People often came to Jesus, sometimes asking questions that they were not sure they wanted an answer to. In the New Testament book of Matthew, chapter 19 verse 16 we read: “And behold, a young man came up to Jesus asking, ‘Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?’” In response to what this young man offered we might say; “That’s not a bad question.” He seemed to be on the right track. As the conversation progressed, Jesus would question him not only about his conduct, but essentially about his attitude towards money and wealth. Jesus talked about keeping the 10 Old Testament Commandments: “The young man said to him, ‘All these I have kept. What do I still lack?’” 21 Jesus said to him, (basically) “‘You need to go sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”
So, what did he lack? This was where Jesus was going all along. “Glad you asked!” Jesus ended up challenging him regarding the 10th Commandment (which he had skipped previously). Jesus knew he was in love with stuff – his wealth. It’s one thing to appreciate and enjoy things in life, it’s another to really love things! And Jesus knew this young man’s heart! If you read the 10 Commandments, you see that the last one – ‘No coveting’ is about: “More and more; I want more.” One of the test questions for coveting, is how you deal with the prospect of loosing what you have; and in particular for this young man – when you have much. Do you have a tight grip on things? What if God was prompting you to give some of your money away?
Note: Those dreadful, devastating fires in LA, the Pacific Palisades and Malibu last week demonstrated just how fast you can lose things, no matter how wealthy you are!
And lest you think the Bible is ‘against money’ is not. Do we work to earn? Yes. Work is good and a worker deserves his wages. Do we plan for the future? Yes. To not provide for your family is foolish. Money is simply a necessary medium of exchange for all kinds of goods and services. We can’t barter in beads and bearskins. A health economy can indicate many things that are all working well together and in harmony; as God intended! And no, money is not the root of all evil (sorry Pink Floyd – song: Money), but the Bible describes “The love of money” as being the root of all kinds of evil. Few things can corrupt people faster than money; either desire or desperation. As they say: money – makes people funny.
But the Bible does give repeated, consistent cautions concerning our attitude towards money and wealth. Obviously, you ‘can’t take it with you,’ but you can store up treasures in heaven where their value will never be diminished. Because our forever hope is in Christ, our eternal inheritance will likewise live forever. It is “reserved in heaven” for us.
Do you know that you can have a guaranteed inheritance – that is recession and future proof? Those trusting in Jesus have an eternal inheritance “that can never perish, spoil or fade away.”
