The Bible Truth About Money

Common Sense Commentary:"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 1Tim.6:10.  There are four bad things in that verse and none of them is "money".

First, it is the "love" of money that is the root of all evil, not "money" itself.
Second, it is, "coveting" after money that is bad, not "having" money.
Third, the bad thing about "loving" and "coveting" money is, it causes those particular people to "err from the faith" pursuing wealth, and not the giver of wealth, God.
Fourth, having given themselves to the "love of money", they have "pierced themselves through with many sorrows" and are out of God's will and protection.
In a word, the love and coveting of money is simply "GREED". Judas was greedy.

The Attributes of Money:

Money for which you have not expended your time, talents and effort, is not equal in value to you as money for which you personally have labored.  We are, however, equally responsible to God to be good stewards in its use because its use is of equal importance to Him.  Whether it is a gift, an inheritance or a grant, it equally represents someone else's stewardship of time, talent, effort and life. A free meal is not free, someone, somewhere paid for it.  They worked and gave it, you ate it without work.

Money, for which you have invested your own time, talent and effort, is nothing less than that part of yourself which you invested to earn it.  It is, therefore, a composite representation of that much of your life itself .  That is why it is so important to abide by God's Word in reference to "good stewardship" of our time, talent, effort and then their offspring, our treasure which incorporates, in convenient form, the above three aspects of our lives.

When we waste our money or possessions, we waste that part of our lives required to earn them.(poor stewardship).  When we spend this "currency" of our time, talent and effort on the ungodly, un-Christlike satisfying of fleshly lusts, we literally abuse ourselves. As the Apostle Paul spoke of certain ones who, "oppose themselves" in 2Tim.2:25.

Wealth, in whatever form, cannot be bad because Jesus and His Apostles had a bag of it, which greedy Judas carried to pay for their needs.  God's Word also promises, "Give and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give unto your bosom." Jesus said it in Luke 6:38. The one word, "Give" part of that equation, or formula, is incidental to the subject, getting.  Everything after the word "Give" is "Getting" for which the verse is primarily intended ..."and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over..."   The entire verse has to do with "receiving" more that giving.  Receiving food, clothing, housing, transportation, income, life sustaining resources ... but in proportion to our giving.  The result of giving of ourselves, then receiving back much more than we gave, is the key to honest, purposeful, scriptural wealth.  Cases in point: Abraham, Job, Boaz, King David, King Solomon, Nicodemus and Cornelius.

Conclusion:  So, if a person gives abundantly and then reaps even more abundantly, from God, how is that a bad thing?  If you give generously, and "reap what you sow", as the Scripture says (Gal.6-7), and become wealthy in the process, receiving back far more from God,  through  men's hands, than you gave, God is simply living up to His promise.  It is, therefore, contradictory to feel  guilty or apologetic about what God has done in your life ....Cornelius.  However, the more you receive, the more you are responsible to give. "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required ..." Jesus said it in Lk.12:48.  This includes all aspects of good stewardship, not just wealth.  We who have been given, by God, wealth, power, position or fame are responsible to Him, as good stewards, to use those things for His glory not ours.  Also, the word "give" implies, in both Hebrew and Greek, our willful bestowal or use of those gifts as God leads us.  Our "giving" must be voluntary or gains no approval, reward or return from God.  Exorbitant, government taxation is not only demanded but forced and not volunteered, except in the since of fearing the consequences of not doing it.  Unlike voluntary scriptural obedience, Taxation is not "giving", it is forceful extraction.  That is not how God wants us to obey Him or to "give"; but, misuse of His gifts to us has its consequences. God does not force us to do right.

A "good steward" of God's business is always aware of where his wealth, power or  position came from and to whom it truly belongs ... our Master, our Lord. The steward is answerable to Him and nobody else, but is also responsible to Him for deciding how  these things are to be spent and used.  Not the Pastor, not the church deacons, neither a friend nor Uncle Sam .... but you, the steward.

There are hundreds of verses in the Bible referencing wealth, riches, money, gold, silver, material and animal offerings, sacrifice, giving, receiving, wages and tithing. Far too many for possessions and wealth to be evil or an offence to God, when He gave it for our use.  No, it is not "money" which is the "root of all evil" but the "love of money", the "coveting" of it, the greed of it which is that poisonous root of destruction.

Pass it on. RB