stay with you, or even spend the winter, so that you may send me on my way wherever I may go. 7For I do not wish to see you now just in passing; for I hope to remain with you for some time, if the Lord permits.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way and use it for His glory rather than your own. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Optimizing Life, Treasures In Heaven

Our Entire Lifetime Is But a Moment to God; Focus on What Lasts

It is very easy to get wrapped up in our own earthly lives and put more importance in them than is due. Our lives on this earth are brief, our days numbered… our entire lifetime is but a moment to our Creator. We should take care to keep in mind our significance is best appreciated in the eternal impact we can have by helping others to find Christ rather than the worldly accomplishments we value so much and work so hard for.

Psalm 39

For Jeduthun, the choir director: A psalm of David.

1I said to myself, “I will watch what I do

and not sin in what I say.

I will hold my tongue

when the ungodly are around me.”

2But as I stood there in silence—

not even speaking of good things—

the turmoil within me grew worse.

3The more I thought about it,

the hotter I got,

igniting a fire of words:

4“Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be.

Remind me that my days are numbered—

how fleeting my life is.

5You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand.

My entire lifetime is just a moment to you;

at best, each of us is but a breath.”

Interlude

6We are merely moving shadows,

and all our busy rushing ends in nothing.

We heap up wealth,

not knowing who will spend it.

7And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?

My only hope is in you.

8Rescue me from my rebellion.

Do not let fools mock me.

9I am silent before you; I won’t say a word,

for my punishment is from you.

10But please stop striking me!

I am exhausted by the blows from your hand.

11When you discipline us for our sins,

you consume like a moth what is precious to us.

Each of us is but a breath.

Interlude

12Hear my prayer, O Lord!

Listen to my cries for help!

Don’t ignore my tears.

For I am your guest—

a traveler passing through,

as my ancestors were before me.

13Leave me alone so I can smile again

before I am gone and exist no more.

Take time to prayerfully consider your priorities. Do not just list what you say is important and a priority. It is easy to say that God is number one. Instead, write down how you spend your time, energy, money, and talent. Is most of it spent honoring God and furthering His kingdom? or building your own through work or even family in which you place your value? Do you stand up for the values God reveals to us in the Bible? They are unchanging over time regardless of public opinion. Or do you change your view of what is right and wrong based on what people think today… and then change it again with them tomorrow to “get along” or “be tolerant”. God is not tolerant of rebellion to do things our own way! God calls out right and wrong clearly and it does not change over time.

If God is truly our priority than our lives should reflect it… as brief as they are. Do not put off to tomorrow submitting to and obeying God, but rather get started right away. The only things that will really matter at the end of our lives is whether or not we submitted to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior personally and the impact we had to further God’s kingdom while we were on earth.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Treasures In Heaven

Honor the LORD Joyfully and Generously

Let us remember to honor the LORD joyfully and generously with what He has given us. It helps to remember that all we have was provided by Him. We are simply giving some of it back to honor and glorify Him. Let us do so in celebration and not resentment. Let us do so willingly and not reluctantly or out of obligation. Consider the attitude of David and his leaders under him when preparing the temple. It is reminiscent of the generous donations that the people were bringing to Moses when building the Tabernacle.

1 Chronicles 29:1-22a

Offerings for the Temple

      1Then King David said to the entire assembly, “My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is still young and inexperienced and the work is great; for the temple is not for man, but for the LORD God. 2“Now with all my ability I have provided for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, onyx stones and inlaid stones, stones of antimony and stones of various colors, and all kinds of precious stones and alabaster in abundance. 3“Moreover, in my delight in the house of my God, the treasure I have of gold and silver, I give to the house of my God, over and above all that I have already provided for the holy temple, 4namely, 3,000 talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the buildings; 5of gold for the things of gold and of silver for the things of silver, that is, for all the work done by the craftsmen. Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the LORD?”

      6Then the rulers of the fathers’ households, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with the overseers over the king’s work, offered willingly; 7and for the service for the house of God they gave 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics of gold, and 10,000 talents of silver, and 18,000 talents of brass, and 100,000 talents of iron. 8Whoever possessed precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, in care of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the LORD with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly.

David’s Prayer

      10So David blessed the LORD in the sight of all the assembly; and David said, “Blessed are You, O LORD God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11“Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O LORD, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. 12“Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. 13“Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious name.

      14“But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your hand we have given You. 15“For we are sojourners before You, and tenants, as all our fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope. 16“O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided to build You a house for Your holy name, it is from Your hand, and all is Yours. 17“Since I know, O my God, that You try the heart and delight in uprightness, I, in the integrity of my heart, have willingly offered all these things; so now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here, make their offerings willingly to You. 18“O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, our fathers, preserve this forever in the intentions of the heart of Your people, and direct their heart to You; 19and give to my son Solomon a perfect heart to keep Your commandments, Your testimonies and Your statutes, and to do them all, and to build the temple, for which I have made provision.”

      20Then David said to all the assembly, “Now bless the LORD your God.” And all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed low and did homage to the LORD and to the king.

Sacrifices

      21On the next day they made sacrifices to the LORD and offered burnt offerings to the LORD, 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams and 1,000 lambs, with their drink offerings and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. 22So they ate and drank that day before the LORD with great gladness.

David and his leaders are inspirational. It is important, however, to remember we are called to be good stewards of what the LORD has given us (Matthew 25:14-30). That means we should not blindly give our resources to someone in God’s name, but rather test and use discernment and seek counsel to ensure we invest wisely in the kingdom. It often is not just writing a check to the local church.

If you are someone who receives money from people in the name of God, do not spend it wastefully, but rather with prayer and careful reflection. Be a good steward of what God brings to you and use it for His glory.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way and use it for His glory rather than your own. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Greed, Treasures In Heaven

Is It Wrong To Be Rich?

Many are confused about money and tend to stereotype people into two artificial categories of people… the “rich” and the “poor”. For starters, even how people view these categories is very inconsistent. People in the U.S.A say there are rich and poor in our country. From a certain point of view that is correct. However, compared to people around the world, even most of the “poor” in the U.S.A. are wealthy.

God has a lot to say about money in the Bible.

Not all “rich” people are greedy and not all “poor” people are virtuous. In fact some “poor” people are greedy. Greed is best defined as the love of money, not the possession of money.

 1 Timothy 6:10 –  For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Ecclesiastes 5:10 –  He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity.

Sometimes scripture can be taken out of context and misunderstood… confusing people to believe that rich people can not be righteous and that being rich is wrong or only achieved through greed.

Matthew 19:24 – “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

For starters, it is not referring to a sewing needle, but rather a narrow entry into a city… but essentially what Jesus is warning about here is not that all who have money are evil or greedy or cannot be saved. That is not the point. The warning is that often those who have much wealth come to rely on it instead of God, thus presenting a significant challenge for them. Jesus goes on to say that it is possible for the rich man to be saved with God’s help.

Matthew 19:25-26 – When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” 26And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Some will then say… “why did Jesus tell the rich man to go and sell all his possessions earlier in Matthew 19:16-28 and give all the money to the poor?”

The answer is that Jesus was identifying for this specific man that he (not all rich people) was putting money before God. That was his primary obstacle stopping him as an individual from truly following God. Truth be told, we all need God’s help to be saved. Some may struggle with love of money, but others struggle with different but equally devastating idols or sin such as sloth, gluttony, drunkenness, adultery or sexual immorality, etc.

Not all rich people struggle with love of money. Abraham is an excellent example of a wealthy person who routinely trusted God and did not fall prey to the love of money. There are multiple examples in Genesis including where he lets Lot pick the best land to take for his flocks instead of Abraham picking first (Genesis 13) and again after battle when Abraham is offered the treasure recovered through Abraham’s efforts, Abraham refuses it (Genesis 14:17-24).

Despising people because they have a lot of money or feeling that it is wrong to have money is not biblically sound. It makes no more sense than despising someone because they are poor. Neither position is correct.

Money is a tool , which can be put to use to serve God or used selfishly. It is the condition of our heart rather than how much money we have that determines whom we serve and if we are righteous.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .

Ethics, Optimizing Life, Proverbs, Treasures In Heaven

How Can I Share Generously and Yet Increase What I Have?

It makes no sense by our logic. How can we possibly scatter what we have to share with others and yet increase all the more? How can it be that someone who withholds what they are due to pay someone results only in want?

Our sinful, selfish nature often encourages us to hold tightly to whatever we have, regardless of whether we are due to pay it to someone else. It certainly wants us to believe that we can’t possibly share generously with others… “scatter”.

We are to trust in God’s ways rather than the world’s ways. Obey and watch Him bless our lives through our obedience. Rebel and you will experience hardship and lose your joy. Happiness found in the moment will only vanish all too quickly.

Proverbs 11:24-28

      24There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,
And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want.

      25The generous man will be prosperous,
And he who waters will himself be watered.

      26He who withholds grain, the people will curse him,
But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

      27He who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
But he who seeks evil, evil will come to him.

      28He who trusts in his riches will fall,
But the righteous will flourish like the green leaf.

Reflecting on the scripture… consider that when we find contentment, purpose, and peace through Christ we will have plenty regardless of our bank account balance. When we clutch tightly to every dollar as if our life depends on it… even when it is due to someone else… we will never have enough. There are always more things to buy or more money to accumulate.

When we bless others through our generosity, we will find greater joy in our lives and prosper in what we do. When we help others, God and others will help us. When we withhold what we have that others need we will be cursed, but when we provide what others need we will be blessed indeed.

Whether we seek favor of others or seek evil, we will find it. Let us not trust in riches as they may come and go like leaves on a tree. One season brings riches and the next takes them away. Instead put our faith in God who created all things.

Take time to consider how you may apply these truths from scripture in your own life. Pray that God will help you. Identify at least one or two you need to work on in specific situations and make a simple plan to get started addressing it this week. Do not delay or make excuses to come back to it “someday when things are not so tough or busy”. Someday may never come. Don’t delay.

Matthew 6:31-33

31“Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ 32“For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

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Remember that all you have belongs to God. Manage your money God’s way. Visit GrowGodsMoney.org .