If you think about it, money is worthless unless someone is willing to assign it value. Now here’s where it gets interesting. It is in this assignment of value that things go awry. The Bible clearly teaches that some people have a perverse love for money that is ruinous and “a root of all kinds of evils” (1 Timothy 6:10).
But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
-1 Timothy 6:9-10
The context of Paul’s writing to Timothy was the issue of false teachers who were using the Gospel to make money. As I’ve been teaching from my pulpit for years, context is key when interpreting Holy Scripture. This same issue exists in churches today, where so-called “pastors” and “ministers” are in it for the money. If you look at how their “ministries” are constructed, they are created solely to capitalize on the Gospel. The lazy ones are content with a simple life in exchange for minimal labor. Others work very hard and make millions. Both are perverse and driven by the love of money. That’s the context of 1 Timothy 6.
Since we’re on the topic of money and ministry, there’s another point worth considering. Nowhere in the Bible is there described a man or woman who made a lot of money from ministry. Should a God-ordained pastor be supported, financially? Of course!
Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.”
-1 Timothy 5:17-18
Some theologians argue that “double honor” (v17) refers to remuneration. In a healthy ministerial economy, the sheep consider it a privilege to support their pastor financially (this being a “healthy” exchange in contrast to what’s described in Chapter 6). A pastor who is exercising his spiritual gift as unto the Lord, as a calling, will never possess an unhealthy love of money. This blog isn’t about money issues that arise in ministry, specifically (although it relates to the context of 1 Timothy 6), so let’s move on.
What did Job, Solomon, David, and Lydia have in common? They were all wealthy. Who made them that way? God did. God, using Satan, took away all of Job’s wealth and then gave it back twofold, after He’d proven His point. Solomon prayed for wisdom and God gave it to him along with great wealth. David, “a man after [God’s own] heart” (Acts 13:22) was also bestowed with great wealth by God. Lydia made her money in purple textiles. We never read that any of these great saints of God stumbled because of their wealth. So, there’s a context we must understand regarding wealth when the possessors aren’t in “love” with it (the way false prophets/teachers often are).
Context is key, especially when it comes to understanding what the Bible has to say about money.
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
-Hebrews 13:5
The question on the table is, “Why does money cause so many issues?”…
The easy answer is that issues arise when people pervert the value of money. A person’s gluttony or lust for power are two perfect examples where money plays a corruptive role. In fact, this world promotes such unrighteous motivation as “good”. Wasn’t it Gordon Gekko from the movie Wall Street who famously said, “Greed is good”? People celebrated Gordon’s words because it endorsed their fleshly desires.
The Bible describes relationships between people and money differently. We must read each passage in context. Since money is, by itself, harmless, our focus must always be on the individual(s) in view. This is the purpose of this blog.
When possessed righteously, money is a wonderful blessing, something God gives freely for His own sovereign purposes. There’s no shame whatsoever in enjoying whatever form of material wealth God has given you! Don’t ever let anyone tell you differently – chances are they are jealous, typically stuck in bondage to their own love of money. Why do you think one of the Ten Commandments instructs us to not covet our neighbor’s belongings (Exodus 20:17)? There’s nothing wrong with your neighbor’s wealth – there’s something wrong with you if you’re jealous of it in any way.
Let’s address our question on the table now…
Money causes so many issues for two fundamental reasons:
1. Some who have it gained it through ungodly means and therefore don’t have the capacity for it. What happens to a person when they’re in possession of wealth they cannot handle? It destroys them and often ruins their personal relationships (marriages, family, friends). It’s the outcome of the old proverb, “Be careful what you wish for!”
2. Some who don’t have it lust after it. Jealousy arises and becomes cancerous to human relationships. Ever heard someone slander a person they’ve never even met just because they live in a nice house or drive a nice car? Ever heard those same people quote 1 Timothy 6:10 out of context, supposing moral superiority over someone who, ironically, could be praying for people who judge them? Who has the problem in this case: the one whom God has blessed or the one wrongly judging them?
Money issues are projections of personal weaknesses. If the problem exists in your life, it isn’t with others, it’s with you.
If you’ve ever struggled with these kinds of issues, then ponder the last two sentences and pray to God for clarity.
When money becomes a topic of discussion, the focus always seems to be on the possessor of wealth and it carries with it some sort of perverse pseudo-biblical shame, even, as if God would never dream of blessing someone with wealth. It’s often much more fruitful to consider the neighbor who’s still lusting after wealth. What’s going on in their heart and why does so much poison and vitriol come out of their mouths?
Paul nailed it when he said:
Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
-Philippians 4:11-13
The secret to a healthy relationship with money is this: if everyone just minded their own business, accepted God’s sovereign will to bless some with it for a season or seasons, and lived a life of gratitude instead of lust, all would be well. The problems with money have never once been due to someone possessing it righteously; rather, it has always been due to someone else perversely desiring it.
What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
-James 4:1-3
Love in Christ,
Ed Collins
