Lord’s Day, Vol. 9 No. 42
Beware of Earthly Entanglements
Proverbs 23:5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.
The world reels upon an unsustainable debt burden. For the people of God, let us not set our hearts upon riches, for Solomon says, “riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.” The way by which the world enslaves its citizens is through an unsustainable debt burden. This often comes with financial commitments that require massive borrowings from the bank. At the time when loans are secured, the interest rate seemed bearable and therefore, all things being equal, the lure for a commitment to borrow seemed attractive.
Such commitments can be on properties, cars or even home renovations. Commitments for repayment can stretch to the decades, typically 10-30 years loans. And calculations are often made based on projected future incomes from current job security. However, the dynamics change when jobs are lost or when interest rates begin to rise. Savings are being used to make repayments. However, when savings begin to dry up, and new jobs are not forthcoming, great distress can befall a family with such financial commitments. The result is the loss of such unsecured possessions from bank repossessions as a result of defaults on loan payments. Financial imprudence is not congruent to the will of God.
Proverbs 22:7b (KJV) … the borrower is servant to the lender.
Life becomes an enslavement revolving around repaying inordinate borrowings. Often, the debtor finds a need to skip Lord’s Day worship to make ends meet, working that extra hour to make that extra to feed a never ending interest repayment.
Consider the admonitions from God’s Word:
Luke 12:15 (KJV) And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
Psalm 119:36 (KJV) Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness.
Isaiah 57:17 (KJV) For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart.
Colossians 3:5b (KJV) Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; … covetousness, which is idolatry:
Living with contentment is God’s wisdom for protecting His people from the perils of financial bankruptcy. Unfortunately, Singapore is importing this spend-first-pay-later, or spend-first-earn-later, the mentality that has ruined the Western world.
Credit card companies dangle a cash offer of $50 to tempt customers to take up the credit card with two years’ free subscription. The enticement is very real and attractive.
This is an example for our learning. Mr XXX was a successful manager with an MNC drawing a monthly salary of $10,000. When he was promoted, he upgraded to a bigger home and bought a new car. He held credit cards with eight banks, and spent more than $5,000 monthly on entertainment, fine dining and shopping. He did not keep track of his spending, and often rolled over his credit card payments. When the recession hit, his company downsized and he was retrenched. Although he was jobless, he continued to chalk up debts on his credit cards and paid only the minimum sum every month. A year after losing his job, his savings ran out and he had difficulty servicing his credit card payments and other loans. His house and car were repossessed, and he was eventually forced to declare bankruptcy.
What is the antidote to stem this overwhelming tide of wanton, unrestrained, euphoric, hedonistic, eat-drink-and-be-merry lifestyle?
What does God’s Word teach about the godly Christian lifestyle? I would like to suggest that it be called “living contentedly”. This way of life is God’s wisdom to counter the ailment of this drunken, materialistic world that we live in.
Hebrews 13:5 (KJV) Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
The principle is taught in verse 5a, “Let your conversation be without covetousness.”
Note two words in this phrase — “conversation” and “covetousness”. Conversation simply means “lifestyle” or “manner of living”. “Without covetousness” is one word in the original that literally means “free from the love of money”. Thus, “live not covetously” means our lifestyle must be free
Credit card companies dangle a cash offer of $50 to tempt customers to take up the credit card with two years’ free subscription. The enticement is very real and attractive.
This is an example for our learning. Mr XXX was a successful manager with an MNC drawing a monthly salary of $10,000. When he was promoted in 1999, he upgraded to a bigger home and bought a new car. He held credit cards with eight banks and spent more than $5,000 monthly on entertainment, fine dining and shopping. He did not keep track of his spending and often rolled over his credit card payments. When the recession hit, his company downsized and he was retrenched. Although he was jobless, he continued to chalk up debts on his credit cards and paid only the minimum sum every month. A year after losing his job, his savings ran out and he had difficulty servicing his credit card payments and other loans. His house and car were repossessed, and he was eventually forced to declare bankruptcy.
What is the antidote to stem this overwhelming tide of wanton, unrestrained, euphoric, hedonistic, eat-drink-and-be-merry lifestyle?
What does God’s Word teach about the godly Christian lifestyle? I would like to suggest that it be called “living contentedly”. This way of life is God’s wisdom to counter the ailment of this drunken, materialistic world that we live in.
Hebrews 13:5 (KJV) Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
The principle is taught in verse 5a, “Let your conversation be without covetousness.”
Note two words in this phrase — “conversation” and “covetousness”. Conversation simply means “lifestyle” or “manner of living”. “Without covetousness” is one word in the original that literally means “free from the love of money”. Thus, “live not covetously” means our lifestyle must be free from the love of money.
In other words, living contentedly is about a person who is not living for money. The Bible says the love of money is the root of all evil, the mother of all sin. This same word “covetousness” is translated “the love of money” in 1 Timothy 6:10. “For the love of money is the root of all evil,” said the Apostle Paul. {I believe the book of Hebrews was written by the Apostle Paul because Hebrews 13:5 fits so well his teaching to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after (desire, long or lust after), they have erred (they have been misled, they have been led astray from the way of godliness) from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”} This was the plight of Mr XXX. 1 Timothy 6:9 further enlightens us, “But they that will be rich (they that love money, they that let money be their god) fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (or harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (the state of final spiritual ruin).”
Living within our means is rooted in the doctrine of biblical contentment. To be content is to be truly satisfied, acknowledging sufficiency in whatever we have. Contentment is one of the most distinguishing traits of a godly person, because such a man has his heart focused on God rather than on possessions. The contented person experiences the sufficiency of God’s provision for his needs and the sufficiency of God’s grace for his circumstances. That is why Paul said, “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6). The godly person has found what the greedy or discontented person always searches for but never finds. He has found satisfaction and rest in his soul. Contentment is an attitude of the heart and not about how much we possess. It is godliness in action. The epitome of Christ-likeness. Amen.
Yours lovingly,
Pastor Lek Aik Wee