KEEPING OUR LIVES FREE FROM THE LOVE OF MONEY

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."  (6)  So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

To really understand what God is dealing with us here in this passage, let’s take a look at what the writer tells the Hebrew Christians in chapter 12.  I’ll just highlight two of them:

Hebrews 12:1-2  Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  (2)  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

          We are not part of the “rat race” of the world.  (A rat race is an endless, self-defeating, or pointless pursuit. The phrase equates humans to rats attempting to earn a reward such as cheese, in vain. It may also refer to a competitive struggle to get ahead financially or routinely.)

          Our race is the “race of faith”, as Hebrews 12 shows us.  That’s why we fix our eyes on Jesus, who is the author and perfecter of our faith.

Hebrews 12:12-14  Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.  (13)  Make level paths for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.  (14)  Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 

          Our main concern in life is not riches, or material things.  It is holiness.  It is when we are making every effort to be holy that we recognize the dangers of money and material things.

Then, together with so many other teachings in chapter 12 and 13, we have this:

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."  (6)  So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

This passage is full of important warnings for a Christian in this world.

1.  We are to KEEP OUR LIVES FROM THE LOVE OF MONEY.

          All over Scripture God has made clear that it is not money that is evil, because we all need money.  It is the LOVE of money.  When we crossover from needing money to loving money that is when it becomes a danger to our Christian life.

2.  We are to be CONTENT WITH WHAT WE HAVE.

          Contentment is something that is almost absent in the mentality of the world today.  Everyone wants more.  We look down on the simple life.

          On the other hand, contentment is something that is found in the heart of every true believer.  It is an attitude of life that God works in the heart of a man, that is based on his understanding of who his God is.

Which bring us to the next point…

3.  We trust in WHO OUR GOD IS, AND WHAT HE PROMISED

The foundational truth in the heart of a Christian is in what God has said, His word.  In this verse the writer quotes "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

A Christian believes, in his heart, that his God will never leave him or forsake him.  NEVER.  It does not matter what circumstance we may be in…God will always be there.

(6)  So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

          And so we “SAY” with confidence… notice what comes out of a believer’s mouth, what words he speaks - THE LORD IS MY HELPER…I WILL NOT BE AFRAID…WHAT CAN MAN DO TO ME

          This is why a Christian doesn’t grumble or complain, why we don’t blame others or slander others when we are financially affected.  The words a Christian speaks are words that reflect what he or she actually believes about his or her God.

          We say with confidence:

·         The Lord is my helper, not my employer, not my business, not the government.  That’s why we cry out to Him, not to man.

·         I will not be afraid.  “No matter what this world throws to me, I will trust in God”

·         What can man do to me?  He can oppress me, withhold what is truly mine, give me less than I should get.  Man can do nothing.  But he cannot affect my faith in my God.  My heart will remain steadfast.

Hebrews 13:8  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

We can be content with that...all the way up to eternity!