Question #1 – Do you have any financial concerns at all?
Question #2 – Could you use some more money?
Chances are good that most of you answered YES to both of these questions. So how should we respond to our fear of financial failure? That’s what we will talk about this Sunday at Grace Church as we continue our “Face Your Fears” message series by looking at the fear of financial failure.
We will begin by looking at an instruction given by Jesus in Matthew 6:19-21. These words were directed toward the Pharisees who believed that God blessed materially those He loved. This justified their tendency to stockpile their wealth. In reaction to this, Jesus says not to store up for yourselves earthly treasures. An earthly treasure would be anything that is tangible and has a price tag. Jesus was teaching against the idea of stockpiling or hoarding. The scope of Jesus' words deals with the selfish accumulation of tangible things or extravagant living to the exclusion of others. After all, what happens to earthly treasures? The finest clothes made of wool would be eaten by moths. The grain was eaten by rats, worms or other insects (“rust” is literally “eating”…see Rom 14:17; I Cor 8:4; II Cor 9:10). Other objects were stolen by thieves that break in and steal (“break in” = “to dig” as valuables were buried for hiding).
In contrast to this, what should our priority be? We should be storing up that which is eternal. Now this is definitely a “good news/bad news” scenario. The good news is the fact that earthly treasures are temporary while that which is eternal is permanent. If we will make eternal treasures a priority over earthly treasures we will be able to enjoy these treasures much longer. The bad news is the fact that earthly treasures are able to be obtained immediately while that which is eternal is often postponed. But we must choose carefully because according to Jesus, whatever we choose as our priority will be what controls us (James 4:4). The location of our treasure will indicate the priority of our heart.
In Mark 12, we see an illustration of this. In verses 41-42, Jesus was observing how the people gave. By the way, Jesus still observes how people give today. He and the disciples saw many wealthy people who gave large amounts. Then they saw a poor widow who gave two small copper coins. These were the smallest bronze Jewish coins in circulation. Together they equal ¼ of a cent in our money system today. Jesus made this observation. The widow gave more than all of the wealthy givers before her who had put in great sums of money. How can this be true? This is true because the others gave out of their wealth with little sacrifice. She gave out of her poverty, showing dependence on God. The fact is that God places value on whole-hearted commitment, not the amount of one’s financial portfolio.
So let me conclude with a statement that you will most likely disagree with and which just might make you angry, but here it is anyway. Maybe it’s not financial failure we should fear. Maybe, just maybe, we should be more afraid of financial success. Maybe it’s our financial success that hinders our walk with God more than our financial failure does. Give it some thought.
Question #2 – Could you use some more money?
Chances are good that most of you answered YES to both of these questions. So how should we respond to our fear of financial failure? That’s what we will talk about this Sunday at Grace Church as we continue our “Face Your Fears” message series by looking at the fear of financial failure.
We will begin by looking at an instruction given by Jesus in Matthew 6:19-21. These words were directed toward the Pharisees who believed that God blessed materially those He loved. This justified their tendency to stockpile their wealth. In reaction to this, Jesus says not to store up for yourselves earthly treasures. An earthly treasure would be anything that is tangible and has a price tag. Jesus was teaching against the idea of stockpiling or hoarding. The scope of Jesus' words deals with the selfish accumulation of tangible things or extravagant living to the exclusion of others. After all, what happens to earthly treasures? The finest clothes made of wool would be eaten by moths. The grain was eaten by rats, worms or other insects (“rust” is literally “eating”…see Rom 14:17; I Cor 8:4; II Cor 9:10). Other objects were stolen by thieves that break in and steal (“break in” = “to dig” as valuables were buried for hiding).
In contrast to this, what should our priority be? We should be storing up that which is eternal. Now this is definitely a “good news/bad news” scenario. The good news is the fact that earthly treasures are temporary while that which is eternal is permanent. If we will make eternal treasures a priority over earthly treasures we will be able to enjoy these treasures much longer. The bad news is the fact that earthly treasures are able to be obtained immediately while that which is eternal is often postponed. But we must choose carefully because according to Jesus, whatever we choose as our priority will be what controls us (James 4:4). The location of our treasure will indicate the priority of our heart.
In Mark 12, we see an illustration of this. In verses 41-42, Jesus was observing how the people gave. By the way, Jesus still observes how people give today. He and the disciples saw many wealthy people who gave large amounts. Then they saw a poor widow who gave two small copper coins. These were the smallest bronze Jewish coins in circulation. Together they equal ¼ of a cent in our money system today. Jesus made this observation. The widow gave more than all of the wealthy givers before her who had put in great sums of money. How can this be true? This is true because the others gave out of their wealth with little sacrifice. She gave out of her poverty, showing dependence on God. The fact is that God places value on whole-hearted commitment, not the amount of one’s financial portfolio.
So let me conclude with a statement that you will most likely disagree with and which just might make you angry, but here it is anyway. Maybe it’s not financial failure we should fear. Maybe, just maybe, we should be more afraid of financial success. Maybe it’s our financial success that hinders our walk with God more than our financial failure does. Give it some thought.
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