Text: Matthew 6:19-24 – “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, 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. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! “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.”
We have gone from giving, praying, and fasting, to Jesus talking about the Kingdom and treasures. In this passage, Jesus challenges us with the question, “Where is your treasure?” He then helps us find the answer by giving four tests. Hang in there with me, don’t tune me out because of the topic – after all, it is Jesus who is speaking – not me.
The first test that Jesus gives us in Matthew 6: 19 -20 can be called the Durability Test. The second test that Jesus gives – the Heart Test is in Matthew 6:21 The third test in Matthew 6:22-23 and is the Mind Test. The final test Jesus gave us is in Matthew 6:24 ““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.” This fourth test can be labeled the Master Test. The fourth and final test focuses on our will and asks the question: “Whom do you serve?”
To “serve” means that we’ve made a choice and engaged our wills. If we’re not careful, we can be deluded by thinking material things will last forever. Our emotions can then affect our minds, which in turn can cause our wills to be in the grip of money with a capital “M.”
The word Jesus uses here for money is the
word, “Mammon,” which is a proper noun, or a name.
Jesus viewed Money as a rival for preeminence. Attachment to money leads to a detachment from God. The Bible is absolutely clear about the venomous nature of money. It fights for supremacy in our lives and it has many of the characteristics of a deity. It promises security, freedom, and power.
To be a committed Christ-follower is not merely a matter of emotions but also of our minds and wills. To love God requires service and even sacrifice. This type of allegiance cannot be rendered to two parties. Whatever we devote ourselves to becomes our god. The tension that many of us experience when we try to love both God and money will sooner or later begin to show where our real loyalty lies.
Only one master will win out.
Money is not just a neutral medium of exchange, but a “power” with a life of its own which seeks to control, and even consume us. The goal of this Money Master is total domination of your value system, without you even being aware of it.
If you’re serving the Money Master, Jesus says you will be unable to fully serve God. He doesn’t say, “you better not” or “it would be unwise to serve both,” He says, “you cannot serve both God and money.” As such, how we handle our money has a lot to do with how serious we are about obeying God.
His words are unsettling. If you love money, you will end up hating God. If you are devoted to the pursuit of possessions and the making of money, you will find yourself despising the things of God.
I suspect that most of you do not want to hate God. In fact, you’re here because you want to learn how you can get to know Him better.
Let me put it right on the table.
You will never be able to fully love God if you are in love with money and all that money can buy.
Loving God and loving money are mutually exclusive.
Tomorrow, we will draw the conclusion of this passage.
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