Author: marquitabp

To know me is to accept me, and to love me is to help me.
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Daily Devotion

For the Love of Money
 
"For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows." 
1 Timothy 6:10
 
I really think I'm gonna turn this into a sermon.  I see about 10 scriptures so far about loving money.  This is one of the most commonly misquoted scriptures in the world.  You often hear people say that money is the root of all evil.  But right here, you see it for yourself, that loving money is the root of all kinds of evil.  You can get so caught up in loving or chasing money that you begin to idolize it.  Loving money warps your thinking.  I'm not saying I don't need money, because we all need it.  Yes, I need money to pay my bills, buy food, clothes, shoes, etc. but I don't love it.  In fact, nothing meaningful to me is influenced by money.  At this point I am willing to leave my job and a promise of a significant pay increase to walk in the will of God.  Why you ask?  Salvation is much more valuable than money, and I've come to know that when you are obedient, you are rewarded justly.  Paper burns!!  Coins can be melted, but eternity is forever.  Hebrews 13:5 says 'Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." ' Knowing that God will never leave me nor forsake me is comforting!  Every single need I have had, especially in those dire situations where there is more month after the money is gone, He has not let me down!
 
I say this because sometimes it seems like we are all on a constant quest for money.  What job will pay the most, how much will I get?  Is chasing money worth the price of your soul's eternal rest?  In 1 Samuel 8, Samuel appointed his sons to judge Israel, because he was getting up in age.  In verse 3 noted the difference between them and their father: "But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice." (NLT)  Indirectly, the greed of Samuel's sons influenced the Israelites to beg Samuel for a king.  We all complain about the injustices of the world today, how pride, greed and lust for money drive people to do evil and repulsive things.  But have we in some way committed the same act, on a smaller scale, and have not atoned for it?  A person that loves money will do anything in the world to get it, even at the cost of their soul and the lives of others.  Experiencing the effects of greed is not a pleasant thing.  It can turn the person with the most pure-hearted motives to an evil, cold-hearted conniving person that is willing to do anything.  Ask yourself, are you willing to go to Hell to get money? "Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness!" Ecclesiastes 5:10  The only thing you get from more money is more bills and more problems–that is, unless your heart is in the right place!
 
"No one can serve two masters. 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 both God and Money."  Matthew 6:24
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Daily Devotion #3

Fear the Wrath

“He that believes on the Son has everlasting life: and he that believes not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God stays on him.” John 3:36

After the famous John 3:16 is written, and the extent of God’s love for us is revealed, we are told what awaits those that do not believe in Christ. Lately, I have heard many people say that you should be leery of demons and the wiles of the devil. I mean, I’m cautious but I have no reason to be afraid. Jesus gave believers the ability to cast out demons in Mark 16:17, so don’t fear the devil! Why, you say, because God’s wrath is much worse! Do you know what the eternal rest is for those outside of the body of Christ? As with those who accept the mark of the beast, “fire and brimstone”. (Revelation 14:10) You can realize some of the extent of God’s anger in His dealings with the Israelites and their wickedness. The books of Ezekiel and Jeremiah detail God’s plans—the Israelites were taken from their homeland by war, famine, plundering, death and disease, and pillaging all because of their disobedience to God’s will. Let’s backtrack, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were obliterated because of their disobedience, and the world was flooded, wiping out the entire population because of wickedness! What more will God do against those that do not believe or reject His word and His Son!

But God does not want us to have to endure that fate. 1 Thessalonians 5:9 says “For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,”. God freely gave Himself to free us from the curse, but by rejecting His word, we reject the redemption. There is no need to inherit this as your final recourse. God loves us, and gave of Himself as a sacrifice for our sins to set us free!