Neville Turley

“You cannot be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” Matthew 6:24 (GNT)

One of the slurs made about Christians is that they are so heavenly minded they are of no earthly use. Of course, the reverse can be said of some persons. They are so earthly minded that they are of no heavenly use. One can become so obsessed with making money one loses sight of eternity, with disastrous consequences. 

The way we manage our money is important, so important in fact, that there are many more references in the Bible relating to money than there are concerning love and faith. 

Our Lord makes it abundantly clear that God must always be our first priority. The first commandment given to Moses was “Worship no other God but me.”

There is nothing wrong with having money or being wealthy. The Bible teems with advice on how money should be handled responsibly. It is not money but the love of money that is the root of all evil.

Jesus preached strongly about the folly of storing up riches on earth instead of in heaven. “For your heart will always be where your riches are.”  Matthew 6:21

In a parable Jesus told us about a man whom he described as a fool. The man had land that wielded record crops. So much so he had no place left in his barns. His solution was to build bigger barns to store his corn. “Then I will say to myself, Lucky man! You have all the good things you need for many years. Take life easy, eat, drink, and enjoy yourself!” (Luke 12:19) But God determined that very night he would die.  His selfish hopes and plans for the future were shattered forever. 

The parable of the rich fool is a sober warning to us. We must not be money motivated but Spirit-driven. We show our love for God by doing good, being generous and always being ready to share the hope we have in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. That way we build treasure in heaven and gain contentment for our soul. 

Prayer: Heavenly Father we acknowledge that you are the giver of all good things.  Grant us wisdom to use the riches you have blessed us with wisely to your glory. For Jesus sake. Amen