The church secretary answered the phone, and a man on the other end requested, “I’d like to speak with the head hog, please.” Surprised, she asked, “Pardon me, sir, who?” He insisted, “The head hog of the church. I’d like to talk to him.” She asked again, “Who?” Frustrated, the man reiterated, “Ma’am, the head hog of the church!” And she finally said, “If you’re talking about our pastor, you may call him reverend, brother, or pastor, but he is not the head hog.” “Well,” the man calmly replied, “I was interested in giving $25,000 to the church, and that’s why I called.” And she bubbled with excitement, saying, “Please hold, the big fat pig is headed to his office now; I’ll transfer you!”
The painful truth is that money changes people. It has a seductive pull that is hard to resist and an enslaving chokehold that is difficult to break free from. It can quickly blind you to what truly matters in life, and it can become a god you worship even quicker. It often hardens the heart, clouds the mind, and corrupts the soul. And because of money’s dominating power, the Scripture speaks strongly and sternly about it from cover to cover.
Jesus urged that, instead of piling up wealth on earth, we should send spiritual riches ahead of us to heaven: “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” (Matt. 6:19-21). He also taught that money is an attractive idol that we may be tempted to worship: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” (Matt. 6:24). Most significantly, Jesus warned that tremendous wealth is a tremendous liability that prevents many souls from entering heaven: “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God” (Matt. 19:23-24).
It is no wonder, then, that Paul cautioned that greed is a subtle snare, a fast train to demise, and a hunger that starves people of spiritual life (1 Tim. 6:9-10). How, then, can we avoid loving money and worshiping it as a god? According to the Scripture, the most reliable prescriptions for the disease of Mammon worship are contentment (Luke 12:15; Heb. 13:5), generosity (1 Tim. 6:17-19), faithful stewardship (Prov. 3:9-10), and loving God above all else (Matt. 6:24).
Bible Gleanings is a widely-read weekend devotional column, written for the Murray Ledger & Times in Calloway County, Kentucky.
Brandon is the founder and main contributor to Brandon’s Desk, the blog with biblical resources from his ministry. He pastored the family of believers at Locust Grove Baptist Church in Murray, Kentucky for six years. He and his wife Dakota live there with their three dogs, Susie (Jack Russell), Aries (English Shepherd), and Dot (Bluetick Beagle).
For more devotional entries like this, check out Brandon’s latest book, Bible Gleanings Volume II, which features 100 daily devotionals gleaned from God’s word:
Brandon's Desk 