Money is a strange enigmatic thing. On one hand, money as a physical object itself is not evil. You can throw it in the bin, throw it down a drain or throw it on a train track so that it becomes dented. On the other hand, money has a spirit that works behind it that tempts people to feel secure about their need and seek only treasure on earth rather than treasure in Heaven.
An unsaved person once said that she noticed two types of people: people who are controlled by money and people who are not controlled by money. People who are controlled by money alway feel that they need more. They often cry out to God, not in godly sorrow, but cry out to Him in vain for material things. People who are not controlled by money are content with what they already have whether poor or rich. A hallmark of contentment with what one has is the ability to give up what one has without holding any of it back.
It is never the amount of money that one can give up that is irrelevant. Jesus rebuked the people who gave much money out of their richness in the Temple for doing exactly that. It is whether can give up all of what one has because of their trust in God that determines whether one is free from the spirit of mammon.
This is what Jesus meant by one cannot serve God and mammon. One will love one and hate the other. To hate God means to not seek after God, worship and glorify Him with one's whole heart. If one serves mammon, one's heart will be of mammon. To love God means to love God with all one's heart, mind, spirit, soul and strength. To hate God means to fail to love God with all one's heart, mind, spirit, soul and strength. There is no grounds of neutrality with God.
Even many Christians find it hard to accept that God has not middle ground. As such, they find it hard to accept that one cannot serve both God and mammon. Ultimately, this is owing to a lack of faith and love for God.
Mammon attempts to steal all souls away from God and lead them to the pits of Hell. That is why money, which the spirit of mammon uses to seduce people away from seeking God from people who are both saved and unsaved. That is why money is filthy lucre.
An unsaved person once said that she noticed two types of people: people who are controlled by money and people who are not controlled by money. People who are controlled by money alway feel that they need more. They often cry out to God, not in godly sorrow, but cry out to Him in vain for material things. People who are not controlled by money are content with what they already have whether poor or rich. A hallmark of contentment with what one has is the ability to give up what one has without holding any of it back.
It is never the amount of money that one can give up that is irrelevant. Jesus rebuked the people who gave much money out of their richness in the Temple for doing exactly that. It is whether can give up all of what one has because of their trust in God that determines whether one is free from the spirit of mammon.
This is what Jesus meant by one cannot serve God and mammon. One will love one and hate the other. To hate God means to not seek after God, worship and glorify Him with one's whole heart. If one serves mammon, one's heart will be of mammon. To love God means to love God with all one's heart, mind, spirit, soul and strength. To hate God means to fail to love God with all one's heart, mind, spirit, soul and strength. There is no grounds of neutrality with God.
Even many Christians find it hard to accept that God has not middle ground. As such, they find it hard to accept that one cannot serve both God and mammon. Ultimately, this is owing to a lack of faith and love for God.
Mammon attempts to steal all souls away from God and lead them to the pits of Hell. That is why money, which the spirit of mammon uses to seduce people away from seeking God from people who are both saved and unsaved. That is why money is filthy lucre.
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