Money, Money, Money - [1 Timothy 6:17-19]

I'd like to ask you to open your Bibles to 1

Timothy chapter 6. Interesting, last week one man asked me if I've been preaching through 1

Timothy. It won't embarrass him. I'm just like, oh yeah, for about five years now.

Finger on the pulse. Okay, what is the

American Dream? You know, I know this will date me, but when I grew up, the

American Dream was 2 .2 kids, 3 .1 cars, a house, a white picket fence.

I have all those things except for the 3 .1 cars. So we made up for it with dogs.

Today's American Dream is a little bit different, I think. I mean, yeah, that's so 1990s, the old 2 .2.

I think today's American Dream is more like a reality show, a few corporate sponsors, and a couple of stints in rehab so you can get a better reality show.

But there's one reality show that starts by asking this question. What if you could have it all?

What if you could have it all? And of course, then what goes onto the screen?

Gigantic skyscrapers with one name on them. A personal jet with a name emblazoned on the side.

A helicopter lands with the name emblazoned on the side. The man gets out wearing his own personal line of clothing.

Takes a swig from his own line of bottled water. This is today's

American Dream. He's got it all. Money, fame, power, and a

TV show. He's got it all. I'd like to restore just a little bit of sanity this morning as we look at 1

Timothy 6. Just to kind of catch you up, in case you don't have your finger around the pulse.

Imagine this. What if Timothy, what if Paul had just said to him,

Hey Timothy, I want you to go down to the church at Ephesus and just kind of run it. Love, Paul.

End of story. Timothy probably would have been like, okay, now what? What do

I do now? How do you expect me to handle the different situations? But that's not what happened.

In fact, the apostle gave Timothy specific instructions on how to lead a church, what the church should look like, and how to handle different groups within the church.

In fact, beginning in chapter 5, Paul instructed Timothy on how to deal with different groups in the church.

How politically incorrect of him, but older and younger men, older and younger women, widows, elders, slaves, false teachers.

And every one of these groups would be difficult for him.

Everyone would have their own challenges. And this morning's group that we're going to talk about is no different.

It's challenging. Now in our last message, Paul stopped. Paul stopped it in his outline to basically give

Timothy a personal exhortation. And then he just burst out in praise to God.

But this morning we're going to see that he turns his attention to a fairly unusual group, a group that doesn't get a lot of attention in scripture, and that is rich Christians.

And there are reasons for all of us to listen this morning, even if you're not rich, and we'll get to that in a minute.

Let me read the text. 1 Timothy chapter 6, verses 17 through 19.

As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty.

I just like that word. Charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.

They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

Now this morning I want to draw your attention to five financial facts drawn from the text, so that you will view your earthly treasure, no matter how vast or how small it might be, as what it is, a gift from God to be administered properly.

Now some of you might say, well I don't have to listen, I'm not rich. And as I look down the row, nobody in my row is rich either.

Well first I would say, you don't know what tomorrow brings. There's always hope, right?

Second, these are universally applicable principles. No matter where you are on the wealth -poverty continuum, no matter where you slot in on the line, these principles apply to you.

Our first financial fact. Our first, I don't know, monetary nuggets.

I don't know how many different things I want to come up with, but our first financial fact. Money, and I should get amens on this, money does not make you better.

Money does not make you a better person. Look at verse 17. As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty.

I said I like that word, I just like it because nobody uses it. I think it's interesting that we have a new translation as a word, and they use a word like that, because that's not typically found in our conversation.

He says, in this present age, in this now age, literally, not to be haughty, it means to be arrogant or prideful.

Imagine saying that to your kids. Don't be so haughty. Sounds like naughty, so I guess it might work.

But it's just not a word that we typically use. Well, why would Paul have to say, listen, tell the rich people in the church, by the way, tell the rich people in the church not to be arrogant, not to be prideful, not to think more of themselves than they should.

Well, isn't it kind of natural for a rich person to think of themselves as being more than you, as being better than you?

I mean, think about it. They live in a better part of town. They have a better car.

They live a better lifestyle. When you go home, I would invite you to look up your

TV listings and see if you can find this TV show, Lifestyles of the Poor and Anonymous. I don't think that would get very good ratings.

Now, it's interesting what Paul does not say. And I'm going to be paraphrasing, first of all, a couple of scriptures.

And actually, this first part comes right out of the teaching of the Lord. He doesn't say, take all you have and sell it to the poor.

He doesn't say that to rich people. He doesn't say, sell your home and give the proceeds to the church, which is what the early church was doing in Acts chapter 4.

And he doesn't say, wealth is a sin. There are a lot of implications to this, but one of them, think of this.

If this whole idea of, you know, I have to eschew riches, that means put them up.

I have to ignore them. Eschew. I'm using eschew and hottie in the same sermon. It doesn't mean that I have to go live in,

I can't go live in a nunnery. It doesn't mean I have to go live in some kind of, whatever those people, those monks, monkery.

Yeah, I have to go live in a monkery. Monastery, that's the right word.

I knew it would come to me. This whole idea that to be a Christian means you take a vow of poverty is wrong.

It's just as wrong to think that as it is to say, well, if I'm a Christian, God wants me to be monetarily wealthy.

Now, our society has put a huge value on what? On being young, on being attractive and being rich.

And there's a large measure of people that think, you know, if you've got those three things, you are living the dream. Paul's not interested in those things.

He says, listen, for those rich people, just tell them not to be arrogant. Again, they would have to be

Christians. What good would it do to say, hey, Paul, or Paul to Timothy, Timothy, go tell those rich unbelievers not to be so haughty.

That would miss the whole point. If rich unbelievers are acting like rich unbelievers, why would anybody be shocked?

Unbelievers act like unbelievers. But in the ancient world and in ours, there's a tendency by the rich to think that they are really smarter, better.

Proverbs 14 verse 20 says this, the poor is disliked even by his neighbor, but the rich has many friends.

Isn't that true? Rich people have all kinds of friends. Why? A lot of times because those rich people want something.

Now, does money tend to make people arrogant? Again, listen to Proverbs. Proverbs 18 verse 23.

The poor use entreaties. In other words, they beg or they ask nicely. But the rich answer roughly.

They don't have to be nice. They're rich. So Timothy is to admonish, to charge, to command the rich, those who have a lot of material wealth, to not let it go to their heads.

To not think more of themselves than they should. So financial fact number one, money does not make you better.

Financial fact number two, money is fleeting. Money is fleeting.

Look at verse 17 again. Nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches.

The idea of set their hopes is to place their hope, their confidence entirely on wealth and to leave it there.

It's like, let it all ride. I'm all in on my riches. Paul says they shouldn't think about it like that.

Think about it this way. If life itself is a vapor, if you don't even have your next breath guaranteed to you, then why would you think, you know,

I'm going to put all my hope in riches? Because guess what? We all know this. Even unbelievers know this, that when you die, you don't get to take it with you.

It stays here. And if a rich Christian has invested himself entirely on his riches, he is in a bad situation.

In fact, one would even wonder if he is a Christian. We'll see more of that thought developed. When you die, your money stays behind.

Your soul goes forward and you have to give an account for that. And all those riches aren't going to do you any good at all.

The uncertainty of riches should be evident. We see it all the time. A few historical examples.

The Weimar Republic. The German kind of interim between when they had a

Kaiser and then when Hitler eventually took power. Listen to this. They went through their worst inflation in 1923.

Now in 1922, the highest denomination was the 50 ,000 mark, like a $50 ,000 bill.

The next year, the highest denomination, and I had to kind of count all the zeros, the highest denomination was, listen to this, we talk about trillions these days, how about this, the 100 quadrillion mark.

That's inflation. In fact, the inflation rate was, I don't even know if I can get this right here.

Well, let me just give you one more fact here. In December 1923, the exchange rate for the mark to the

German was four quadrillion, 200 trillion marks to the

U .S. dollar. You go there with a dollar, you come out with a whole wallet full of marks.

That's a pretty good deal. But it was so bad, the inflation rate was so bad, and only those of you with a calculator, any

WPI students can figure this out, 3 .25 times 10 to the 6th percent per month.

That's a lot of inflation. It was so bad, let me just put it in basic, something that we can all grasp, the price of bread was doubling every two days.

Today, two dollars, Tuesday, four dollars, etc., etc., etc. So imagine being a millionaire in Germany in 1922 and saying, you know what,

I'm all in on my riches. 1923, you're broke, even if you spent no money.

Uncertainty of riches. You know, over the past few years, I think we've seen a few axioms, a few certainties of life just kind of turned upside down.

Who would have thought that six years ago, buying a house was a horrible investment? I didn't.

I didn't. That's just not, that's not something you thought about.

Price of houses always goes up. Well, not necessarily. But we can name example after example.

I think it was, one of the countries in Central Africa a few years ago had 4 ,000 % inflation.

There are a lot of examples like that, and yet we continue to talk about, what do you hear all the time on TV, on these advertisements and on TV shows and on radio shows?

How about this whole idea of financial security? What in the world is financial security? What can you possibly have?

You know, gold's never been worth zero, okay, but it's been worth a lot less than it is now. There is no certainty in riches other than the fact that those things will fluctuate.

Things will go up and down. If your hope is in riches, you have no security at all.

Our third financial fact, money is from God. Look at verse 17 again.

Not to kind of rest your hopes on money, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.

This is really the central thing that we need to grasp here this morning. The Greek here is so clear because there's a marked contrast.

This little word, but, I like to draw attention to this when it happens. This is a very strong contrast.

You know, sometimes we just kind of think, well, on the one hand, but on the other hand, this is a big contrast.

He wants us to understand that all the hope that we have in riches, in wealth and everything, that is quite the opposite of what we should have.

All our hope needs to be on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. As I said, when you leave the earth, your money doesn't go with you.

What does go with you? Your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Money is uncertain.

God is certain. He never changes. Money is amoral. It's neither good nor evil, although people try to paint it as evil or good.

But God is perfectly good and holy intrinsically. It's who he is.

But wait, there's more. Look again at the text.

Who richly provides. He provides, it means to grant or give. Well, why would it be that God would grant?

You know, it sounds like God's just kind of handing things out. Well, he is. How's that possible?

You might say, well, what does the Bible say? Psalm 24, the earth is the Lord's and all it contains.

Not part of it. All it contains. Well, this is my money. No, it's not.

What do you have that you did not receive? You have nothing that God has not given you.

Look again at verse 17. God grants us believers literally everything richly.

God owns the fullness of the earth, and this same God grants you everything richly.

Now, I'm here to tell you this morning, that's a blessing. If you have the right mindset, if you just know that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills, he has adopted you into his family.

I think that maybe gives us a suggestion or two about worry. Well, I don't know how this is going to happen.

I don't know how that's going to happen. I don't either. Here's what I do know. I know this for a fact.

Do not be anxious for your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.

Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air.

They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them.

Are you not of more value than they? Are the sons and daughters of God not more valuable to him than birds?

Now, again, let's get back to our text. That was obviously from Matthew chapter 6, the words of the

Lord there. In addressing the rich this way, not to rely on their financial resources, but on a

God who grants, on a granting God, on a giving God, what's his point? Well, this, that everything the rich have ultimately is from God.

So a rich person sitting here, I mean, some of us might acknowledge that, but a rich person here might say to himself, well, wait a minute.

I worked hard. I took risks. I invested. It was my capital that was at risk, and it was my idea, and it was my sweat, and I was putting 18 hours a day, seven days a week, and you don't understand.

And I would just go back to the beginning. Don't be so haughty.

Don't be so arrogant. I, I, I, me, me, me. Better to say what?

If the Lord wills, because the Lord has willed these things for you. The Lord has granted these things to you.

And this is a universally applicable principle. Whether you are rich or poor, everything that you have is a direct gift from God.

Whether you own your house, whether you rent your house, whether you're behind on your mortgage, wherever you are financially, the

Lord has provided for you and brought you to where you are. Whether you're married or single, God has put you there.

Whether you have children or don't have children, whether you are rich or poor, if every spiritual blessing is from the

Lord, why would you doubt that every physical, material, financial blessing is also from Him?

One last note, look at that word to enjoy. That idea to enjoy. God grants us with everything richly with the very purpose that we would enjoy what

He has given to us. And again, in the context, we ought to be clear that it is not a sin to be rich.

But you know, when we read, it's interesting because we read Acts chapter 12 and what happens to Herod when he fails to acknowledge

God. The people say, it's not the voice of a man, but of a

God. And God says, I'm not sharing my glory with Herod. And since Herod won't point to me, he's done.

The rich are like that too. The uncertainty of riches. You could say me, me, me,

I, I, I, I. But the day you fail to acknowledge

God is the day you invite Him to take it from you. Please take it all. We need to acknowledge that God is the source of all that we have.

Number four. Fourth financial fact. Money represents an opportunity to serve.

What do people think about that? Money represents an opportunity to serve.

I know that there are people at this church who delight in doing this. Let's look at verse 18. They are talking again about the rich.

They are to do good. To be rich in good works. To be generous and ready to share. Well, it's pretty plain if we think about it in focus.

If we think about it in context, we just learned that God is the source of all that we have.

And so now we can see that God has a purpose for rich Christians. And it's not so they can just feel rich and sit on their money and go, well, we're rich, we don't have any worries.

They are to do good. It's one word. It's a present active infinitive emphasizing its ongoing nature over and over and over again.

It means to do that which benefits others. To confer benefits on others.

God has blessed rich Christians with an abundance. Why? So they can bless others.

Let's look at three kind of outworkings of that. First, they are to be rich in good works, our text says.

As with they are to do good. To be rich is a present active infinitive carrying forward the previous command and it means it's ongoing.

And listen to this word. It means to be plentifully supplied with something. To be rich. So they're rich.

They have an abundance of material wealth and they are to be rich, they are to have an abundance of good works.

And these good works aren't just things that they decide. You know, there have been many Americans throughout history who have kind of given their money away.

Andrew Carnegie. There are others who pledged to do that. You know, Bill Gates when he dies.

You know, and all these other people give away their money and you know, by the world standards, that would be good.

People would see that as good, but this is not good, good works by some subjective standards, something that we would say, oh, that's good.

That's nice. It's by God's perfect and holy standard. One man said this, wealth must be seen as a divine stewardship and an opportunity to second the kingdom of God.

That's the kind of good work that's in mind here. It's something that furthers gospel ministry.

Second, they are to be generous. Literally means to be ready to impart.

Some say it this way, you know, to hold things with an open hand. Listen what one man said it this way, to be persons who impart their possessions in a pleasing fashion, pleasing to the

Lord, of course. Well, when you know the source of all things, when you know that everything that you have is a stewardship from God, when you acknowledge that, when you know that he has given you these riches so that you can be rich in good works, the idea of being generous naturally follows.

I want you to keep your fingers in 1 Timothy 6 and just turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 9.

2 Corinthians chapter 9, I'm going to read verses 6 to 11. Paul writing in the

Corinthian church says this, the point is this, whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

Listen to verse 7, each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver, and God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.

As it is written, he has, talking about God, he has distributed freely, he has given to the poor, his righteousness endures forever.

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

Interesting, he doesn't talk about increasing the harvest of your business, increasing the harvest of your financial means, he talks about your righteousness.

This is all about using things properly. Look at verse 11, you'll be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.

That's the purpose of our stewardship of our money. Now, just staying here for a moment, a word just about giving, a few points that I would just draw out of this, it should be planned, not spur of the moment, so look at verse 7, each one must give as he has decided in his heart, to decide is to reach a decision beforehand, not as the offering plate is coming around, but beforehand, and that idea to reach a decision or to decide there, as he has decided is perfect tense, meaning you make a decision once that you are going to please the

Lord in terms of your giving, and you do that on a continual basis. It has ongoing effects.

Now, some people reluctantly decide how much they will give, and to you

I just say don't do that. Why? Because God loves a cheerful giver.

Cheerful is very simple. It means the opposite of an attitude suggesting being under duress. It means to do so with gladness, wholeheartedness.

All giving should be done with a heart that is filled with gratitude, not one where you think, well,

I have to because there's a gun to my head. I once knew a man that,

I mean, it's fascinating to me the way people perceive things. I once knew a man who left the former church we were at.

He was gone for a couple of years, and when he came back, I asked him, I said, where did you go? He said, well, you know, people here were always looking over my shoulder trying to get a look at my checkbook.

I said, that's funny because I've been here for years and nobody's ever asked me about my giving. And I said, on the other hand, when

I was in another church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter -day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church, which I grew up in, every single year you had to meet with a bishop who's like the pastor and sit across the table from him and tell him whether you were a full tithe payer or not.

God loves a cheerful giver as long as it's a full 10 % of your pre -tax income. The verse doesn't say that.

Looking at verse 11 there in 2 Corinthians. Generous, that word there, is actually personal integrity expressed in word or action.

So the idea of being generous would be to, out of a sense of this is what is right.

This is what I know I ought to be doing. You have no ulterior motive.

You're not giving to get. You're not giving to somehow gain approval of someone.

I mean, maybe the worst thing anybody could do is just kind of go, you know, I understand the church has a need.

Here's the check. We don't do that. It's between you and the

Lord. So often I think the tendency is to think of giving as an obligation like we have to give.

Or like when we go to do a budget, for those of you who do a budget, you know, it's kind of like the last thing on our list.

We have rent, we have food, we have movies, we have Starbucks, we have...

No, this isn't my budget. And then the last, you know, okay, what's left?

We're at negative $110. And I haven't paid my credit cards.

That's not cheerful giving. That's just a wrong view of where your resources come from.

And if you hear this morning, and your life is a financial mess, if it's so bad that you don't want to tell anyone,

I would urge you to remember who it is that gives you richly, who has granted you richly, who provides you with everything to enjoy.

And to recognize that whatever your financial situation is, rich, poor, or somewhere in between, the

Lord has richly provided everything for you to enjoy. Everything is from Him.

Let's go back to 1 Timothy. Again, I think it's just so important to grasp that everything comes from the

Lord. If we all live in light of that, we will look at everything we do differently.

Third reason that the Lord gives the rich so abundantly so that they are, the text tells us, ready to share.

This isn't one of the moments where I'm going to ask you to turn to your neighbor and say, be ready to share.

I hate that. I used to listen to a guy on the radio who would say, turn to your neighbor and say, and I'm going, if I was in that church,

I'd get up and run. I don't know about you, but I always like to delude myself that if I was rich,

I would just start solving problems for people. You know, a good brother or sister,

I like that term, Bruce Bennett gave it to me, a good brother or sister needs a car, boom,

I would make that happen. Some church has an opportunity to buy a building, I'm the guy.

I just write him a check, mail it, I don't need any notice or anything like that. It's all stealth mode. I'm not going to take any credit because you know it's all the

Lord. It's easy to imagine how I would do that, you know, if I suddenly had a financial windfall.

I got a couple other priorities. First, I need to take care of, first I'd move my mom here from Colorado, then

I'd pay off my house, finish the basement, put an indoor pool in, buy a couple of SUVs.

Of course, I've got a couple of grandkids now, they need to go to college, got to set that up. And I'd want my kids to live close, so I'd probably buy them houses in the neighborhood.

But after that, I would be totally free with my money. I would give and give and give.

And I know what some of you are thinking right now, but, Steve, what about me? Where do I fit in that? And don't worry,

I'll get to you right after we put on the farmer's porch on the house. My wife really wants that. And then we got a sleeper sofa and we need to re -carpet.

But, we're getting there. It brings up a serious point, though.

I think it's a little bit... Being rich, this is going to sound funny when I say this, but it's kind of a curse. In fact,

I almost think of it as being the second worst curse that you could have. And I've said before that I think the worst curse anyone could have would be to have the gift of healing.

If you could actually heal, not these fake, phony guys on TV, or Friday night at the whatever.

But if you actually have the power to heal, because people would hunt you down. And I think that being rich isn't that much different.

I think people will hunt you down, because so many have needs. So it is a burden.

But it's one that needs to be handled well. And that's the point. Timothy is to charge the rich to be ready to share.

And it's interesting, because this word is related to the word koinonia, or fellowship.

Listen to the word. See if I can say it. Koinonikus. Koinonikus. Sounds a lot like koinonia.

And it has the idea of fellowship or communication, and it means financial sharing or communication.

Well, what's the definition of communication? Communication is not like a sermon.

It's not just me speaking. It's one person speaking and another person responding. So the idea of financial communication is someone makes a need known, and then someone responds to that need.

That would be financial communication. So the picture here is of a rich man. If he is ready to share, the picture is of him finding out what the need is, and then him making the arrangements to fulfill that need.

That would be a financial communication. He's not mindlessly throwing money out the window, but eagerly looking for ways to meet the needs of the body of Christ.

Sharing what the Lord has blessed you with to others in need is spiritual service.

It is spiritual service. It's the right thing to do, first of all, but it's also spiritual service.

How better to serve the body than to say, you know what, I know that there are needs here, and I'm going to meet those needs, and I have the ability to do it.

And no, I'm not saying I do. Our four financial facts so far.

Money does not make you better. Second, money is fleeting. It's transitory. It's ephemeral.

It goes up, it goes down. You can't rest in riches. Third, money is from God. Everything is from God.

I mean, how long can we go on about that? Salvation is of the Lord. Everything we have is from the Lord. Fourth, money represents the opportunity to serve, to communicate financially.

And our fifth financial fact, money represents opportunity for eternal reward.

Money represents opportunity for eternal reward. Look at verse 19. Thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future.

Now what happens when the rich, when you, if you're rich, if you're not rich, when you serve others with your resources, when you meet their needs, it says here you're storing up treasure.

Now it's a paradox, isn't it? You can't take your money with you, but if you communicate it away, if you meet the needs of people in the body of Christ, you get eternal credit for it.

You can't take it with you, but you get credit for it. Keep it, lose it, give it away, and keep it forever.

What did Jesus say? He who keeps his life will lose it, but he who loses it for my sake.

It's the same idea. Keep your wealth, you'll lose it. Give it away, you'll keep it forever.

Wealth in this world is fleeting, but there is a way to store up for the next life to give it away.

That word foundation in the Greek, a good foundation, means the basis for something taking place or coming into being.

It's not like a base or whatever, but it kind of... Well, let me just keep moving on.

How so? Well, how does a rich person who is willing to share his needs, how does that serve as a foundation?

In a few ways. Because it gives evidence of a transformed heart. Our natural inclination is to do what?

To be safe with our money, to keep it. You know, if I have a million, I want two million. Why? Because then

I'll really feel safe. And then when I have two million, I want four million. Why? Because then I'll really have security. That's what we do.

That's our natural thinking. But evidence of a transformed heart is, look,

I know this is all from the Lord anyway. I'm going to meet the needs of his people, and I'm going to keep trusting him to keep supplying me.

Because that's what he does. I think maybe the most famous example, and I don't want you to turn there this morning, but the issue with riches.

After the rich young ruler says, Master, what must I do to go into heaven? Jesus says, what?

Sell all you have and give it to the poor. And then the young man walks away completely defeated.

Jesus tells the disciples in Matthew 19, 24, listen. Again, I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter into the kingdom of God.

And I don't want to hear about, you know, it was a camel, and they had to get down on their knees, and all the bags, and how it was difficult, and all that.

His point was, literal eye of a needle, literal camel, it's difficult.

Why? Because being rich is a burden. And some of you are sitting there this morning, you're saying, burden me,

Lord, burden me. But it's no small thing, or the

Lord would not have said, it is a burden to entering into heaven. It's an encumbrance, it's an obstacle, it's a problem.

It's not easy for rich people to get into heaven. Why? Because when you're rich, the Tennessee is me, me, me,

I, I, I. I did it, I'm going to hold on to it. It's mine, mine, mine, mine, mine. Money, money, money.

You put your name on everything. In case anybody was wondering whose helicopter that is, now they know.

The rich easily fall prey to greed. I mean, it's kind of the opposite of what we would think. We would think if you're wealthy, you wouldn't be greedy, but it's like I said, you just want more, and more, and more.

Because they don't view wealth rightly. They don't view it as coming from God. But any of you, no matter how much or how little you have, can lose sight of the importance of seeing money as a stewardship, a trust.

God gives you the means to make money, and then he charges you to do what is right with whatever he grants you.

The more you have, the more responsibility you have. But to have a little is still to have responsibility and accountability.

Notice in verse 19, there's a purpose statement. There is a reason why having a good foundation for the future is important.

Paul says, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life. What is truly life?

It is eternal life. Well, how are they supposed to take hold of eternal life? They're already saved.

This is very similar to what Paul told Timothy back in verse 12. He said, take hold of the eternal life to which you were called.

Well, he didn't say that Timothy gets saved. You were called in the eternity past, so now, you know, act on that.

He was saying, you know what? Demonstrate the fact that you belong to Christ. And that's the point here.

How do the rich demonstrate that they belong to Christ? Because they're not just hugging all their gold.

They demonstrate that they belong to Christ, that they have eternal life, by being free with their wealth, by doing good with it, by blessing others with it, by fellowshipping with others and their needs.

Now, giving money doesn't save people. If it could, like I said,

Andrew Carnegie and any number of people would be in heaven or be on their way there. You can't buy indulgences.

You can't get your way out of there. I mean, the world would say, you know, that somehow when those rich people get to heaven, there's going to be some kind of hallelujah chorus because Bill Gates has entered the gates.

That's not right. Wealth has nothing to do with it. The rich take hold of eternal life.

They demonstrate that they are possessors of eternal life. When they show that they understand the source and that they don't clutch greedily onto it.

Let me close with just a few practical points on money. To budget means planning what goes out.

It is an act of planning, not an observation. I mean, so many people think, you know, if I say, do you do a budget?

And they say, yeah, I do a budget. Okay, well, let's sit down and look at what you do.

No, no, we know where all the money gets spent. That's not a budget. A budget is planning where the money gets spent.

Second little practical point. Here's a killer. Spend less than you make.

That seems kind of old fashioned these days. Because just like the government, we want to live on credit. Save. Save money.

It's not wrong to have a savings account. But your first priority should be to give.

Let me just say a word about that. Tithing is not a commandment. But it is a decent guide.

Ten percent, for some people that may be unreachable right now. But you should say, you know what,

I'd love it if we could get to a point where we could give ten percent. I'd love it if the

Lord would bless us so we could do more. But don't be deceived, beloved.

Money is a spiritual issue. What you do with it reveals how you think about how you got it.

Practical point number six or seven or whatever it is. Trust the Lord.

If He is the one who provides us with all things and He owns all things, why would we not trust

Him? Why would we worry? Now let me just say this. If your financial situation is a mess, again,

I would just say there's hope. The Lord is full of loving kindness.

He can deliver you. But I would just say on a practical level too, if you're struggling, I would encourage you to see me.

See Bruce Bolivar. See Dave Copper. Dave Farah. Bob Andrzejczyk. Joey DeFilippo.

These are men who have proven themselves able to handle their own finances.

Who know what they're doing. We can definitely help you. We want to help you get things straight.

Some people have this idea that I don't want anybody getting into my business or whatever. Well, if you get to a point where you just realize you can't handle it, we want to help you.

Five financial facts this morning. One, money does not make you better. It does not make you a better person.

It can't make you a better person. It can make you a worse person. Secondly, money is fleeting, transitory.

Third, money is from God. Everything is from the Lord. Everything good, every good gift comes from our

Father in Heaven. Fourth financial fact, money represents the opportunity to serve. And fifthly, money represents an opportunity for eternal reward.

Now, can you have it all? Well, yes. But not in the sense of that reality showing you shouldn't want it that way.

Having it all is not about amassing wealth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.

But lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Having it all in a biblical sense is knowing the fullness of Christ and in so doing, taking tight hold of eternal life.

The sure hope of Heaven. And holding loosely the temporary riches of this world.

Let's pray. Our great

Father in Heaven. Lord, you have called us, your sons and daughters.

You have taken us, transformed us, transferred us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of your dear

Son. Father, we worry, we struggle, we wrestle with all these material things.

And yet you have told us in your work that you will care for us, that you love us. Father, I pray for each one here this morning.

That we would learn to live in light of the fact that you are a granting

God. One who gives us all that we need. And many times, all that we can possibly handle.

Father, remind us that when we complain about our circumstances, we are complaining against you.

You have put us exactly where you have designed for us to be. And we are called to be obedient, faithful, thankful children of a loving

God. And I pray that you would so work in all of our lives. In Christ's name, amen.