Beware Of Mammon

Have you ever wondered, if you take away the music and the money power from today’s churches what will remain? How many people will still be attending the assemblies? God’s work does not suffer because of the lack of money as some money loving preachers say.

Our Lord said, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24). When God and mammon become rivals, one or other will inevitably be rejected. In spiritual matters, there are two kingdoms: earth or heaven; two realms: darkness or light; two masters: God or Satan. When the heart of a man is set on money; the accumulation of worldly wealth and an obsession with temporal things - then God is excluded from that life, for no one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. Many have tried to serve both, but all fail in the end. When materialism and a love of money takes hold of a life, that person's desire for money will eventually take precedence over ones love for God.

When we choose God over mammon we die to self and our selfish desires so that the Spirit of Christ may dwell in us richly and lead and guide us into all truth - which enables us to mature in our Christian Walk and to grow in grace and in a knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Jesus is personifying money as a rival god. Jesus is making unmistakably clear that money is not some impersonal medium of exchange. Money is not something morally neutral, a resource to be used in good or bad ways depending solely upon our attitude toward it. Money is a power that seeks to dominate us. Money is godlike. Money in modern society is godlike. It is a substitute God. That is why it’s called mammon. And, if we aren’t careful, it will rule and ruin our lives.

Money has influenced every area of the world. Kings have money, leaders and politicians have money, businesspersons have money, terrorists have money. In Christendom today, many preachers and pastors have millions and leading a luxurious lifestyle. When it comes to money all are alike with same nature and same tendency. It has been said, money is the most important nerve in the human body as it runs from our brain down to the wallet. It runs through our system day and night, it runs through our relationships, it runs through our moods, it makes us sad or happy. If we get more of it we get excited, if we lose a little of it that makes us sad.

Our Lord said, none can serve two masters. Your true master is the one who you love and serve. God cannot coexist with a second master. Who you listen to in your day today life is your master. Does money rule you? Do you act on what mammon says? If he asks you to leave a job, just to have a little more money, what would you do? If you get a good money fortune, would you consider migrating to another country though you have to leave the commitments that God entrusted to you in the place where you are. Does money influence your relationships, whether it’s family, relatives or even friends?

Money is a good servant but a terrible master. Remember that. Just like fire, fire is a good servant but a terrible master. You use fire and you keep the fire under control in the kitchen, on the gas stove. That is okay. But if you let that fire go out of control, what happens? Your whole house will be burnt down. And if you can treat money like that, as a servant, and keep it under control like you keep the fire on the gas stove under control, then it is a wonderful servant; very, very useful.

The danger of serving both the Lord and money is seen clearly in an illustration given by Martyn-Lloyd-Jones in his Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. He tells the story of a farmer who had a prized cow who gave birth to two calves. One calf was red, and one was white. He came in the house rejoicing and told his wife the great news. He added, “I have decided to sell one of the calves and give the proceeds to the Lord.” When his wife asked him which calf he would sell, he said it did not matter because he would raise them both the same. One day the farmer came in with a sad face. “The Lord’s calf died.” His wife responded with confusion, “I thought you had not decided which calf would be the Lord’s calf.” He responded confidently, “No, I had always decided that the white one was the Lord’s calf and now it is dead.” Though this story is amusing, the message is humbling. Somehow when trying times come in our financial lives, it is always the time, money, and passion for the Lord that suffers first. The Lord’s calf always dies when we serve money.

We many a times foolishly think that wealth and treasures have not dominated us because nothing stands in the way of us missing worship services. It is so much greater than this. We should not think that riches have not become our master merely because money never stops us from missing worship services. We should decide based on whether it has become the passion of our heart. The rich young ruler was told to sell everything and give to the poor because it had mastered him. It was the only way he could serve Christ alone. We too must also get rid of the master – whatever it is.

God’s work does not suffer because of the lack of money as some money loving preachers say. God’s work suffers due to the lack of the power of Holy Spirit. Ever since the beginning of the Church era, we see the Church grew through the power of God. Most of the first and second century Christians were very poor and most of them even had lost their properties, inheritance due to their conversion to Christianity. The churches then were vibrating spiritually with God’s anointing. They didn’t have the modern music that we have. They didn’t have the light and sound systems which most of the modern churches have today. But they had God’s power. Their leaders knew God personally. They walked and talked with God every single day of their lives. Hudson Taylor said, “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply”.

Have you ever wondered, if you take away the music and the money power from today’s churches what will remain? How many people will still be attending the assemblies? The one thing that is emphasised in most of the congregations today is about money. Instead of telling the believers to be filled in by the power of the Holy Spirit, they ask everyone to bring in more money for ‘so called God’s work’. By God’s work they mean, grand buildings and grand infrastructure. Hardly any one care about the lost souls. Where did they see their examples in the scriptures? Did our Lord Jesus live or preach that way? When He had to pay the temple tax, He didn’t have money (Matthew 17:24-27). He asked Peter, “go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

When Peter and John were asked for alms by a begger they didn’t have money to pay. We see that in Acts 3:1-11. They said to the lame man, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” What a manifestation of God’s power! Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4:11-12, “To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment”. Do we have leaders and apostles like them today?

The "prosperity gospel" was invented in the latter half of the 20th century by Mammon-loving preachers who had to find some "Scriptural" explanation to justify their extravagant lifestyles and the immense amount of wealth that they had accumulated from the tithes and offerings of their "devotees". So, they hunted up Old Testament promises that God had given to Israel and began to proclaim those promises as the unfailing mark of God's blessing today. And money-loving believers gladly lapped up this new gospel!

Belam was a money loving prophet (Numbers 22-24). His error (Jude 11) became a way for others (2 Peter 2:15) and later it had become a doctrine (Revelation 2:14). Many had lost their calling due to the love for money. We have examples not only in the Scriptures but also in our present times of leaders who were influenced by money and lost their anointing.

We see in Joshua 7:1-26, how one man’s greed and disobedience caused whole assembly to suffer under the wrath of God. When Achan picked up the gold, the silver, and the fine garment, he must have thought to himself; “It won’t hurt a thing if I keep this stuff for myself. No one will ever know.” But Achan was disobedient to the clear warning from God (Joshua 6:18-19). Achan’s plight can be summed up in verse (Joshua 7:21) when he stated: “…I saw…I coveted… took…” One day Achan was celebrating the victory of Israel over Jericho, and few days later he was executed, along with his entire family. What a turn of events! Achan saw, coveted, and took. Now the sin took root in his heart, he was on a slippery slope downward. He did not realize the effects of his sin until it was too late.

Gehazi could have been a powerful man of God in his generation if only he had not lusted after money. We see the story in 2 Kings 5:1-26, how he lost his calling and received a lifelong curse not only for himself but also for his seed for ever.

We have examples in New Testament as well. Judas lost his calling as the ‘Apostle’ just because he loved money and we see Demas in 2 Timothy 4:10 as Apostle Paul says about him “for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica”.

It was to save His apostles from such temptations, that Jesus left them poor in the world. The Lord Who made Job, Abraham and David rich could easily have made His apostles rich too. But He didn't. Why? Because new-covenant apostles, unlike Old Testament saints, had to wage war against Satan. And when Satan came against them, it was essential that Satan should find "no love for Mammon in them"? Otherwise, the Lord's purposes could never have been fulfilled through them.

Whenever a genuine Holy-Spirit revival comes anywhere, it will be a revival that delivers believers from the love of Mammon. Only such a revival will drive the prince of Mammon out of the church.

By Pastor Renji George

Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 4:11-12, 1 Timothy 6:10, 2 Kings 5:1-26, 2 Peter 2:15, 2 Timothy 4:10, Acts 3:1-11, Joshua 6:18-19, Joshua 7:1-26, Joshua 7:21, Jude 11, Luke 12:15, Matthew 17:24-27, Matthew 6:24, Numbers 22-24, Revelation 2:14

Sermon Topics: Money, Prosperity, Mammon, Money Management, Physical Blessings