The Love of Money

Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end. Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart. Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain! Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways. Confirm to your servant your promise, that you may be feared. Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good. Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life! (Psalm 119:33-40 ESV). Muhammad Ali was known as “the champ,” arguably the most famous athlete of his generation. He was on top, and his entourage of trainers and various helpers shared the adulation with him. But the party ended, leaving many of Ali’s loyal followers disillusioned, and in some cases, destitute. Ali himself, now halting in speech and uncertain in movement, says, “I had the world, and it wasn’t nothin’.” It is strange how difficult it is to balance the desire to do and be better and the excess of greed and materialism. I think the key is in understanding the difference between making a good living and living good lives. The problem has never been how prosperous we are, but how much prosperity controls our lives. The world is full of people who have plenty to live on, but nothing to live for. It is reported that Howard Hughes, when worth approximately 4 billion dollars, said, “I’d give it all for one good friend.” When a person loves earthly things so much that he can’t get along without them, he opens himself to so much suffering, both physical and mental. Some people, for example, have taken foolish risks to keep their riches intact. They have died rushing into burning houses or were killed because they stubbornly resisted armed robbers. Apparently they felt that without their material possessions life would not be worthwhile. Others, when forced to part with their wealth, have been thrown into agonizing despair, even to the point of suicide. In 1975, six armed gunmen broke into the deposit boxes in a London bank and stole valuables worth more than $7 million. One lady, whose jewelry was appraised at $500,000, wailed, “Everything I had was in there. My whole life was in that box.” What a sad commentary on her values! No wonder the psalmist teaches us in today’s reading that success comes when we focus on the Lord and His ways. He writes, “Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word.” That is a prayer for all of us today in our world where more has always been better. Malcolm Forbes was one of the wealthiest men in the world. He once paid over a million dollars for a Faberge egg. He may be best remembered for the phrase he coined: “He who dies with the most toys wins.” I would remind us all today that those toys mean nothing in the face of eternity without Christ. Concentrate on your relationship with Him and then the toys, however many or few you possess, will be brought into a proper perspective in your life. All of us need to be inoculated from the affliction of the love of money!