The “Means of Great Gain”

Transcript

GR 1281
9/26/2004
The Means of Great Gain
1 Timothy 6:6-10
Gil Rugh


I want to direct your attention to 1 Timothy 6. I want to share something with you, this does nothing to enhance my popularity, but it’s too late to worry about that. We’ve been talking about false teachers and the false doctrine that infiltrates the church, that is the background in which all of 1 Timothy is set. And he was left, you remember, at Ephesus by Paul so he could command certain men not to teach strange doctrine, and the influence of these false teachers and false doctrine that were infiltrating the church.

I want to read something from an article on an evangelical church that appeared in the weekend paper. And to me it’s an example of the weakening that is taking place in the evangelical world. This is a church that would fit within the umbrella of evangelical, but I don’t know them personally, I don’t know the pastor personally. But I know the group that they are a part of, committed to the Bible as the inerrant Word of God, salvation by grace through faith and so on. But here is what is said in this article highlighting the church. From the pastor, these are the comments that come from the interview with him. He says, we value relationships. We see ourselves as a group of people who are accepting and accept diversity. The church appeals to seekers, people who are not church members but who are interested in spiritual truth. We try to create Sunday morning as a safe place to experience the Father’s love.

Now I think this is a reflection of what is happening to the evangelical church, the church that claims to believe the Bible is the Word of God, that still claims to believe that we are responsible to proclaim the message of God’s Word. But what is said here? As far as I could tell, nothing. We value relationships, the pastor said. Is there anybody in the world that does not value relationships? Everybody does. Some kind of relationships are important to everyone. So we start out with a statement that doesn’t mean anything. We value relationships. I guess this is supposed to make us feel warm and fuzzy. But if you think about it, it’s a meaningless statement. Is there anybody in the world that doesn’t value relationships? May not like relationships with certain people, but you like them with others. Maybe he’s clarifying. We see ourselves as a group of people who are accepting and accept diversity. That now clarifies things. We are accepting and accept diversity. What does that mean? I mean, if you’re of a different race you can come? Different financial means? Everybody accepts somebody, and everybody accepts certain kind of diversity, don’t they? What do you mean, we accept diversity? You accept diversity of doctrine? Are Muslims welcome to come and teach their beliefs? We’re not that diverse. I mean, what are we saying, we accept diversity. It’s another meaningless statement. The church appeals to seekers. There’s the hot button word today. If there is one thing that is destructive to the evangelical church today, it is the demonic doctrine that is being promoted in the church—seeker sensitive churches. I was going to bring, but I do have some good judgment left, some material I received from a church recently looking for a pastor, not particularly me, but for a recommendation. I don’t know why they send it to me. And it’s a church that has exploded from about seventy-five people to fourteen hundred people in attendance in less than ten years. But it is seeker sensitive, they’re looking for such a pastor. The church appeals to seekers, people who are not church members but are interested in spiritual truth. Well how do you appeal to seekers? They don’t attend church but they are interested in spiritual truth. You know we use a general word, spiritual truth, whatever that may be, because everybody except somebody who considers himself a pure atheist, if there are such things, believes in spiritual truth of some kind, Most people are religious, and in their religious belief they have some kind of truth they think is truth and at least adhere to. I’ll come back to that. We try to create Sunday morning as a safe place. What do you mean? Nobody has been murdered or maimed in our services for the last year, so it’s safe to come? The building meets code, the roof has not fallen in any area on anyone, we have required fire exits, people check their firearms at the door. We try to create Sunday morning as a safe place to experience the Father’s love. Just what does that mean? A safe place. Where is the unsafe place to experience the Father’s love? Is there such an unsafe place, a place where it would not be safe to experience God’s love? And I’m not sure how you create that experience for someone.

This concept of a seeker implies there are people who want to know truth, but they would probably be offended. The ultimate father of this seeker approach is Norman Vincent Peale, who for years pastored Riverside Church in New York City, an out-and-out heretic. When he preached one of the inaugural messages at Robert Schuller’s church, he asked the question, what would Jesus say to this group today? Would He say you are sinners and on your way to hell? I think not. I don’t know what you mean, we’re creating a safe place to experience God’s love. In the first place only those who believe in Jesus Christ will experience God’s love. Everyone can hear about God’s love, but only believers in Jesus Christ can experience God’s love, only those who come and place their faith in Him. And I don’t have to do anything to adjust the message, because those who are going to believe the message are being drawn by the Spirit and will respond in faith when they hear it. I don’t have to adjust the message for them. When God sent the prophets to Israel in their unbelief, He didn’t have a special message. He said, repent or perish. When Jesus came He said, repent or perish. Paul preached, God is commanding all everywhere to repent, for He has appointed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness. I think if Jesus were to speak up today, He would speak about sin, He would speak about hell. He would speak about the only hope of salvation.

The evangelical church is turning into a puddle of mush. Where is any talk about the Bible as God’s Word, about Jesus Christ as the only Savior? We value relationships, we’re a group of people accepting and accepting of diversity. We try to create Sunday morning as a safe place to experience the Father’s love. Meaningless. And this is an evangelical church. We study 1 Timothy, and one of my burdens is that we read it and say well that’s fine, I don’t know how Ephesus got so far off track. I’m glad that’s not happening to us. We are seeing a major collapse.

It was passed on to me this week of a man who had been attending an evangelical seminary, I won’t mention names, but it’s a seminary that many of our young men have gone to in recent years. And this man was saying there’s been a drastic drop in the number of evangelical churches contacting them and asking for pastors. Because evangelical churches en masse have turned to the seeker sensitive approach and are not looking for men who will teach the Bible. Now remember we’re studying 1 Timothy about false teaching, and we are told the church is the pillar and support of the truth. Paul has been emphasizing that, I mention chapter 1 verse 3 where he told Timothy he must command or instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines. That emphasis comes over to chapter 6. Stop at chapter 4, I don’t want to mire down, but you know the Spirit says in verse 1 of chapter 4 that in latter times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons. You know the founder of this movement acknowledged that he had influence in his life from a special spirit being. Amazes me that that line of thinking has come down and become acceptable now in the evangelical church. Something is drastically wrong.

Remember, 2 Timothy, says the time will come when they will not put up with healthy teaching. That’s not what we’re looking for. Could you recommend for us a pastor for an evangelical church, but we’re not looking for a Bible teacher. We’re a seeker sensitive church, we’re a place that values relationships, accepting of diversity, we want a safe place for people to experience God’s love. Maybe you ought to go to a Kiwanis meeting. Won’t make any difference. We don’t want to hear what God has to say, we want to give what people want to hear. How is that different from wanting to have their ears tickled? We have to move on, that could become the morning message. I am preparing a miniseries along that line for Sunday nights in the future.

1 Timothy 6:3, Paul has been talking about false teachers. If anyone advocates a different doctrine, does not agree with sound words, healthy teaching, the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, he is conceited and knows nothing. How do we do church? We go to the Word of God and find out what God has to say. It’s His household. We communicate the words that have come from Christ. False teachers bring division and conflict to the church. Truth does not bring division and conflict to the church, false teachers, false doctrine brings division and conflict to the church. The devil is attempting to destroy the health of God’s people. You know we take seriously the health of our children. I notice when I go into a school zone they have signs of the penalty is double for using drugs here. You know using drugs is bad, but selling or passing drugs when you get on school grounds, now that is serious business. Whether it makes any sense or not, it says that we value our children and anybody who would damage our children is in trouble. What do you think that God thinks about His household? They bring division, they bring conflict, they have a sick interest in controversial questions, verse 4 said. It’s constant friction. When false doctrine comes into the church there is going to be conflict, division and trouble, unless the church abandons its truth and everybody goes with the error.

These are people who think that godliness is a way to make money, to get ahead. Now that’s not the only motivation in life or in the life of false teachers, but it’s the one that Paul wants to focus on. It was a problem in the church at Ephesus and it is the success motivation. How can you argue with a church that grows from seventy-five to fourteen hundred on Sunday morning in less than ten years. That has to be good. How can you argue with men who are pastoring churches of 15,000 and 20,000 people on a weekend.

That has to be good, we all want it. We need to back up. We’re not building the church. Jesus Christ said, I will build my church. I don’t think He’ll be happy if I can say, Lord, look what I built for you. You didn’t build anything for Me, I build My church. Jesus Christ is the head of the church. These false teachers are doing it for gain, financial gain. That leads him into a discussion of these kinds of things. And he’s going to talk about what desiring wealth and financial gain does, how foolish it is and the misery it brings to a life.

Now he’s not primarily addressing in this section, verses 6-10, those who are rich or wealthy. He’ll deal with them almost at the end of this chapter, those who have wealth. In both sections we’ll find out, wealth in and of itself is neither good nor bad. It’s a thing. Possessions are things, money is just a material thing. We understand that. Whether you have a lot of it, whether you have very little of it, it has no bearing on your contentment as a child of God. And life lived any other way brings trouble. Those who love money do not love Jesus Christ. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Friendship with the world is enmity towards God. So what he has to say here is serious. He addresses this matter of those who think godliness is gain, people who think that you can be happier if you have more. Going to show the foolishness of all of that.

Look at verse 6. This comes out, remember, the end of verse 5. These false teachers suppose that godliness is a means of gain. But, let’s put this straight. Godliness is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. Genuine godliness is not only a means of gain, it’s a means of great gain, when accompanied by contentment, which rules out the pursuit of wealth and riches. False teachers are twisting godliness. We are success oriented, big means success, big means more income, on it goes. We understand, put this in perspective. There is an element of truth. Godliness is a means of gain, but not the kind of gain false teachers talk about—money, particularly in the context, but you could add to that numbers, power, influence. Godliness is a means of gain when accompanied by contentment. What he is talking about here.

Godliness refers to God-likeness--the cleansing from sin and new life that comes to a person that is changed by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. When a person places their faith in Jesus Christ as the one who loved them and died for them on the cross, He died there to pay the penalty for our sin, which is death, and He was raised in victory. When I turn from everything that I have been trusting and place my faith in Him alone as my Savior, I enter into a relationship with the living God. I am cleansed from my sin, I am made new, I become a child of God. God Himself takes up residence in my life. Now I live a new life. That’s true godliness. False teachers talk about godliness, they talk about Christ, but true godliness is a means of gain when it brings contentment, not material gain, spiritual gain.

The word contentment is a word that is a compound word and it basically means self-sufficient. It’s the word self in front of the word sufficient. The Stoics used it, the Epicureans used it also. The Stoics talked about self-sufficiency, a person who could live cut off and free from obligation or need of everything but his own resources in himself. It’s obviously not what the Bible is talking about when it talks about this kind of
contentment or self-sufficiency. Another meaning of the word is contentment, because it deals with a person who is satisfied with what they have and doesn’t have a desire for more. So it comes to be used of contentment, and that’s its meaning here.

Turn back to 2 Corinthians 9. The word is used by Paul in 2 Corinthians 9:8, and God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency, and there’s our word, self-sufficiency, literally. Same word we have in 1 Timothy 6. That you always having all sufficiency in everything, may have an abundance for every good deed. Where does the sufficiency come? God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency He is the one who provides our sufficiency. There is a contentment because in Him I have everything.

Turn over to Philippians 4, just after 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians. Philippians 4 was written while Paul was a prisoner in Rome. And in Philippians 4:11 he writes, not that I speak from want. For I have learned to be content. And in my Bible there is even a little note there in the margin that says self-sufficient because it’s our word again. I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. Here is a man sitting in prison. He is somewhat destitute because what he is talking about here is the Philippians have sent him a gift of material things. He thanks them for the gift, but he said it doesn’t change my contentment, because I was content before I got the gift. Note verse 12, I know how to get along with humble means, I also know how to live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, of having abundance and suffering need. You’ll note, Paul says his contentment is not connected to what he has or doesn’t have. I know how to get along with humble means, I know how to live in prosperity. Being filled, going hungry, have abundance, suffering needs. Those things don’t affect my contentment. Verse 13, I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. There is the secret of my contentment. I know in Christ I have everything necessary and He will provide everything necessary for me. So Paul didn’t see himself as necessarily more effective in ministry, now that he had more material things at his disposal. There were times when that facilitated ministry.
But if God chose not to give it, it didn’t affect his contentment.

And this just isn’t true for Paul, look at Philippians 4:19, my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory. That includes material needs as well as spiritual needs—everything is provided by Him. Just jot down 2 Peter 1:3, where we’re told His divine power has granted to us everything necessary for life and godliness through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. Think about that. His divine power has granted to us—doesn’t even say, His divine power will grant to us, He’s already done it—everything necessary for life and godliness. So true godliness brings true sufficiency and contentment into the life of the child of God.

Come back to 1 Timothy 6. Paul is going to elaborate on this. Material things do not add to your life in a real way. Nobody is saying that material things can’t make your life more comfortable, more physically pleasant, or those kind of things. But the inner contentment of heart, it’s not related to those things. Look at verse 7, we brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it, either. Basic, simple fact—naked in, naked out. Just the way it is. You didn’t come out of the womb with a wallet in your hand, credit cards, possessions. And they may put you in the grave in a suit or in some clothes for the occasion, but it's not going with you. You’re going out the way you came, you take absolutely nothing with you. Isn’t it amazing how much of life is absorbed in getting what we can and amassing as much as we can, when Peter says all these things will be consumed by fire. And in 2 Peter 3 he says that’s why we as God’s children live differently than the world. That’s why we’ re content whether we have a lot or whether we have nothing. Now that's not saying we have to take a vow of poverty and live with as little as possible. I was checking the ads in the paper this week, I’m not planning on moving, I don’t want to start a rumor. Just get an idea of the cost of things. I found a room with a kitchen that could be rented for $129 a month. Maybe Marilyn and I could move there. Now the thing I found myself asking, would I be content if I had to go there?

If something happened and I didn’t have anything, could I say I could well no I love
my home. Well there is nothing wrong with enjoying our home, but I better not fall in love with it. These are add-ons.

But what he’s making the point is material things do not add to our lives in a real meaningful way. Jesus put it this way in Luke 12:15, beware and be on your guard against every form of greed, for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions. That’s an illusion, that’s a delusion. Even when you have an abundance, Jesus said, your life does not consist of your possessions. In that context He talked about the rich man who thought, I better build bigger barns, have more stored up for the future, have a secure future. Now I can sit back and take my ease. And God said, you fool, this night your soul will be required of you. Then whose will those things be that you’ve stored up? You’re going to leave it all, you can’t take anything with you. What do you have when you have no material possessions? I have everything.

Now do we really understand this as a believer. You know how often do we joke
with one another, if I would win the lottery, and now I have $100 million .just
think of what I could do for the Lord. Just think of what I could do for me, let’s get down to it. But you know when I stop and think I could not do anymore for the Lord than I can do today, because the Lord has given me everything that I need to do what He wants me to do today. Why I really am thinking about what I could do for the Lord with all that extra stuff is, I’d like to be rich. Let’s just cut through it. You think the Lord is in heaven talking to Michael the archangel and saying, you know there is so much I’d like Gil to do for Me, but he’s too poor. I don’t know what we’re going to do. Let’s find somebody rich. It’s just not a problem. You know what the Lord said through the psalmist? If I had a need I wouldn’t tell you, because I own the cattle on a thousand hills, it’s all mine. And if the Lord wanted me to do something that took $100 million, He’d give it to me. And the Lord knows better than I’m willing to admit, He’d have to change me or I’d waste a lot of it on me. So the point is what? Material possessions don’t do anything. Not to take a lot of intelligence to look at that. No matter how you pour your life into accumulating and no matter how much you accumulate, I see one of the magazines has come out with its 400 richest people. You know it doesn’t matter how much they have now, how much will they have in 100 years? That’s the question. Do they have anything really that matters, or do they have a lot of clutter?

So verse 8, the Christian’s attitude is if we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. We don’t need anything else. That previous verse, we came naked, we go out naked, was taken from Job 1:21, a man who had to experience it. Overnight he went from extreme wealth to extreme poverty, lost it all. His response was, I came naked, I’m going out naked. The preacher, in Ecclesiastes 5:15 said the same thing, so this is not a new revelation. This is always the way it has been. We dig up the Pharaoh’s tombs and you know what we find? Everything that was buried with them, they didn’t take anything with them into the afterlife, no matter what they thought. If we have food and covering we will be content. These are the basics of life. I mean, acknowledge this. To live you have to have food to eat, you have to have clothes to put on. We can get by with very, very little. Again it’s not saying you have to take a vow of poverty. He’ll address those who have riches, even. At the end of the chapter his instructions won’t be that you have to give it all up and live in poverty. Our attitude is crucial. Paul said I know how to live in abundance as well as how to live without. I live recognizing I can do all things through Christ who enables me. So my having contentment in Him and sufficiency in Him to do what He wants me to do is not related to my material possessions. That’s why his life was effective for Christ when he was in prison as well as when he was out of prison. He wasn’t all wrapped up in thinking, if I only had what I used to have, then I could He knew that had nothing to do, and it has nothing to do with true contentment. That’s the trap of the world, and that’s where Paul is going.

But note, it’s not wrong to have things, and having the basic essentials covered. We won’t go there for time, but in Matthew 6 Jesus addressed this subject and He told His disciples, you should not even worry about your food and your clothes. Look at the birds of the air, God provides food for them and they don’t even plan. Look at the flowers of the field, they are clothed more splendidly than Solomon in all of his riches and wealth. God will provide for you. So we’re content having the basics, and even in that I am content, knowing my God will provide for me the basics. You know what that means? Every person here who is a believer in Jesus Christ and who has true godliness in his life, can rest totally content. And you can do that even if you knew that when you went home you would find out you have lost your job, all your possessions have been swept away, and you have nothing but the clothes on your back. People would say, are you worried? Are you afraid? You could say, no, I have perfect peace, I’m content. Why? My contentment, my peace did not depend on those things. My God has not left me. He is still my sufficiency. So Jesus said in Matthew 6, don’t worry about tomorrow, each day has enough trouble of its own. Well you know that takes care of it, because I’ve already eaten enough to get me to tomorrow. I’m planning on eating again today, but even if I don’t, you know what? Today is taken care of. I don’t have to worry about tomorrow. Food and covering. I look around, most of us are covered to one degree or another. Most of us have eaten. So we’ve had enough for today, so there are no people here who have concerns or any worries.

Now a word of warning, there is reality. Those who want to get rich, those who have a desire. Present tense. Those who have that ongoing desire, that constant desire to get rich. There are those who have that desire for more. Oh if only I had more. And you
know, what is more? I’m amazed that I see people that are billionaires. I think that list is published, I heard on the news, I think they said that there are 330 billionaires in the United States. What are you going to do with $1 billion? I don’t even know what to do. How do you spend it? You don’t. You keep devising ways to expand it, you hope to go up on the list, your life is reduced to increasing your position on the list I guess. There are those who desire to get rich, that love money. When you desire to get rich you fall into temptation, you desire more. Our society is built on this, is it not? Aren’t all the advertisements that tell you why you need this, why you should have this, why your life will be happier, why you’ll be a better person, why people will like you more, why you will be more handsome, more beautiful Isn’t that why? And you deserve it. I
mean, you deserve a break today, even if it’s at McDonald’s, I guess.

Those who want to get rich are on the road to trouble. That’s not the road of godliness, that’s not the path of contentment. This is the road that leads to ultimate ruin. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation. That word fall, pictures clearly, there’s a
trap laid and their desire Starts with the desire in the heart and mind. I’d like to
have more. We need to be careful, when we talk about those who desire to be rich, we’re not talking about desire to be a billionaire, even the desire to be a millionaire. Just I’d like to have more, you know that I always would like a little more. If I just got over this hump and had more. You fall into temptation. What that desire does is open up the whole realm of opportunity for sin. Fall into temptation. That constantly is presenting itself. Well now, do I make an adjustment here? Do I do something with my income tax that may be less than honest, but it leaves more money for me? Do I do something in my job that may get me a raise, but wouldn’t be consistent with Christian character? Do I You know we see men of great wealth being brought into court today. Why? You think, they were making more money than 99% of the people will ever have, but they’re going to court because somehow it wasn’t enough and now they were using company money dishonestly. And it’s not possible to live on several million dollars a year, it had to be more. And that goes all the way down to those of us who are in trouble with our credit cards, we’re in trouble with our borrowing, we’re in over our heads. Why? Well, I wanted a little more, I wanted a little more. I didn’t have the money now, but I
thought it would be, and I have reasons why having more You know driving that
car will make me feel better about myself, will give me a better appearance and help me to be more respected in business and make more. Having a better house will help me to do this. Besides, if I had a bigger house I could have a bigger Bible study, that’s a good reason. I mean, where does it end? Mind, we’re not talking about amounts. I don’t want to be rich, I just want to have more. That’s what we’re talking about, and it opens the door to all kind of trouble. Now I’m in over my head, now what do I do? And just as many Christians are in credit card trouble, I would imagine if we took a poll, as non-Christians. And I’ve committed myself to more, more obligations, more
But there are always reasons. But the bottom line reason is I wanted more, and I thought that would bring something to my life. So you see the average house now has double the square feet that it did not that many years ago. And now it takes more income to cover that, and on it goes.

Those who want to get rich fall into temptation. Temptation leads to a snare. A snare is something that entangles you, you can’t get out from. So what happens? I have the desire to have more and that opens up all kinds of opportunities that are not right, that are sinful. But I’m going to try that, I don’t want to get into something too serious, but I’ve got to make a little more. The next thing, oh I’ve taken the step and now I’m ensnared. Now what do I do? Now I’ve got more debts than I know what to do with, and the only thing I can do is figure out how I’m going to make more money. Now you get to desperation and then you can watch the forensic programs on TV that show why people murder family members for insurance policies. You say, I would never do that. I’m not sure how I’m going to pay my credit card debt, and I don’t know how I got into that. I thought a vacation would help relax our family and I did think, even though the mortgage is too big, I though having a nicer house and more space would bring a little bit of contentment to our life and I And we’re driven on and we’re ensnared.

And that leads to many and foolish harmful desires, which plunge men into ruin and destruction. Foolish, mindless. Doesn’t make any sense. Who goes out and charges on credit cards and can’t pay it off? I’m not saying you can’t use a credit card in our cashless society. I can’t imagine people carrying balances on credit cards. Harmful desires are not innocuous. I mean, we’re not talking about, well I made a foolish purchase, but I shouldn’t do it. We should be wise with our money. I’m not going to make a foolish purchase I can’t pay for, at least I’m going to pay for my stupidity. I’m not going to drag it out. They plunge men into ruin and destruction. That’s where the love of money, the desire to get rich takes you—ruin and destruction. That’s it. Ultimately here, we’re in the context, remember, of false teachers who think that godliness is gain. That desire for more is leading them to ruin and destruction. Two words usually used in the New Testament of ultimate ruin, hell. The ultimate destruction of a person.

For the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil, and remember, if you love the world, you don’t love God, according to I John. We need to sort it out. The love of money is a root of all sorts of evil. The love of money. Jesus gave a lecture in Luke 16, and listen to what He said as He concluded that. No one can serve two masters, either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. Is that as clear as it is? There probably are some people here who are in trouble financially and who love money, who have a desire to get ahead. You ought to take seriously what God says. You’re here as an observer, you cannot love God and wealth, you are on the road to destruction. Sitting in this building doesn’t change your heart, listening to sermons about the Bible or from the Bible doesn’t change your heart. If you’re here, and some of you have a hard time listening because you’re already thinking about business this week and what’s going on. Lord, where is my heart. God, I have to acknowledge I love money, that drives my life, consumes my thought and determines what I do. This is just a stop along the way, church is just a stop for me. My life is getting ahead. Jesus said you cannot serve God and wealth.

You know what the response is of the Pharisees to that? Next verse, Luke 16:14, now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. They were scoffing at Him. Where are those Pharisees today? What do they have? They were the well-to-do, they were the powerful, they were in a position of
influence and respect, in a position to get things done, well rewarded materially, had a good lifestyle. And God said to them, you cannot serve God and wealth, and they scoffed at Him. They were on the road to destruction.

The love of money is a root of all sort of evil. Note here it doesn’t say money is the root of all evil, it says the love of money. So God has blessed certain people with great wealth. He’ll address their responsibilities later in the chapter. Abraham was a man, God’s friend, and he was a man of tremendous riches. David was a king with great wealth, he was the man after the heart of kind. Riches in and of themselves are just things. The love of money means a person does not love God.

This love for money is a root and a root is something from which other things come. It’s a root, the source of all kinds of evil. It’s not every evil can be traced back to money, some evils can be traced back to other things and so on. But all kinds of evil come out of this love of money. And interesting, you ought to just note in Timothy here, the first word in the Greek sentence is root—root for all kinds of evil is the love of money. Emphasizing this is just the beginning. You can’t go into all the ways that this love for money will bring evil into your life.

And some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. What happens? Pretty soon you have financial problems, you know I’m pursuing money. Pretty soon my wife and my family, those things aren’t as important and so the love of money brings what? Tension into the family. How many families have financial pressures, so now they’re at one another because we live under this load and I don’t know what we’re going to do. And one thing leads to another. Leads to making compromises at work, because I sure need the job. I always need a job of some kind, but when I have mounded up my bills and my obligations are there, I really need it, because if I didn’t have it, I’d sink immediately. These kinds of things begin to control us. And now I have trouble in my home. Now my marriage is not going right and I don’t know why. Seems my wife and I are arguing all the time and I don’t know why. And we don’t trace it back, and other things I didn’t do quite what was right at work. Now I’ve sacrificed this, that and the other thing. This is the basic character of an unbeliever, but you know believers get into the same kind of trouble when they get into sin. And you know what? A believer who overcharges his credit card ends up in the same kind of problem as an unbeliever who charges his credit card. I don’t go to the bank and say, I’m a believer so I expect my rate will be 2% on this credit card, not 22%, thank you. Or
perhaps you’ll just forgive it because It doesn’t matter, does it? So believers
get into the same kind of trouble. And the world is constantly telling us what? Oh you need more, you need more. And believers need to be careful, they need to take heed of the warning as well.

The love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith. That’s what an apostate is, one who moves away from the faith. These teachers may have started out professing a belief in the Word, but they’ve revealed their character—they are apostates. They stand away. That word apo means from or away. They move away from, they stand away from what they believe. You know what happens? People are moved away from the truth to the Word of God. This consumes the heart. They wander away from the faith.

Pierce themselves with many griefs. Let me read you what one preacher, he is still living but he is very aged, from Britain, commented on this. It is not possible to pursue truth and money, God and mammon simultaneously. People either renounce avarice in their commitment to the faith, or they make money their god and depart from the faith.
We have people today who have a hard time making time for the fellowship of the church and the study of the Word, yet they claim to be believers. But their life is taken up with the pursuit of things. There may be times in our lives because of pressure, certain things beyond our control, so to speak, that I am doing all I can just to make the basic foundational provisions that I am responsible for. God does that. That may be part of what He has brought into my life at this time, like Paul being in prison. But most of us in our society are in trouble because we thought a little more would help us be what? A little happier, a little more content, enjoy life a little more. And the trap of that is what? We didn’t really believe what Job said, we didn’t really believe what Solomon said in Ecclesiastes. We really didn’t believe what Paul said, all spokesmen of God, naked you came into this world, naked you go out.

Godliness is gain with contentment. We may have some people in pain, in grief here. Money has been my god. We have to question then, if you love money, do you really love Jesus Christ? I don’t ask if you were raised in this church, if you’ve attended here a long time, if you’ve given a lot here. Just be honest in your heart. I’m not going to ask you for a public response, but in your heart, do you love God or do you love money? You might as well be honest with God because he knows what’s there. Be honest with yourself. Bottom line, what is the love of your heart? Secondly, as a believer. Maybe you say I know I’m a believer in Jesus Christ, but I see where I’ve gotten caught up with certain things. You know what you need to do. Lord, what do I have to do to put my life on track. My life needs to be about you. I don’t need this house, I don’t need this car, I don’t need these things. Don’t expect the Lord is going to give you a windfall to get you out because that’s not the way the Lord does. But I need to get myself righted, otherwise all I have ahead of me is more grief and more pain and more difficulty. The pursuit of money will not bring me contentment in life. God provides that at no charge, no additions to anyone who will recognize they are sinners, they are separated from God. That’s the problem in their life, that’s what’s missing in life. They are the enemy of the living God. Recognize that God’s Son died to make it possible for you to be forgiven. You turn from your sin and place your faith in Him, God cleanses you and makes you new, He takes up residence in your life and He becomes your contentment. He brings His peace, His joy, His contentment to your heart and mind. Then I trust Him. Lord, I want to take the next step. My focus is now on you. What do I do to bring my life and my lifestyle into conformity with godliness. It may be I’ll be downsizing. That’s fine. With the Lord I have everything I need, without Him I have nothing.

Let’ s pray together. Thank you, Lord, for your sufficiency, that you are the great and awesome God, the creator of all, the sustainer of all. And Lord, in grace you have made provision for us to become your children and have all the resources of heaven as our resource. Lord, I pray for those who are here who do not know you, have been deceived or deceived themselves, but the reality of it is if they examine their lives, they love money and have tried to add you to their lives. Help them to see the empty, hopeless condition of their situation, that they fool no one, not even themselves. Lord, I pray for those who are your children. Lord, the allurements of the world can seem convincing. We sometimes make foolish choices and do foolish things. Lord, by your grace may we put a stop to the foolishness, readjust our focus, recognize you are our contentment. Lord, to determine we will no longer live for the desire of material things, but to be satisfied with what you provide and live within that provision. Thank you, Lord, for a heart of contentment that’s not dependent on things. We praise you in Christ’s name, amen.