Who Then Is Your Master?

'But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of.................money.'(2 Timothy 3:1-2). Again I am 'splitting' up this piece of Scripture to concentrate on the next topic....money. People will become lovers of money in the last days, Paul said it and he is so right. I thought about this one a bit. I looked around, watched TV and listened to other people....and this is the conclusion I have come to....almost everything is about money....mostly how to get and how much we need it. There are all kinds of things that come in my mail almost everyday telling me "You could be the next million dollar winner"( all you have to do is order a years worth of 15 magazines & buy overpriced junk and we will submit your name~~By the time of course that you get done paying for it all you have given them the million dollars). "You have won a 56" flat plasma TV screen" (all you have to do is sign your life away and pay the $400 shipping & handling and taxes and we will ship you your free TV--oh and by the way you will have to pay someone else to come in and hook it up and all that, we are not responsible for that. Enjoy your free TV). How about the lottery? Almost every state has one---I know here in NY there is enough gamblings and lotteries going around they could fill the Grand Canyon. The lottery makes it sound so good "A dollar and a dream" next thing you know it's "$5,000 later and a nightmare". Of course, didn't you know that they donate a certain percentage of their earnings to education? They do? How come all of these NY schools are in so much trouble, their budgets are being slashed drastically, teachers being laid off, students not passing state exams due to over crowding in the classrooms because the schools can not afford to build or add on to make more room or pay teachers? Hmmmm, the lottery must not be donating much. Every commercial on TV is about money "Send us your unwanted gold jewelry and we will give you money" Really? So if I send a whole bunch of real gold in the mail to you, you will give me money (US Postal Service charges by --weight) and I am so sure that you are not getting your money's worth.

Then comes the "I have to have it because the advertisements (on TV, radio, newspaper) tell me I have to have it, so I have to work a billion hours to raise 'x' amount of money to buy it so I can look better, feel stronger, blah blah blah blah blah" Which of course has us working to keep up with the Jones' (who are they anyway? They really have caused chaos--:)) It's incredible. You can now buy your processed food from  some entertainer endorsed program that tells you that you can lose an incredible amount of weight in a short time (what they don't tell you is that you will have to buy this food for the rest of your life? How else are you going to do it? Keep it off? Oh and don't worry you get your first week of food free--Yay Me?!?!?!? So you only pay $360 minus the fruits, veggies and dairy--because you have to buy them yourself---for 3 weeks of food--go figure)...

Lovers of money to reach unattainable goals set by a lost world who is in love with themselves.

What does the Word of God say about loving money?

'Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.' (Ecclesiastes 5:10) So in other words, you will never have enough money to buy all the things you want.Ever. Isn't it true? People are always looking to find ways to get more money to get more things?

'No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You can not serve both God and Money.' (WORD of our Lord) (Matthew 6:24) You can not love both. Think about it, while you are out striving to find ways to make more money your focus is off of the Lord and how about in the Bible the word Money in this Scripture is capitalized with a capital M? To me that means some kind of idol or God, something that has set itself up against our Lord. Obviously if Jesus is saying we can't serve Him and it, it is against our Lord.

How about the love of money in the Disciple Judas? Didn't his true colors shine through when he sold out Jesus for 30 silver coins? (Matthew 26:14-16)

In the Book of Luke 3:10-15 John the Baptist tells the tax collectors to be content with their pay! Wow! Be content with what the Lord has given you....Luke 16:13 also states as Matthew 6:24 says 'No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate on and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You can not serve both God and Money.' Again the capital M and Jesus stating again we can not serve two masters....Money can be a master over us...scary is it not?

One of the requirements for Overseers and Deacons in 1Timothy 3:3 states they can not be a lover of money.

Paul tells us, instructs us and corrects us in 1Timothy 6:6-10 "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." It's right there in the Bible--go read it for yourself---money causes issues, problems, destruction, wandering from the Lord....all for the love of money.

All these things that are using whatever means necessary to get our attention---to take our focus off of our LORD. They are coming for our souls, our lives, our eternity. Stay watchful Brethren. Stay away from money. God will give you everything you need at that moment. He has NEVER let me down. I have never been in need. I will leave you with some Scripture from the Bible that will bring you direction and correction if needed.

Hebrews 13: 5-6 'Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?'

Matthew 6:25-27 '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 important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 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? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?'

Matthew 7:7-8 'Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.' (7:9-11) Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in Heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him?'

All who follow the Lord need to be content with what they have and give up on making their careers and their bank accounts their gods. God will never leave you or forsake you if you have accepted Him and turned from your life of sin.

Helpful hint to help keep money in your pocket? Put the scratch offs down, stop giving the lotteries your money......and make sure you NEED something before you buy it.

Love in Christ