In the first article we talked about mammon and how he seeks to control us through money. Today I want to expose mammon a bit more.
Pornography is a terrible thing and the statistics for the number of people caught up in it are scary. The problems the human race faces with pornography are huge. What is more sinister is that the issues around money are and it seems many of us live our lives unaware of the issues around mammon.
You can stand up in pretty much any church and deliver a sermon on living a sexually pure life and people will nod their heads knowingly and approvingly. Go into the same congregation and start talking about money and watch the heckles go up, the temperatures rise and everyone starts looking for the door.
So why such a strong reaction? Because money is hotter than sex!
Yeshua said in Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Now if sexual immorality is the big issue in society why did Yeshua single out mammon as the master we serve as opposed to serving God? Because mammon is bigger.
We keep forgetting that we don’t own anything. We don’t own our houses, our cars, our spouses and family aren’t ours, not even our health is ours, so why do we keep holding on to the idea that it’s “our” money? Everything we have from God is a gift for us to steward until He decides it’s time for someone else to steward it.
That’s why when you’re robbed of your coat, Yeshua said give them your shirt too. It’s not your shirt to keep. (Matthew 5:40 “If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also…”) If someone steals “your” stuff, forgive them and recall that God said vengeance was His. Pray that the anointing of the Holy Spirit on your stuff will bring the thief to repentance! Their being reconciled to Father God is far more important than you keeping a shirt. God is big enough to look after His stuff.
Back to mammon and money. We are somehow programmed into believing we need money to survive. There is a deep hole in us that we feel ourselves falling into if our finances are upside down or failing. We hate those feelings of creeping fear and death and we’ll do almost anything to escape them. I know these feelings very well, at the time of writing I have been going backwards financially every month for over two years. Dealing to mammon has been a huge fight for my family and me.
So do we push through those feelings of creeping fear and walk into God with faith, or do we compromise our love and trust in Him? This is hard to do because mammon is so ingrained in us e.g. why do we ask whether we should tithe gross or net? Is it because we think it’s “our” money and we’ll only pay God what we have to? Or is the deeper issue that we’re scared? We feel we need money to survive and if we “give” too much away to Him (how can we give God His money?) we’ll not have enough provision. It’s that feeling of fear and creeping death thing again. If we truly believe God is our provision, we’ll happily give God whatever He asks and then check with Him whether we’ve given enough. After all we’re only acting as stewards of His money. How He spends it is His business. At its essence, issues around mammon are issues of the heart. How much do we really trust God? On the US dollar bill it says “In God we trust,” if only it were true.
In fact we sometimes only “pay” our tithes or give offerings so that God will bless us. This is mammon at his ultimate worst. We have now made God our servant to supply us what we think we need to survive (money) and God now “owes” us. God has just been made subservient to mammon and we’ve bought Him with money! Please pause and re read this paragraph again. Can you see why Yeshua said “You can’t serve God and mammon, for either you will hate the one and love the other, or else you will be loyal to the one and despise the other?” Powerful words.
If you still don’t believe mammon is a high ranking principality read Revelation 13:16-17: And he (the beast) causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Here we see the full power of mammon revealed, people unable to transact (use money or whatever equivalent it will be) unless they surrender to the mark of the beast. This is talking about money and provision, not sex or power or war or any of the world’s other many ills. This is how mammon will openly war against the saints of God. mammon is our enemy.
Revelation 20:4 reads; And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Yeshua and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
God and Yeshua are quite clear on where they stand regarding mammon, how are you doing?
May God richly bless you as you meditate on these things.
This article is provided for educational and edificational purposes only. It does not constitute and is not a substitute for professional advice. If you require financial advice or assistance please contact a suitable professional adviser.