ROOTED - Friday, July 18, 2025
Luke 12:33
33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
Reflection: Roots to Fruit Friday
Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro
There is a debate in Christian circles (and has been for years) as to the value and dangers of money. Leading the charge on the side of warning us of the dangers of money is a pastor and writer named David Platt. I have heard David Platt speak at conferences over the years and he is a dynamic and godly person. I really appreciate his ministry. He loudly warns us of the dangers of money in America (far and away the wealthiest and most prosperous country in the world).
However, I am concerned that he does not balance his teaching with other biblical truths. As many things in the Bible, there are teachings that need to be weighed in balance against other teachings. Let us accept, for example, that in America we consume 60% of the world’s resources and some countries, far larger than ours, consume, say, 5% of the leftovers. The challenge for me is that I also think God has blessed us and we should not feel guilty for the blessings of God. We should rejoice in his blessings. Furthermore, we should not be deceived into believing that merely money is the answer to Third World problems. Societies are far too complex to narrow problems in Africa (as an example) to simply being an outcome of a lack of money. The Word of God teaches us that we should be grateful and not apologize for the blessings of God. And we should share what God has given us to the poor… not out of guilt but out of a heart to bless others. Money is a resource. It is neither good nor bad. We should not feel guilty when we have it nor sad when we do not. Like any resource we have we should use it for the glory of God. We should share it for the glory of God. And we should enjoy it as a blessing for the glory of God. Simple!
Prayer
Lord, may we learn to see our money as a resource of blessing for ourselves and others to the glory of God