Pursuits

Jesus taught that mammon--the pursuit of material prosperity--was the opposite of pursuing God. He also reflected on how difficult it is for a wealthy man to come to redemption--and gave us an example--the rich young ruler. He also told of the rich man who daily ignored the needs of Lazarus and had no time for Moses and the prophets--and ended up in Hades. And He told the parable of the rich farmer who built bigger barns so that he could live a life of selfish indulgence and pleasure; and yet, found instead that his life was over, and that he was a fool to have relied on his riches for security. The fool--remember--is the one who has no room for faith in God in his heart. Even though he may go to church every week.

Paul tells us that the only man who is actually rich is the man living in the fear of the Lord and content with what God has given him. To be other minded was to pierce one's heart with many sorrowful arrows. And he couldn't list all the evils that a man opens himself up to by falling in love with money--whether he had any or not.

The people of Israel, though warned by God to not trust in the prosperity He graciously gave them but to remain committed to trusting solely in Him, nevertheless; in times of prosperity turned from God--and we know the end of that story. In fact, God described their living a life of ease and pleasure while neglecting the needy as a sure sign that they were just like Sodom and Gomorrah. Worse.

Is then "The American Dream" really godliness? Is America's prosperity a sign of God's blessing or the wiles of the Devil turning a nation away from the pursuit of and reliance on God? And even more importantly, what are you and I pursuing? If I could ask God for only one thing would it be financial security? And what are we telling our children is the treasure they should pursue? And they will watch our lives more avidly than they will listen to our words.

No man can serve two masters. It is despising God to pursue the wrong one.