Free from the Love of Money

 January 10, 2024

Wednesday

Hebrews 13:5 (NASB 2020) 5 Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever abandon you,”

Money is almost absolutely necessary to live in our society. (I say “almost” because I will otherwise hear stories of people who live without any money. I assure you, they are the anomaly, not the norm.) Thus, having money, making money and trying to better your conditions by saving and spending money are not evil. The problem comes when we love money.

Love is an act of sacrifice. It has varying degrees. The greatest love we can have is giving our lives for someone. The least love has the least sacrifice. The character filled with the love of money sacrifices the things of God for money. The love of money becomes the driving force that justifies giving up what God has for us. God has all we need but we want more than God has for us when we have a character controlled by the love of money.

I worked for a man many years ago who made a lot of money. His wife told me that he had gone forward twice in church services to declare that God called him to preach when he was younger. He never preached because he wouldn’t give up the tremendous amount of money he was making in his business. He couldn’t accept what God had for him. He missed the joy and the rewards God had for him in eternity because of the temporal desire for money.

Those who are characterized by the love of money do not realize that God will never desert them nor abandon them. They believe their own abilities will sustain themselves better than God can. They can never truly rest.

God will never desert you. He is with your right now. The love of money can lead you to believe that He will desert you. It will lead you to believe that having money is more important than the things of God.

How about this? Start thanking God for what you have right now. You may have little or you may have a lot. I’ll bet that before you finish the list of things you are thanking Him for you’ll realize that you have enough.