Managing Mammon, Part 2

John Wesley was a person to whom God gave a wide and effective ministry in England and the United States during the 1700s. John Wesley grew up in poverty. When he followed his father into ministry, he had no reason to expect that his life would be any more prosperous than his dad's. However...

...In 1731, he began to limit his expenses to free up more money for needy people. His cost of living was 28 British pounds and income was 30 pounds, so he gave two pounds away.

The next year, his income doubled to 60 pounds but he kept his expenses level at 28 pounds, so he gave away 32 pounds. The following year, he earned 90 pounds and kept his expenses level, so he gave away 62 pounds.

This pattern continued as time moved along, and one year he earned 1400 pounds. His expenses had by now mushroomed to an astounding 2 pounds, to a total of 30 pounds, so what did he do that year? He gave away 1370 pounds to needy people.

Dramatically and with every opportunity to do otherwise, he practiced what he preached: For a Christian, increasing income should be accompanied by a rise in his or her standard of giving, not standard of living.

How pathetic, in contrast, is the statement of a more recent member of the rich and famous. Someone asked him the question "How much is enough?" His response: "Just a little more."

As we've studied what it means to make worship a way of life, we've come to the issue of money. In our last program, we confronted the reality that all money is God's, not ours. We also saw from the Scriptures that money is not an end in itself. Rather, it's a means to an end. "A means of to what end?" you ask. God wants us to use our money to worship Him; that is, he wants us to use our money to acknowledge His worth in acceptable ways. We concluded with the observation that money reveals our values. That is, we tend to spend on what is important to us; our checkbook registers and credit card bills reveal what's really important to us.

Today, let's examine our perspective of wealth. Have you seen or heard any "prosperity preachers?" They glide down to a church, radio or TV station from one of their several small mansions in one of their several ritzy cars to spread their gospel to those who will contribute to what they call their "ministry."

Often their message is something like this: "God wants you to be healthy. God wants you to be wealthy. Just name it and claim it!"

I've often wondered how the Apostle Paul would react, were he to attend one of their meetings with his friend, Dr. Luke. I imagine him rolling his eyes upward in mock despair saying, "Woe is me! Why didn't I hear this sooner? If I had named it and claimed it, I could have avoided all those painful floggings, and that stoning that nearly killed me out. I could have had comfort and wealth instead of sleepless nights, disgusting prisons, repeated deprivation, and shipwrecks. Who knows, if I had had enough faith, God would have removed my thorn in the flesh the first time I asked Him for relief. All I had to do was 'name it and claim it' and I could have enjoyed a happy, healthy life—and I could have been rich, Rich, RICH!"

Do you think the apostle Paul believed in prosperity theology? Not a chance.

Do you think that persecuted Christians in China, in Columbia and in Pakistan believe in that kind of theology? No—in fact, their message to Christians in North America is often this: Perhaps less prosperity and more persecution will make you a more thankful and joyful Christian. That's a sobering thought . . .

And how about Jesus Christ? Based on what you know about His earthly ministry, what do you suppose He would say about the wisdom of pursuing wealth?

It is true that some passages of scripture talk about prosperity positively, as if it's a celestial reward for good behavior. For example, Proverbs 11:25 says: "The generous soul will be made rich." Yet, is God telling us that if we behave and do good things, He will make us rich? No.

For example, consider Abraham and Paul. God blessed both men, but each was placed in very different material circumstances. Abraham had great wealth, but Paul had no wealth at all. Do you suppose that Paul, having studied the book of Proverbs, felt that he had missed God's blessing? No. Why not? Because the blessings of God are not confined to material things, "where moth and rust corrupt, and thieves break in and steal."

God does not want us to treat proverbs as if they were promises. Proverbs are not promises. They show us what pleases God. Yet, to understand them requires that we approach them properly.

For example, they fundamentally support the New Testament teaching that we reap what we sow. But does that reaping of what we've sown always come during our lifetime? Not necessarily. Anyone who tries to force God into a timeline by saying that this reaping must come during one's lifetime needs reality therapy.

Proverbs teach values. They show wise choices. They warn against real dangers. They provide wonderful instruction. But they are not time-bound promises. Therefore, please understand what the proverbs say about wealth in that context.

People who spend their lives pursuing wealth run great risks. 1 Timothy 6:9-10 reads like this:

. . . 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.

As we conclude today, remember that God does not promise you financial wealth on earth. We've mentioned the apostle Paul as a classic case in point. Remember also Jesus, God the Son. He, too, had no financial wealth while on earth. Why should you or I expect otherwise? Why should we pursue it if it was that unimportant to Paul, the man of God, and Jesus Christ, the Son of God?

Still, God does give some of His children great wealth. If you are one of those, remember that your wealth is one of God's gifts to you. Be thankful - and be thoughtful. I encourage you to ask yourself two important questions:

(1) How much is "enough" for me? and
(2) If I have more than "enough," what does God want me to do with it? Remember John Wesley's example: For Christians, should increasing income be accompanied by a rise in our standard of living, or our standard of giving?

© 2007 John Garmo. If you would be interested in using this article, please contact us at Info@MissionToChildren.org.