In the last part of this series, we continued looking at God’s View of the World, Money, and our lives so we can start to focus on serving Him instead of serving Money. We’re finishing that discussion today, and we’ll start talking about practical applications in the next part of this series.

       In David’s prayer to God after the Israelites’ freewill offering for the building of the temple, we see an excellent example of God’s View of the World, Money, and our lives:

       ¹⁰ Therefore David blessed Yahweh before all the assembly; and David said, “You are blessed, Yahweh, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. ¹¹ Yours, Yahweh, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty! For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, Yahweh, and you are exalted as head above all. ¹² Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all; and in your hand is power and might; and it is in your hand to make great, and to give strength to all. ¹³ Now therefore, our God, we thank you, and praise your glorious name.

       ¹⁴ But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. ¹⁵ For we are strangers before you, and foreigners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no remaining. ¹⁶ Yahweh our God, all this store that we have prepared to build you a house for your holy name comes from your hand, and is all your own.

       ¹⁷ I know also, my God, that you try the heart, and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things. Now have I seen with joy your people, that are present here, offer willingly to you. ¹⁸ Yahweh, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the hearts of your people, and prepare their heart for you.

1 Chronicles 29:10-18 (WEB)

       David recognizes the awesome power of God. God is the ruler of all things, creator of all things, owner of all things, and giver of all things. We are truly nothing in comparison to all of God’s glory. Our very few days on Earth (when compared to God’s eternity) are but a shadow. We must remember that we have not created all we have—it all comes from God.

       The second part of David’s prayer has some especially good points to keep in mind in our giving. First, everything we have comes from God, so when we give we’re really only giving what is already God’s. Second, we must give willingly and honestly to truly bring joy to God. He doesn’t want our Money for the sake of having our money. A willing offering is a sign of complete loyalty to God—it shows that our heart belongs to God and not Money.

       If a willing and honest desire to give back to God in thanks for His goodness, mercy, and glory is not in your heart, pray that God will help change your heart and focus your mind on His ways. If you already have a willing and honest desire to give, pray that God will keep that desire in your heart forever and that He will keep your heart loyal to Him.

       To view everything as belonging to God, to view contentment as the ultimate path to wealth, and to give God all praise and glory are ideas that go against our human nature and the ways of society. It may be difficult to take on God’s View and live it out because it will seem like foolishness to many people. But consider what Jesus said in Matthew 16:26:

       ²⁶ “For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his life? Or what will a man give in exchange for his life?”

Matthew 16:26 (WEB)

This passage is also found in Luke 9:25.

       What good will millions of dollars do for you if you lose your soul in the process? How much will you care about having a nice car and a nice home if it means you have severed your relationship with Christ? Is there anything in this world that’s really worth eternal separation from God?

       It’s so easy to let Things creep into our lives and put up a barrier between us and Jesus. Sometimes it happens without our realizing it. But we have to remember that nothing is worth more than our life in Christ. When the Things of this World seem to start taking priority over your faith, step back for a moment and consider: Is it worth it?

Want to read the entire Bible study series on Contentment? Download your free copy of Contentment Is Wealth: A Bible Study on Contentment now!

       In the last part of this series, we began looking at God’s View of the World, Money, and our lives so we can start to focus on serving Him instead of serving Money. We’re continuing that discussion today, and we’ll finish it up in the next part of the series. Then it’s on to practical applications.

       In Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus teaches us that we should focus on storing up treasures in heaven rather than on earth:

       ¹⁹ “Don’t lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal; ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves don’t break through and steal; ²¹ for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Matthew 6:19-21 (WEB)

This passage is also found in Luke 12:33-34.

       Jesus makes two main points here:

1. Earthly treasures are only temporary. The wealth of this world provides no eternal security and very little security in this life. It is easily stolen, lost, or otherwise destroyed. On the other hand, heavenly treasures last forever.
2. Whatever we treasure will control our heart. If we hold the riches of the World in high regard, our hearts will be focused on serving Money. If we value God’s Word more than the World’s riches, we’ll be able to truly serve God and experience His blessing. God will have the only thing He needs to work through us—our hearts.

       God’s View of storing up treasure is so different from ours. Instead of worrying about the value of our 401(k) plans and savings accounts, Jesus would rather have us thinking about how many people we’ve shown love to in the past 24 hours—and how we can share His love with even more people tomorrow. Instead of looking at things in terms of the past few months or over our lifetimes, we need to start viewing everything in light of eternity. It’s the only way we can really get God’s View.

       If we let the Things of this World come in and take over our lives and our hearts, Jesus tells us very plainly what will happen. In Mark 4:18-19, He explains the parable of the sower:

       ¹⁸ “Others are those who are sown among the thorns. These are those who have heard the word, ¹⁹ and the cares of this age, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”

Mark 4:18-19 (WEB)

This passage is also found in Matthew 13:22 and Luke 8:14.

       As Christians, we often discuss bearing the good fruit that comes from having the Spirit within us. But look at what Jesus says. If we let the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things come into our lives and take over our hearts, we will be unfruitful.

       Getting caught up in the things the world reveres—wealth and all its trappings—chokes God’s power in us and keeps us from doing His Will. To fully serve God, we have to view everything in terms of eternity and reject the World’s view of money and meaning. Once we do this, we can break free of the thorns in our lives and flourish in God’s glory.

Want to read the entire Bible study series on Contentment? Download your free copy of Contentment Is Wealth: A Bible Study on Contentment now!

       In the last part of this series, we began looking at the solution to the problem with The World’s message. We’re continuing that discussion today and over the next parts of the series. We’ll look at God’s View of the world, money, and our lives so we can start to focus on serving Him instead of serving Money.

       In Luke 18:18-30, we see the story of the rich ruler. The ruler asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Here is Jesus’ response:

       ¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

¹⁹ Jesus asked him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good, except one—God. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘Don’t commit adultery,’ ‘Don’t murder,’ ‘Don’t steal,’ ‘Don’t give false testimony,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’”

²¹ He said, “I have observed all these things from my youth up.”

²² When Jesus heard these things, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have, and distribute it to the poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Come, follow me.”

²³ But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was very rich.

²⁴ Jesus, seeing that he became very sad, said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter into the Kingdom of God! ²⁵ For it is easier for a camel to enter in through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God.”

²⁶ Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁷ But he said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”

²⁸ Peter said, “Look, we have left everything, and followed you.”

²⁹ He said to them, “Most certainly I tell you, there is no one who has left house, or wife, or brothers, or parents, or children, for the Kingdom of God’s sake, ³⁰ who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the world to come, eternal life.”

Luke 18:18-30 (WEB)

This story is also found in Matthew 19:21-30 and Mark 10:17-27.

       When this rich ruler approached Him, Jesus knew that his heart was still focused on his wealth even though he had kept all the commandments since he was young. Earlier in our Personal Finance Bible Study, we learned that focusing on or serving Money keeps us from serving God. When Jesus answered the ruler’s question, he quickly honed in on this fact and challenged the rich ruler to give up his wealth if he truly wanted to serve God and inherit eternal life.

       But we see the rich ruler’s response. He was saddened at the thought of giving up all of his wealth. What would we do if Jesus told us to sell everything, give it to the poor, and follow Him? Would we be so attached to our material possessions and wealth that we wouldn’t give it up for Jesus?

       What if Jesus asked us to sell our iPods so we could feed the hungry? Or buy a smaller home so we could give clean water to those in third-world countries? Or forgo a new car and get a used one instead so we could give medicine to the weak? These are small things in comparison to selling everything we own, but there’s a good chance we feel resistance at the very thought of those actions.

       Naturally, we hold the Things of This World very dear to our hearts because we clearly and plainly see them every day. We easily understand the necessity of some things, and we enjoy the convenience and fun of others. But our focus on This World keeps us from seeing the necessity of God’s viewpoint—of realizing that love and relationships matter much, much more than iPods, big homes, and new cars. We can take nothing with us when we die, yet look at how we strive to accumulate so much Stuff all our lives! This is exactly one of the reasons that Solomon said everything under the Sun is meaningless.

       But if it is so natural for us to be attached to the Things of This World, how can we be saved if the salvation Jesus offers requires us to give up that very attachment to our natural world? We can try to remind ourselves that eternal happiness with God in Heaven is worth more than anything The World can offer, but we cannot completely remove the attachment to The World without God’s help. What is impossible for us on our own is possible with God. Through prayer and a close relationship with God, our hearts can be changed so we focus on God’s World and not ours.

       The reward of contentment is very great. Our lives are made easier and much more joyful here on Earth because contentment makes the smallest things very great. A hot meal, warm clothes, or a soft bed—all are great wealth to the person who is content. We also get the eternal reward of communion with God and everlasting life in Heaven. How can any benefit of the world’s wealth be greater than the benefit of God’s rewards for us?

       So this is the first part of God’s view we must begin to take on for ourselves. Our attachment to This World keeps us from fully receiving God’s gifts and fully serving Him. We must give up this attachment if we want to truly receive eternal life in Jesus. And we cannot do it on our own—we must ask God to change our hearts and teach us His ways. If it seems impossible, remember you are not alone. God can do it through you!

Want to read the entire Bible study series on Contentment? Download your free copy of Contentment Is Wealth: A Bible Study on Contentment now!