Money, Possessions & Eternity (iv)

Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

                       (Prov.23:4-5)

The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever.  The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous.  They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb. By them your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

(Ps.19:9-11)

Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her.…

(Prov.8:10-11)

 

 

This is the power of money: it gives us opportunities we wouldn’t otherwise have to demonstrate who we think we are and what is genuinely important to us.  It does so in empirically observable ways (in numbers and transactions) that provide a paper trail to our sense of identity and values.  This may be why the question of money causes such anxiety, and why it is that we are so reluctant to speak about it, even with others in our family, or in our Church, or even with our closest friends.   Few things will take us to the heart of who we are more quickly than our bank statement.  Or at least, nothing will take us to the heart of who we (would like to) think we are more quickly than our bank statement.

A recurring theme in this series will be that we cannot think through the question of money in isolation.  Our finances are spiritual, and a financial problem is never just a financial problem.  It will also be a spiritual problem.  We need to recognise that everything we do – whether it involves finance or not – is about worship.  We considered in a previous study the question of idolatry, and the dangers of using money as a form of self-worship.  Why do some use their money to acquire all the cultural markers of ‘having made it’?  Why are some people so vocal about what they give to charity?  Why are some people never able to stay out of debt?  Why are some crippled with worry about money?  …while others barely give it a second thought?  Why are some people so compulsive about saving? …or only spending in certain ways?  Because how we think about, and use, money is the expression of who we think we are, and what we believe life is really about… about what it means to live well.  It’s about where we find our security and sense of purpose.

Tripp, in Redeeming Money, helpfully identifies four categories in which we should be thinking about who we are: creature, sinner, sufferer, saint. 

As creatures we are God’s idea, existing for His purpose and commissioned to do His will.  This is the foundation of surrender… surrender of money itself, our understanding of money and its use to the wisdom of God.  In this context, the very phrase, ‘financial independence’ comes close to blasphemy!  As sinners, we need more than education.  We need grace, in the form of mercy for past failure, and empowering for future transformation.  In the meantime, we tend to moral confusion, bad things look good and ugly things look beautiful (and vice versa).  The impurity, rebellion and inability within us means we desire and do in ways that are contrary to the beauty of holiness.  That will be the case in how we view and use money, and what we try and make it achieve.  It is well to be aware of that.  As sufferers we are tempted to cynicism in our relationship with God, to doubt God’s promises and presence.  If we succumb to that temptation then we will likely see money as the peace, comfort, meaning and provision.  We will try and use money to provide what we no longer trust God for.  As saints (those set apart for God) we sometimes give into temptation, sometimes lose our way, sometimes make bad decisions… sometimes deliberately!  But it also means that God is with us in our struggles – no less in our struggle with money than in any other.  It also means we are being slowly re-oriented to realise life is about His glory, not our comfort, pleasure or satisfaction (though in His goodness the two dynamics are deeply inter-linked).  Being a saint allows for honest examination, forgiveness for sin, and hope for the future.

It’s worth asking ourselves, which of these categories are shaping our relationship with money…  and how.

Questions

How should Christians make decisions about retirement plans and pensions?  What are the issues we need to take into consideration?

 

What are the principles a Christian should bear in mind when writing their will?  To whom should we leave God’s money?  How does the Bible’s teaching about inheritance shape how we approach subjects such as these?

 

How should we make decisions about which Churches / organisations to give to, both in life and in death (as we leave a legacy)?

 

Read Luke 12:13-21

What can you tell about the person asking the question in v.13?  How does his question connect with what Jesus has been teaching about?  Do you think he would have described himself as ‘greedy’ (v.15)?

 

How can you guard yourself against ‘all kinds of greed’?  What are different kinds of greed?  Why is it so critically important that we guard against it in any form (see e.g. Eph.5:5)?

 

Given how important the issue of money is in the teaching of Jesus, why do you think he refuses to be brought into this dispute about inheritance?   What do we learn from this?

 

Why is the man in the parable declared to be a ‘fool’?  What is a ‘fool’?  What would wisdom have looked like for the man? 

 

Why does the ground in the parable yield an abundant harvest?  What obligation was the man under? 

 

Which of the categories listed in the notes above is the man operating in? 

 

What does it mean for someone ‘to be rich towards God’?  What would characterise their relationship with, and their use of, money?

Memory Passage:

The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!  No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Matt.6:22-24

 

Going Deeper:

Last week we said we would look at a number of questions about our propensity to take on debt as part of a lifestyle.  It is important to realise that we’re not necessarily talking here about debt that's used to pay for something that has long-term value and increases your net worth (e.g. a home), or that helps you generate legitimate income (e.g. business loan).  There are questions there too, but we’re raising questions about the debt we fall into rather than plan for. 

Some of those questions are simply financial ones, such as ensuring we will have the resources to pay off such debt in good time (Rom.13:8), and seeking to anticipate whether I will have other additional demands that prevent me doing so.  But others are more ‘spiritual’, around the ‘why’ of debt in the first place.  Sometimes the issue is as base as lack of self-control, or patience (Gal.5:22-23, Col.3:12).  Some patterns of impulse buying may belie a lack of such spiritual fruit in our character.  Sometimes it might betray a lack of contentedness (Phil.4:11-12), which again points to a lack of spiritual maturity.  Other times it might expose greed, or jealousy, or a lack of discernment.  In such instances the problem isn’t primarily financial.  It won’t be solved by drawing up a better budget.  The issues are spiritual, and need to be tackled as such (though better budgeting might be needed too!).

One author suggests that there are four sinful assumptions in a ‘debt-mentality’:  We need more that God has given us; God has failed to provide for our needs, forcing us to take matters into our own hands; if God doesn’t come through the way we think he should we can find another way; presumption about the future.  We’ll revisit this in a couple of weeks...