Jesus on Money
About this series
Jesus was God-in-flesh. He was (and is) the purest, most loving and truth-filled human being the world has ever known. And yet what he taught, how he lived and the kingdom he inaugurated directly confronted the human culture in which he spent his years on earth. He was truly counter-cultural. And he is no less counter-cultural in every part of the world today.
To follow Jesus is to embark on a lifelong journey of counter-cultural transformation in which we can expect that being a disciple will lead us towards challenge, temptation and costly decisions at every turn. It’s to this that he calls every single person who follows him.
It’s a lifestyle:
That requires obedience to him above all else.
That will lead us into conflict with the world, the flesh and the devil.
That witnesses to the world of his greatness.
The goal of the first series this year - Just Jesus - was to spend time specifically focussed on the person and work of Jesus. And the goal this time is again to look at Jesus - how he was (and is) counter-cultural. So we’ll be speaking about Jesus - showing how his teaching and actions were counter-cultural in his day and then applying it to our day. We’ll be asking how we submit to his wordScripture: Matthew 16:21-27; cf Matthew 8:18-22, 10:37-39, Luke 14:25-35
About this talk
Matthew 6:19-24
Jesus spoke frequently about the place of money, wealth and treasure. He applauded the faith of a widow who gave her last resources into the offering in the temple; he called the rich ruler to “sell all that you have and distribute to the poor”; he said we should pay our taxes (even to the oppressive Roman regime!); he warned people that it’s foolish to store up treasure for ourselves, while not being rich towards God. And at the end of this passage Jesus puts it very clearly: “You cannot serve both God and Money.” Why? Simply because, “no one can serve two masters.” Our wholehearted allegiance to one will mean we cannot possibly have the same allegiance to the other.
There’s no question that Jesus’ teaching on money, possessions and comfort is hugely challenging to the selfish instincts in every person. But Jesus gives good reason for serving God rather than Money - in contrast to the temporary, insecure nature of “treasures on earth,” Jesus commends the pursuit of “treasures in heaven” because they are eternal and secure. At the core, the question of who we will serve - God or Money - is a heart issue: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus is never simply challenging people to modify their behaviour so as to become more moral; rather he wants hearts that are God-first, focussed on eternal, rather than earthly, treasure.
In Jesus’ day:
Whether Jesus has in mind the religious hypocrites he’s just been talking about (vs 1-18) or the secular, pagan people who he will soon refer to (v 32) is not clear. In Jewish thinking, the blessed life was believed to be the one that was healthy and wealthy, very much like it is in our day. The obedient life was surely evidenced by God’s physical and material blessing (see the Old Testament promises). And in the rest of pagan society, the natural desire for comfort and to trust in one’s resources could equally be in view. Either way, Jesus warned people not to calculate things materially. Moths, vermin and thieves were very real problems in Jesus’ day!
In our day:
Money, possessions and material comfort have undoubtedly become an idol in our day. While many do still live in poverty, it is true that the higher living standards generally become, the more we desire and feel we are entitled to. We’re all chasing that bit more. This idol, just like any other, leads us to trust in and find joy and meaning in the measure of our material assets rather than in God. Our challenges may come less from moths, vermin and thieves, but other ‘enemies’ equally mean that our earthly resources are insecure - inflation, scams, our own greed.
What is “treasure in heaven?” Certainly not any sort of good works by which we accumulate heavenly merit. Stott argues that Jesus likely means, ‘anything on earth whose effects last for eternity,’ such as growth in Christlike character, introducing others to Jesus, growing in love for God and others. What Jesus is certainly commending is an eternal perspective rather than a temporal one. God’s people are counter-cultural because they’ve made their choice to set their hearts and minds on the things of God, “where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
Audio only
