The Rich Young Man 2

In my mind, it is not the love of "money" but rather the love of "self" that is the root of all evil. To say that the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil would place a spiritual value on money. There are a lot of people in this world who do not have a love for money. A monk living in a monastery may not be interested in making a single dime, but does that make him any better than most people?

It's true that things like fancy cars, cell phones, and nice clothing lure our attention, but finding fault in those things would be a foolish thing. Rather than blaming those things and trying to get rid of them, we should try get rid of our corrupted hearts first. In the process of doing so, God may convict us to give away our wealth. Or maybe He'll take it away to protect our hearts. In fact, we hear many testimonies that tell of how a loss of physical wealth has resulted in a gain in spiritual blessings. There is no doubt that God works in this way. But we need to be careful not to measure a man's faith in relation to his physical wealth.

Removing materialistic things from our lives might help us control our worldly desires, but it will not solve the problem. A poor man with no possessions could idolize money just as much as a rich man. Then again, how do you define "rich" and "poor"? Is there a particular group of people who fall under the category of being "rich"? Millionaires? Billionaires? People who make at least $XX,XXX a year? Does that mean the rest of us can rest assured and breathe a sigh of relief knowing that we have a better chance of entering the kingdom of heaven? Does that mean it is any easier for people in poverty to enter the kingdom of heaven? Maybe as much as a rabbit can go through the eye of a needle instead of a camel! None of us can do it on our own.

The Rich Young Man illustration is for "the poor" as well -- for me! We tend to forget the spirit of his teaching when he tells us to give away our "wealth". Maybe my personal "wealth" right now lies in achieving excellence, or receiving recognition; things that are not really associated with money. Money, in and of itself, has no power. It is our deceptive hearts that make us believe that it does.