Money.

Nobody wants to talk about it, yet behind God I am convinced that it might be the most powerful force on Earth. If you want to build a well in Africa to have fresh drinking water, it cost money, if you want to open a criminal organization, you have to finance it, and if you want to go on a mission trip, somebody must to pay for it. So first, let’s just clear up some things for those who have been misled. Money is neither good nor bad. Money is simply a representation of value in economics. It is a common form of tender that can be used for transactions to buy goods and services worldwide. More money implies higher ECONOMIC value, less money implies lower ECONOMIC value. (Note ECONOMIC in big font…everything in the world isn’t valued in terms of economics, but things that involve money are…sorry if you don’t like it but it’s the truth)The attitude behind money is what makes the use of money good of for evil.

Look at the situation we find ourselves in today. The gap between the rich and poor is widening tremendously; Wall Street bankers drive Porches and Indian farmer’s children only eat twice a week. Finances are increasingly more complex because of the number of products offered to consumers, which are designed to cause individuals to fall into financial slavery to banks and other institutions. Yet Pensions are a thing of the past, therefore it seems critical that we amass money for “retirement” or we will not be able to even pay our Bills.

Perspective is the biggest issue when we begin to tackle these issues. The world views money as something that we make which buys stuff that we consume. In Matthew 25 and again in Luke 19, Jesus establishes the biblical view of money. Money is a blessing from God. We do not own it, we merly manage it for a short time during our life. Therefore, we manage the ability to accomplish good and evil with our money. We can hoard it, and buy lots of stuff; or we can invest it in things that will accomplish God’s eternal purposes on Earth. It’s the same concept as if you gave your money to the bank to invest for your future. You would like to come back years later and know that there has been a great return on your investment, but instead you find that they had a great time throwing parties for a few years and now it is all gone.

1 Timothy 6: 3-9 states that godliness is not a means to financial gain. Aka, if I follow God he will make my “pastures greener” literally with money. God does not operate on worldly economics, as a matter of fact his economics are quite backwards; usually involving forsaking all, surrender and giving up something in exchange for more suffering for the promotion of His Kingdom. Matthew 6: 19-34 says that true treasure is found in Heaven. I worked with wealthy clients all summer long…and when I say wealthy I am talking about the kind of things you see in Cribs, not your next door neighbor with a BMW…. And I met quite a few who had all the money in the world and yet little happiness, or even worse, their happiness was found in how many zeros were in their net worth. Luke 12:15 says that “a person’s life does not consist of the possessions that he has” and Matthew 6:33 “seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you.” Pure Joy, not happiness for one day but true joy is found seeking after and following God, not on how much stuff we have. My favorite quote may be John Piper saying “there are no U-hauls behind herses.” Luke 12:32-34 says that where our treasure is, there our heart will be also. Where is your heart? You say “oh…I know that” but do you really? Why are you in your job? Because it’s what you are called too? Why are you in your major? Because God put you there? Or because it will make you a nice income. It is a constant tension between giving ourselves away and filling up our U-haul.

I know your now thinking great post…but I’m poor and I don’t have any money so what is the point here? 1st because Christ talked about it. Randy Alcorn, a theologian, supposes that 15% of everything Christ said was about money. Christ knew this would be an issue. As college students we have tremendous power in our “wealth.” The reality is that we are not poor, we are poor in terms of our parents and the 1% of Americans that we aspire to be like. We are wealthy compared to the world that lives on less than a dollar a day. We have the power to cause financial change in the world. Amos 8:4-6 puts it rather harshly but it gets at the truth. We trample the poor, leave them homeless so we can have a good time on the weekend. Meanwhile, they just want to stay out of the cold while we ride by in a car with heat wearing a NorthFace jacket . Last semester we raised over $800 bucks for One Verse at West Rome alone. I was at a church event a few years ago and a room full of young people raised enough money (I think 50k) to buy cars for three single moms for Christmas time. $50,000/ 3000 people is over 16 bucks a person. We may not be able to fund a building or a capital project but to someone who lives on a dollar a day, that same 15 dollars is the difference between life and death.

So am I supposed to give it all away? In my opinion, saving for retirement is perfectly ok. In OT times, people farmed and grew and made the things they needed to survive until they died (usually between 40 and 50 years of age). If they were unable to provide for themselves, the community would take care of them and most people didn’t make it that far. Now times are different, modern healthcare is expensive , people live longer, basic needs are expensive, and most people live longer than they work so people need savings to draw from. There is a difference between saving money while being financially savvy; and loving money. The question is simply this, if God asked you to give it all away would you? …pause…..would you really?

Proverbs 18: 10-12 says that is God ultimately is our strong tower, wall and security. Security from God does not come as an easy stomach but as a peace that you are moving in the right direction. A wall of money may ensure that you never go hungry but it will also ensure a lifetime of temptation and uneasiness if it becomes your God.

Other interesting scripture:
One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me" (Mark 10:21).

"Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven . . . Woe to you rich, for you have received your consolation" (Luke 6:20).

"Whoever does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:33).

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up.

Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field" (Matthew 13:44).

Jesus "saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he said, ‘Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them" (Luke 21:1).

"But God said to [the man who built even bigger barns], ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God." (Luke 12:20-21).

"Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head . . . Follow me" (Luke 9:58).

A profile of Americans’ income (2006)
30% of American adults earn $30K or less annually, before taxes. (2006)
38% of American adults earn between $30K and $60K annually, before taxes. (2006)
20% of American adults earn $60K to $100K annually, before taxes. (2006)
12% of Americans earn over $100K annually, before taxes (2006)
The average cumulative donations to churches by evangelicals totaled $2097. For evangelicals, cumulative donations totaled $2097. (2000) Among the born again population, which represents 38% of all adults, the average giving to churches in 2003 was $1411, much higher than a year earlier ($1220), but below previous year’s totals. (2004) -BARNA

Deuteronomy 8: 10-18

Tithe- I would imagine that our giving to the local church does not even stack up to that of our poorly performing parents generation. We don’t tithe now because we “don’t have any money.” Live on a dollar a day, then tell me you don’t have any money. The money is there, it is a matter of priority. The truth is that we would rather go to Applebee’s than give to the purpose of furthering the Kingdom of God on the earth.