Be still: 'Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.' Lord, today I ask you to speak to me through your Word. Amen
Read:1 Timothy 6:1-10
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. (v10)
Encounter: Jesus is clear in his teaching, 'No servant can serve two masters... You cannot serve both God and Money.' (Matt 6:24)
In today’s society, we greatly underestimate the power of money. It is a ‘god’ that seeks to control and master us. We think we are on top of it but fail to understand how quickly and easily we become enslaved to it. Friedrich Nietzsche, over a century ago, said that, with the absence of God in Western culture, money would become its replacement. He said, 'What once was done ‘for the love of God’ is now done for the ‘love of money.’'
There are two ways you can know money has a hold on you — fear or greed. If the compulsion to have more and spend more fills your mind and heart, perhaps the ‘love of money’ has taken over. Or if the thought of giving money away or not having enough grips you with fear, perhaps it has become your master.
Apply: The best way to be free from the hold of wealth is to choose the path of generosity. Every time we give, we loosen the grip of money. Each time we sow generously and radically give, we invest in putting our trust in God as our security and safety. In this Epistle Paul is encouraging the church to see the big picture: the journey to freedom, joy and blessing is not to be found in money; that is a lie of the world. Rather it is found in lavish, bold and generous giving. The question for us today is this — which master are we serving?
Devote: Lord forgive me for finding my security and hope in money. Please help me dethrone the ‘love of money’ in my heart. Help me to grow in generosity.