Lust for money
Just for your thoughts
Paul worked day and night, praying continually, striving to present the believers blameless and holy before God the Father. But today, some ministers work day and night preaching—not to make people holy—but to make them the wealthiest in the world. (1 Thessalonians 1:9; 2:11–13)
Instead of being content with the life God has given them and rejoicing in their calling, many have forgotten their divine calling and fallen because of their love for money. The Bible shows us several examples:
1. Judas Iscariot – He betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14–16; 27:3–5). His greed caused him to betray his Savior, and afterward, in deep remorse, he took his own life.
2. Gehazi – The servant of the prophet Elisha. When Naaman offered gifts and Elisha refused them, Gehazi lied and took the gifts for himself. As a result, Naaman’s leprosy came upon him (2 Kings 5:20–27).
3. Balaam – For the rewards offered by Balak, king of Moab, he tried to go against God’s command (Numbers 22–24; 2 Peter 2:15; Jude 1:11). His greed led him astray.
4. Achan – He disobeyed God’s command by secretly taking the gold, silver, and beautiful garments from Jericho (Joshua 7:20–25). Because of this, Israel suffered defeat, and Achan and his family were punished.
The Bible strongly warns us about the love of money.
“Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” (1 Timothy 6:9–10)
Hebrews 13:5 instructs us to keep our lives free from the love of money.
No one condemned greed as severely as Jesus Christ did. He said,
“It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
This one statement alone reveals how unnecessary and meaningless it is to pursue wealth at the cost of our spiritual life.
If God blesses us with riches, we may accept them with gratitude, but to labor restlessly for wealth, losing our spiritual focus and our calling, is the greatest tragedy of all. Spiritual poverty is far more pitiful than material poverty.
Unfortunately, many preachers today do not teach about this. They fail to show that greed is a sin. Instead of emphasizing the spiritual riches God has given us, they focus on the worldly wealth that unbelievers chase after.
Because of this, Christianity is drifting off its true course.
America, once known as a Christian nation, is an example—though it achieved great material prosperity, its spiritual decline has become clearly visible.
We must be firm in one conviction:
Let not the desire to become rich ever rule our hearts.
The one who remains steadfast in this decision is truly blessed.