Having contentment alone is not great gain. Without God, the
people will still eventually lose out and perish, no matter
how contented they can be. On the other hand, having godliness alone
is not great gain too. There are many Christians, including pastors
and church leaders, who are not contented
with what the Lord has
already given them. They are a very unhappy bunch
of people.
In 1 Tim 6:6-19, Paul addressed an important message regarding
this matter to three groups of people, namely:
- the poor
- the wanting-to-be rich
- the rich
The Poor (1 Timothy 6:7-8)
For
we brought nothing into this world, and it is
certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with
these we shall be content.
Some of the poorest people are some of the
happiest people on earth. They enjoy their work and the fruits of
their labor. Whenever they have good food or new clothes, they are
very thankful and grateful, easily satisfied and
rejoicing always.
Nothing is taken for granted. This
blessedness of having the necessities (food, clothing and a place to
rest) is from the Lord. They are able to enjoy sleep - peacefully and soundly
every night.
But some of the poor people are not
contented, wanting to be rich. They are always grumbling, and
blaming others and God.
The Wanting-To-Be Rich (1 Timothy 6:9-16)
But those who desire to be rich fall
into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts
which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love
of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed
from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through
with many sorrows. But you, O man of God, flee these things
and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience,
gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life,
to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession
in the presence of many witnesses.
I urge you in
the sight of God Who gives life to all things, and before Christ
Jesus Who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that
you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our
Lord Jesus Christ's appearing, which He will manifest in
His own time, He Who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of
kings and Lord of lords, Who alone has immortality, dwelling in
unapproachable light, Whom no man has seen or can see, to Whom be
honor and everlasting power. Amen.
There are many people who are not rich
but they are desiring to be
rich, they set their hearts on these
riches and fall into
temptation. They are tempted to do sinful things to fulfil their lustful desires to
build up fortunes and foundations that are
shaky. And their hearts are
pierced with many sorrows - wanting and yet not getting what they
wanted. Even when they do get what they wanted, there is
always an unquenchable craving for more. Never satisfied.
It is not the possession of wealth that constitutes the danger.
The real problem is that
they are putting their trust
and faith in riches instead of God.
In Mark 10:24, Jesus told
His disciples: "Children, how hard it is for those who trust
in riches to enter the kingdom of God!"
The love of money is
a root of
all evil. Not the money itself, but the love of it. This greed and
lust is the source of many sins. Men commit all kinds of sin such as
murder, cheating, lying, robbing etc., all for the love of money.
For the love of thirty pieces of silver, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus. Many
men of God have erred and wandered away from their faith
because of their
lust for money. They are no
longer righteous as they no longer live by faith.
That's why Apostle Paul strongly
warned his disciple Timothy: "O man of God,
flee these things." Instead of chasing after money, seek after
righteousness, and fight the good fight of faith. No man of God is exempted from this temptation.
The Christian life is a journey wherein our spirit man constantly
struggles and wrestles against our flesh. We are to oppose
the lusts
that may eventually mislead and
hurt us. We must
consistently be reminded of our high calling in Christ Jesus and to
walk worthy in it.
The Rich (1 Timothy 6:17-19)
Command those who are rich in this
present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but
in the living God, Who gives us richly all things to enjoy.
Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give,
willing to share, storing up for themselves a good
foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal
life.
God is not against all
rich people. In fact, He gives us all things to enjoy! Not all
rich people are ungodly and haughty. Some of the rich are humble, trusting God and not in
their riches. They are blessed to be blessings to others. They are
good stewards of the wealth that
God has given them, and they do
good. Their wealth is being
used
in the right manner for the right purposes.
Rich in good
works, they lay up treasures in heaven by giving towards the good
purposes of God. Money becomes a useful tool for them to help build the kingdom
of God. They are godly and contented. They do not hold things so
tightly that the things get hold of them instead. They live simply
so that others can simply live. They worship God, not mammon.
In
conclusion, I will
quote the words of the beloved
disciple whom Jesus loved from 1 John 2:15-17:
Do
not love the world or the things in the world.
If anyone loves
the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is
in the world-- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the
eyes, and the pride of life-- is not of the Father but is of the
world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of
it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.