wealth

Evaluating your Soul

“What will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Matthew 16:26

This is the one of the questions being asked of people throughout the ages. For the most part people put the question out of their minds thinking perhaps that they will worry about it at another time or that it doesn’t matter. By His words and actions Jesus always provoked people to consider eternity and the question as to who He is. He even asked His disciples who they believed Him to be just before making the above statement (16:15).

What could be of such value that it was of more value than our eternal soul? Jesus gives two possible answers in Matthew chapter nineteen.

A wealthy young man in a place of authority came to Jesus and asked Him what he needed to do to obtain eternal life (Matthew 19:16). He wanted to exchange something for eternal life. He claimed to have kept all the commandments that relate to human relationships (v 20) but then Jesus asked him to abide by the commandments that relate to his relationship with God. To obtain eternal life the young man would need to forsake all that he currently valued, earthly treasure, and follow Jesus, heavenly treasure.

At the time the young man regarded his temporal wealth and position of more value than his relationship with God (v 22). Though he wanted eternal life he was not willing to exchange his wealth for it. There are many who want heaven but not Jesus and neither will they surrender control of their lives and possessions to Jesus. Jesus gave His life for us. Can we give less to Him (Romans 12:1-2)? Others may not wish to exchange human relationships for their soul. I have heard people say they would rather be in hell with friends than in heaven with Jesus. They have no idea of the enormity of what they are saying. There is nothing wrong with love for family and a desire to be with them. We should be very thankful when that is possible; but will we give family priority ahead of Jesus? He says, “Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms [employment] for My names sake, shall receive many times as much, and shall inherit eternal life” (19:29). Anything we put ahead of Jesus is an idol which will control our life. We must exchange that idol for Jesus in order to obtain eternal life. Eternal life is only found in Him (1 John 5:11-12).

Arguing with a Donkey

“The word that God puts in my mouth, that I must speak”

Numbers 22:38

Balaam was a prophet of God but was moved by the temptation to use that role to gain material wealth. Balak had promised him wealth if he would come and curse Israel. Balaam knew that God would always bless Israel in accord with the covenant He made with Abraham.

The lure of wealth warped Balaam’s thinking. But God had a purpose for Balaam. He met him along the way but only Balaam’s donkey could see the threat and refused to go on. Balaam’s temper rose so high that he didn’t think it at all odd that he was having an argument with a donkey. At last the Lord revealed Himself to Balaam and then he realised his foolishness. From that moment of meeting with the Lord Balaam was a changed man. No one can meet the Lord and not be changed. Either he will surrender to Him or become outspoken and violent against Him.

The professing church is currently being tested as to whether it will abide by God’s word and only speak the word that God has given. The outcome will be a clear division between those who are the Lord’s and those who profess to be but are not. Those who are not the Lord’s will take the world’s lead and refuse to pay the price of faithfulness to the word of the Lord.

Balaam was in a sticky situation humanly speaking. He would only speak as the Lord directed and that meant that he would not get any money. It also meant that his life was at risk. Those who truly are Christ’s will only speak in accordance with what the Lord has given them in the Bible even at risk of losing all material things or their lives.

Balaam had met the Lord and now understands the words that Jesus would later speak: “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mark 8:34-37)

There are many faithful Christians in the world today who are living this out. If we refuse to do so it dishonours the Lord Jesus Christ and those who endure persecution for His sake. Let us speak only that which God has given us and leave the outcome to Him.

Defining the Man

“Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses” Luke 12:15

Quite a few years ago we took my parents on a ferry trip to Fremantle from Perth. Someone was giving a kind of commentary which almost exclusively focused on who owned which mansion and how much it cost. That person was defining people by what they possessed. It is a sad thing when a person believes that their employment or their possessions define who they are.

In this parable of a wealthy but foolish man Jesus does not criticise the fact that he was rich but that his motivation in life was to possess “treasure for himself” (v 21). In pride he then spent some of what he had on providing greater capacity to keep what he had for his own pleasure. One does not have to have great wealth to have this heart motivation.

There are three errors in this man’s thinking. First, he believes that his ability to create wealth and accumulate wealth defines him. Secondly, he won’t live to spend his wealth. The third and biggest mistake is in believing that he is the sole reason for his ability to create and retain wealth and that it is for him.

What did he have that was not given to him? Yes, he had to take advantage of his environment and his talents but these were given to him by God. No one chooses where or when they will be born or who their parents will be. No one chooses their genetic makeup that may or may not grant mental and physical capacities as well as other inheritable traits.

Jesus goes on to teach that we have no need to be anxious about our earthly needs because God will provide for us. He gives the birds and flowers as examples of His gracious provision. Since our earthly life is so brief Jesus urges us to have our minds set on things above and lay up heavenly treasure. What is His logic? “It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (v 32).

Whether it is one’s employment or accumulated wealth, or lack thereof, a person is not defined by these things. Some people have taken Jesus at His word, “sell what you have and give alms: provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in heaven that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys.” (v 33).

A person is defined first by the fact that they are created in the image of God. Everything we think we possess is actually His and Jesus affirms that what He seeks are faithful stewards. The key error of the person in the parable is that he believed his wealth was his and for himself (v 15, 21).

Nipping At Our Heels

“Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live” Isaiah 38:1

In my teenage years I frequently and often worked in my neighbour’s dairy in school holidays and weekends. He had a black and white border collie dog named Rastus that had a particularly useful skill for rounding up the cows. At considerable risk he would nip the heels of a cow and then drop flat on the ground to avoid the inevitable hoof flashing over his head. For extra fun he would also have a swing on a cow’s tail. He lived to a ripe old age without ever being hit by a hoof. King Hezekiah had a dog nipping at his heels as well, a dog called pride.

The apostle Paul would later write, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain … I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you” (Philippians 1:21-23). Paul’s desire was to be with the One he loved but he was willing to postpone that joy for the sake of the mission Jesus had given him. Let us compare that with King Hezekiah.

When Hezekiah was told of his impending death he went to the Lord asking for more time. We can discern his motive by his prayer. It was quite different to Paul’s desire. His request was based on his earthly position. He wanted to enjoy and boast of the earthly blessings God had given him in preference to the joy of actually being with the Lord. There is no suggestion that he wanted to remain for the sake of God’s will or God’s people.

This becomes even more obvious when the messengers from Babylon came to visit. He showed them “the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armoury – all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them” (Isaiah 39:2). The dog named pride was nipping at his heels guiding him to a gate called “Stumbling” and he did not resist it. He boasted as if he had obtained all he enjoyed by his own effort. Pride will dog us all of our earthly lives so we need to learn how to recognise it and make our resistance effective.

We need to regularly check our motives as to whether we love Jesus Christ or just the blessings He gives. Hezekiah loved the worldly blessings in preference to the Giver of the blessings. Consequently he desired a longer life on earth absent from the Lord. In the end he lost it all and all the good he had previously done for Israel unravelled after he died.

What if the Lord should say these words to you today? As we consider our response we will discover whether it really is Jesus we love or whether it is just the blessings He gives. Will you respond like Paul or like Hezekiah? When it is Jesus we love we will readily receive His command to come home and ask for no delay. His timing will be perfect.

Seeing the Eternal

“We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but things which are not seen are eternal” 2 Corinthians 4:18

In a world that has gone haywire and is governed by the spirit of antichrist (1 John 2:18) it is possible that we might get our eyes on wrong things which will cause us to lose heart. Paul is writing to a church living in an environment not that different to the one in which we live. The Roman world and the religious world of Israel were hostile to the Gospel of Christ. Paul had been the lead persecutor until he met the risen Jesus Christ.

In verse sixteen he writes, “Do not lose heart.” The Christians were suffering affliction at the hands of the ungodly but Paul writes encouraging them to keep their eyes on the things that really matter, on things eternal. The book of Ecclesiastes is written from the perspective of one who sought meaning in temporal things but concluded that such was futile. Only when he looked at eternal things did life have meaning and hope.

People who are trying to save this world will eventually be greatly disappointed. Because of sin the world will pass away. All the ambitions of men that drive them to labour and war with one another over wealth and power will prove futile. The very things they fight for are temporal and put them in opposition to God and make them blind to things eternal.

Paul does not shy away from the fact that it will appear that Jesus Christ and His people are on the losing end but that is only when we lose focus of the end. The Psalmist wrote it this way, “When I thought how to understand this it was too painful for me – until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood their end” (Psalm 73:16-17). The sanctuary is the place where we meet intimately with the Lord. Like the psalmist, when we are in the Lord’s presence we will understand the end of His enemies.

It may seem that we are enduring this ungodly world for too long but relatively speaking it is but a moment compared with the “far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (v 17) that we will experience forever when we are with the Lord.

We remain in the world to be salt and light and to make disciples until He deems it time to bring us home. Let us keep our eyes on things eternal; keep our expectations on things eternal; keep our prayers and hopes for our loved ones on things eternal. All that is seen is passing away so let us not lose heart giving our affections to them. Paul wrote, “Seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind [affections] on things above not on things of the earth” (Colossians 3:1-2). If we do as Paul has written we will not lose heart but walk with Jesus full of joy and peace.

The Truth Exchanged for a Lie

“It was too painful for me until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood their end” Psalm 73:16b-17

The writer of this Psalm noted the prosperity of people who gave no thought to their Creator; the One who gives them life and provides their sustenance in gracious abundance. He observes that they are full of pride and count pride in themselves as a blessing (v 6), they oppress others (v 8) and boast in wickedness and blaspheme against God (v 9). They are at ease in the earthly riches (v 12) that God has provided for them.

The psalmist then asks himself what the advantage was of him living a righteous life in which God has frequently chastised him (v 13) when the ungodly appear to suffer no chastisement (cf. Hebrews 12:5-8).

We live in such a world as the psalmist observed. There are many who deny God’s existence and are proud in themselves for their material success. Such blessings were meant to turn their hearts in thankfulness for God’s grace. Instead they boast that they have done it by their own ability and strength.

Those who walk with the Lord Jesus Christ do suffer at the hands of the ungodly. Many have their earthly lives ended prematurely at the hands of the ungodly. All Christians will suffer some form of persecution and oppression.

The psalmist then records that as he entered the sanctuary and bowed before the Lord praying about these matters, the Lord reminded him of the destiny of the ungodly.

The world is still going blindly on in unbelief and instead of receiving the truth the truth is suppressed. By God’s grace there are still many people turning to the Lord Jesus daily but that is against the tide of ungodliness. We live in an age of people “who [have] exchanged the truth of God for the lie and worshipped and served the creature [man] rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25).

As he waited before the Lord the psalmist realised that those people who have rejected God and refuse to have a change of heart have no expectation other than the wrath of God. He understood that such people are in dire need of mercy and forgiveness and that it was he who was in the most blessed state.

Jesus related an account of a certain rich man and a beggar named Lazarus to give us understanding when we observe these things (Luke 16:19-31). The most necessary thing for people is to hear and believe God’s word. Jesus said, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead” (Luke 16:31). At Easter we give special attention to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is another opportunity God has given us to share the truth with family, friends and acquaintances.

In 100 Years

“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?” Matthew 16:25, 26

We make many, many choices every day but rarely do we take a good look at the basis on which we make them. Many choices may seem to have little consequence but that may be to underestimate the effect that a choice may have in the long run and on other people.

Paul writes that anything that our sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the glory we will experience in Jesus Christ (Romans 8:18). Earthly things are passing away and all that will remain is that which is eternal. The two are so far apart as not to be worthy of comparison.

In the passage above Jesus affirms that worldly treasure is only for a moment but eternal treasure is forever. It is an absurdity for a person to disregard an eternal possession (Ephesians 1:11, 14, 18) for one that will die with our bodies.

King David did make a comparison in Psalm 37 but as we read the Psalm it becomes quite evident that he realises there is no comparison. Those who choose ungodliness will lose everything for which they laboured but those who trust the Lord (v 3), delight in the Lord (v 4), commit their way to the Lord (v 5), rest in the Lord (v 7) and wait on the Lord (vv 9, 34) will have an eternal inheritance (v 18). The two destinies are not worthy of comparison.

There is no relationship that is worthy of comparison with that which we have with Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “If any one comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26). Elsewhere we are commanded to love others especially our parents, spouse and children but what He is saying to us in this passage is that the love we have for them is not worthy to be compared with the love we have for Him. The reason for the disparity is who He is relative to whom our family members are.

When we make our myriad of choices during the course of the day it will be helpful to us to always have in the back of our minds whether we are choosing for the short term or eternity. We might ask ourselves, “What will it matter in 100 years? What will be the eternal consequence of that choice?” That might help us in the decision process.