In God We Trust; The Dollar We Worship

Chapter 1

What Does the Bible Say About Money?

First, we all must agree that the Bible is the divinely inspired, ultimate, and infallible Word of God given to man. By the power of the Holy Spirit we must also agree that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, and that He came to save the world to deliver us from sin. Only through Him can we gain access to God the Father. If you do not subscribe to this teaching, then you will miss the full impact of what this book is designed to do.

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
— Matthew 6:24 (NKJV)

In this verse we see the word mammon used to represent money. Mammon from the original language was a translation of a common Aramaic word. It was derived from the Hebrew word that meant “to be established” or “to be certain” (‘ãman); and thus originally meant “to entrust.” Before we go on, ask yourself an important question. What do you place your trust in?
Mammon was used to describe material wealth or greed, most often personified as a deity. The term is often used to refer to excessive materialism or greed as a negative influence. We see its personification in Luke 16:9, Luke 16:11, Luke 16:13, Matthew 6:24.

Webster’s dictionary defines mammon as: 1) the false God of riches and avarice. 2) Riches regarded as an object of worship and greedy pursuit; wealth has an evil, more or less personified.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ”
—Matthew 6:25

This is a verse that Madison Avenue wouldn’t want the world to implement I am sure. Imagine what could happen if we took this verse to heart in America. We spend billions on food and clothing each year, yet millions of people in the world will go to sleep hungry and naked tonight. How much different can the world be if we all did our part?

“I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I
have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”
—Philippians 4:11-12

This scripture does not say, “I want to be rich,” or “I am unhappy about being poor.” It talks about contentment. Contentment is a heart issue. I believe this is the biggest reason many do not receive the scriptures about finances taught in the Bible. I will talk about God’s will and our responsibilities to unlock an overflow from the Lord later, but for now, realize that abundance is not provided to us so we can buy boats, cars and houses. It is to be used to further the Kingdom of God. Many preach on God’s goodness to provide wealth for their own use. I am preaching on God’s goodness to provide blessings to others. Paul speaks of contentment, and that is the key word here, so before we move on you need to have a clear understanding of God’s will and not His intentions. We must be content in our seasons, no matter what they are; that is how God allows us to go from glory to glory. The Bible talks about money more than anything else, even more than Heaven, Hell and salvation. This issue has plagued man since the dawn of time, second only to lust of the flesh.
In the King James Version of the Bible, money is referenced in the form of gold, silver, and wealth some 870 times. Giving is mentioned 2,165 times. To put this in perspective, wisdom is mentioned 234 times, love is spoken of 310 times, joy 165 times, faith 247 times, and angels are mentioned 273 times. Only God, Jesus, and sin are mentioned more than money in both testaments of the Bible. There is a reason for this. The quest for wealth has toppled kingdoms, caused millions to perish, destroyed families, and instilled a life of crime in some for generations. However, there are those that have done wonderful things for the Kingdom of God with their resources. We will explore both of these types of people in this book.
Many have the attitude that “money is evil.” After all it is “the root of all evil, right?” Wrong! What the scriptures actually tell us is that the “love” of money is evil, not the money itself. Money by itself can do nothing right or wrong. For years this scripture has been incorrectly interpreted and more importantly, incorrectly taught. It is my opinion that no other scripture is more misunderstood and misquoted. We have all heard “money is the root of all evil” so much so that we actually start to believe that is how the scripture reads.

“For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
—1 Timothy 6:10 (KJV)

“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, in their eagerness to get rich, have wandered away from the faith and caused themselves a lot of pain.”
— (ISV)

So you see it is how we think of the money, or our heart issues that dictates what the true evil is. Money, in and of itself, has no evil qualities what-so-ever. God created everything, yes, even money! Let’s look at this scripture along with the verses that accompany it prior to and following:

“Yet true religion with contentment is great wealth. After all, we didn’t bring anything with us when we came into the world, and we certainly cannot carry anything with us when we die. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is at the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. But you, Timothy, belong to God; so run from all these evil things, and follow what is right and good. Pursue a Godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for what we believe. Hold tightly to the eternal life that God has given you, which you have confessed so well before many witnesses.”
—1 Timothy 6:6-12 (NLT)

Notice in verse nine the emphasis is on those who “long to be rich.” The verb longing in this sentence identifies the sin issue. You can be totally broke and “long” to be rich and fall away from God. This is idolatry.
When we long for riches we are “trapped by our foolish and harmful desires.” Watch the news sometime and count how many crimes have resulted from someone “longing to be rich.” The quest for wealth is the cause of ruin and destruction of lives, families, and separates us from God.
As the title states, everything we have is God’s to begin with. He’s more or less just letting us use it while we are here in our earthly suit. Our heavenly suit will not have a need for money once we reach our final reward. Since the streets of Heaven are paved with gold, and the gates are made from giant pearls, it is obvious riches have no numismatic value there.
So God was the creator of everything that was ever created including all of our financial resources, get it?

“Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
— Genesis 1:26 (NKJV)