Wealth and Christianity
Jesus had a lot to say about wealth, and many Christians today ignore it. I can understand that, I would not want to give up my house, my car, my phone, etc. either.
Luke 12:22 Then Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24 Consider the ravens: they do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life[b]? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?Jesus is telling people to stop owning stuff, to give away everything. Forget wealth in this world, you do not need it; what is important is treasure in heaven. Have faith in God, and he will provide.
27 ‘Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you - you of little faith! 29 And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30 For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
32 ‘Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The Kingdom of God
Jesus is quite clear about who will get to the Kingdom of God.Luke 6:20 Looking at his disciples, he said:The poor get in, the rich do not. He says the same thing in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus:
‘Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
21 Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
22 Blessed are you when people hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil,
because of the Son of Man.
23 ‘Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.
24 ‘But woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort.
25 Woe to you who are well fed now,
for you will go hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will mourn and weep.
26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you,
for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.
Luke 16:19 ‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.It is important to note here the reason Abraham gives. The rich does not get the Kingdom of God because he has already received good things. Christian will try to twist this passage to mean something else, pretending the rich went to hell because he did not give to the poor or some other wild fancy. The text is clear however.
22 ‘The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, "Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire."
25 ‘But Abraham replied, "Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us."
Again here:
Mark 10:25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’And here:
Matthew 19:24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’Some people will look at the camel verses and respond "With God all thing are possible". Okay, so it would be possible for God to let rich people into heaven, if he wanted to, but God has made it clear that he does not want to.
How to Follow Jesus
Jesus said:Mark 10:20 “Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.”Modern Christians pretend this instruction was only for this specific man. I can understand why, they have many possessions too. however, the next few verses make it clear this is for all his followers. Note that in verse 28, Peter makes it clear that tthis is exactly what the disciples have already done.
21 Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22 At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”This appears in Matthew 19 too. See also:
24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is[e] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”
28 Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”
29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
Luke 14:33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.And also in Luke:
Luke 12:32 “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Where the Heart Is?
Jesus said:Matthew 6:19 ‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.Christians should ask themselves where their heart is. Is it in their fancy house, their big car, their electronic goods?
Christian Rationalisations
Many Christians take what Jesus said to heart, perhaps taking a vow of poverty to become a monk or nun. Others, however, pretend Jesus did not really mean it. Let us see what arguments they can engender...A very common rationalisation is to concentrate on Matthew 6:24 ‘No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. Here is an example:
http://www.created4health.org/creation_of_wealth.htm
Jesus’ Teaching on WealthThis diluted version says you should not be a master to money, which is rather different to saying you should have no money. There you go Christians, you can keep your fancy house, your expensive car. Just convince yourself you love God rather than money, and you are safe.
... (Matthew 6:24-33)
These words of Jesus best sum up the biblical teaching on wealth. As the Creator of the universe, Jesus knows what makes people tick. He knows where their passions and motivations are held. And he knows that people cannot both pursue wealth and pursue God’s purpose for their life.
You just have to ignore the rest of Jesus' words on the subject. It is interesting to read Matthew 6:24 in context.
Matthew 6:19 ‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.In fact, this is very much like the text in Luke 12, where Jesus explicitly told his followers "Sell your possessions and give to the poor". Of course, Christians prefer the version in Matthew that skips that part!
22 ‘The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy,[c] your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy,[d] your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
24 ‘No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Do not worry
25 ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]?
28 ‘And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you - you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, "What shall we eat?" or "What shall we drink?" or "What shall we wear?" 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
The Old Testament is a great source of rationalisations.
http://www.gotquestions.org/wealth-Christian.html#ixzz36UCcn5Zy
The Christian view of wealth should be derived from the Scriptures. There are many times in the Old Testament that God gave riches to His people. Solomon was promised riches and became the richest of all the kings of the earth (1 Kings 3:11-13; 2 Chronicles 9:22); David said in 1 Chronicles 29:12: "Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things." Abraham (Genesis 17-20), Jacob (Genesis 30-31), Joseph (Genesis 41), King Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17:5), and many others were blessed by God with wealth. However, they were a chosen people with earthly promises and rewards. They were given a land and all the riches it held.That is great - if you are Jewish. Christians are supposed to follow Christ, however.
This web page is written by a pastor, and is a great example of a Christian trying to rationalise his wealth.
http://www.cuttingedge.org/articles/p124.htm
I highly recommend money because it is a commodity that is pretty difficult to live without! And contrary to what many Christians believe, money is definitely not the root of all evil. "Pastor Ron, you have definitely flipped your cork because the Bible does say that money is the root of all evil!" I beg your pudding it does not! First Timothy 6:10 says:All those verses when Jesus states his position - this guy just ignores them. Another example of the Smorgasbord Bible. You just pick out the bit you like, and quietly ignore the inconvenient parts.
"For the LOVE of money is a root of all evils; it is through this craving that some have been led astray, and have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many acute [mental] pangs" (Parallel Bible, KJV/Amplified Bible Commentary, emphasis mine).
You see, money is a necessary part of life and is certainly not intrinsically bad or good. It’s one of the many "things" in the life of a Christian that the Lord actually owns, but allows us to use as His stewards. When we properly utilize the "things" that He places at our disposal, and maintain the proper attitude toward them, He very often multiplies them. It is when we adopt the wrong attitude toward "things" that we get in trouble. If we allow ourselves to develop a love an inordinate desire for these "things", it (the love the inordinate desire) becomes sinful. Again, money and other material things are not sinful in and of themselves. Actually, they are quite nice and if we behave ourselves and practice good stewardship God just might see fit to allow us to use some of His! But let me hasten to say that there are no guarantees. The "prosperity gospel" that some have been preaching is as phony and bogus as a three dollar bill. It is a fact that God promised the Old Testament Jew financial and spiritual prosperity, but both were predicated upon their obedience to Him. Nowhere will you find anything resembling this promised to Christians this side of heaven. As a matter of fact, we are plainly told that our walk with Christ will be hard and the closer we try to walk with Him, the rougher it will get. Christianity is absolutely unique among the religions of the world in this respect.
Here is a great line:
http://www.churchleaders.com/outreach-missions/outreach-missions-articles/149081-should-christians-be-rich.html
I think God grants wealth to whom He chooses-it just happens to suck if that person ain’t you.Basically, it says if you are rich, then clearly God meant you to be rich, so enjoy. Forget what the Bible say.
Think about that. What the author is saying is that all the rich people in the world, they are rich because God has chosen them especially, and granted them wealth. Whether they made their money from hard work or criminal activities or just got it from their parents, these are the people God has chosen. It is a curious theology and its only purpose is to make wealthy Christians feel good about themselves.
Think about the flip side. All those people who are living in poverty, starving to death. It is because God has not chosen you, he has chosen not to grant you wealth. Tough. Guess he just does not love you enough.
The total opposite to what Jesus actually said and how he lived!
Of course, this is backed up with Old Testament verses. But what Jesus' own words are ignored.
This web page takes the same route:
http://calvarylife.org/explore/podcast/elevation/ask/ppt_slides/message_072708.pdf
Being a rich Christian is not wrong because God makes people richIt too supports the claim using the Old Testament.
Old Testament Role Models
See here for example for Christians using the Old Testament to support ignoring what jesus said:http://www.puregospeltruth.com/prosperity-preachers-and-financial-gain---does-god-want-you-to-be-rich.html
Let us think about those Old Testament people.
Moses was raised in the royal household, but chose to abbandon that life of luxury to be with his people. Just as Jesus said.
Abraham, David and Solomon were leaders of the Jewish nation. Is it reasonable to use them as role-models? If it is, then by the same reasoning polygamy is fine with God, and all these men had multiple wives/concubines.
But modern Christians do not want polygamy, society has changed, and now sees that as wrong. They pick and chose what they want from these verses. God gave them riches, so it is fine to be rich, even if Jesus said otherwise. God gave them many wives, but we'll just keep quiet about that.
New Testament Role Models
The New Testament is a far better place for Christians to look for role models - except they will not like what they find.Letus start with Paul:
1 Cor. 4 11 To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless.Peter and John:
2 Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. 3 When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, ‘Look at us!’ 5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.And the early church as a whole:
6 Then Peter said, ‘Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.
Acts 2: 44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common; 45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.These were true Christians, they were following the woerdss of Jesus, not ignoring them.
Why Do I Care?
I am not a Christian, so why do I care? I post this to show the inconsistency in the religion. How can a religion claim to have all the answers when it is so obviously willfully ignoring what its own founder said?If Christians ignore what Christ said, why should I pay any attention to him?
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