MCC Podcasts
Working It Out - Wealth
If money is a world's curse, may the Lord smite me with it, and may I never recover? I've always loved that line in that movie. Today we're going to focus on wealth, but specifically regaining perspective on wealth. There are plenty of people in this room who would identify with Tevya and who would love to have that curse and who would love to have the opportunity to never recover from it. In fact, some of us actually believe that financial wealth is the ultimate blessing of God, not simply a blessing of God, the ultimate blessing of God. And even those of us who would say conceptually, I don't believe that, emotionally we sort of live that. We're jealous, we're envious, we're feeling insecure, and we have all sorts of pain because of that. And that attitude is a huge problem. Today, again, the emphasis, not just about wealth, but gaining biblical perspective on wealth. We're going to be further exploring the contentment theme that Pastor Jeff introduced last week in his message. And if you haven't seen or heard Jeff's message from last week, please go online to the website, click on messages, and listen to last week's message. As is always the case, it was excellent. But what he introduced from 1 Timothy chapter 6 was this idea of contentment. And Jeff, in effect, defined contentment as being satisfied with having Jesus, recognizes that when you have relationship with Christ, you have all you need in life really to make life happy, to make life full. When we talk about contentment, we're actually talking about the doctrine or the issue of enoughness. We're not talking about no longer achieving, so we have to correct right now what we're thinking about. Contentment is not about passivity. It's not about the absence of a desire to achieve and to excel. We're talking, though, about no longer comparing in that pursuit, in that practice of achieving, no longer envying, no longer striving, being content, recognizing that ultimately when we have Christ, when we have God, when we have the vision of God, the agenda of God, the plan of God, the objectives of God, and the privilege of relationship with Him, and then the pursuit of those objectives in that dream, we can be content. We have everything that matters. Now, it's one thing to talk about contentment, another thing completely to experience contentment. One thing to believe in contentment, not our heads when we talk about contentment as enoughness, and God is enough, but an entirely different thing to acquire it, to experience it, especially in counties like Marin County, because all around us is the opposite message, isn't it? All around us is you don't have enough, you're not enough, you don't matter enough, you're not really valuable, and there's this striving, this delicate jealousy that we deal with. Today's text talks not only about what contentment is, but it also thankfully gives us some access to it. It says here's some help for experiencing the kind of contentment that's introduced. Let's read the text. We're going to be reading from 1 Timothy 6, some of this overlaps with Jeff's message from last week, but we're building on that and moving forward to the question he introduced. How? How do we get there? Would you stand please for the reading of God's Word? We'll read from 1 Timothy 6, 6, and go to 10, and then jump down to verse 17. "Godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it, but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." In verse 17, "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant, nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, to be generous and willing to share. In this way, they will lay up treasures for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age so that they may take hold of the life that's really life." May God add His blessing to His Holy Word, His fully inspired message to us. Let me go ahead and be seated. Not only the introduction of contentment, but some help in that text for how to experience contentment. What we're going to do is just move through that text, and I want to give you two or three specific instructions, very practical, helpful instructions. This happens to be an area in my life that's been receiving quite a lot of attention over the last couple of decades as a follower of Christ, contentment. It's as though the Holy Spirit, when I'm praying and thinking and studying, keeps asking me this one question, "Art, when will I be enough for you? When will we end this dance where you have to have Jesus plus a little something else to feel valuable, to feel fulfilled, to be content?" So this was a delicious study for me, and these things that Paul points out to Timothy, I've found to be workable. They actually help. It's not easy, they're not simple, they're complex. But in terms of spiritual development and the internal work that it takes to experience contentment, these help very much. How do we experience it? Here's the first one. The first step that Paul talks about is this. We need to learn to discern the decimal point. In other words, we need to be able to see the true value of things. What's really worth a lot and what is not really worth much? I used to have a Greek professor, Dr. Kaufman, one of his favorite sayings to young pastors in seminary as we were studying Greek, launching into the pastoral ministry with eyes wide open was this. Always know where to put the decimal point. Those are going to come at you as you're leading your churches, come at you as you're functioning as a pastor, and they're going to feel heavier than they actually deserve to feel. Always know where to put the decimal point. What's the true value of things? Brynn and I, on vacation several months ago, were listening to some books on tape, and we revisited a book that we had both read in high school, at least I did, I think she did too. George Orwell. That book, 1984, remember that strange book? It was strange in high school, but it was even more strange and awkward feeling actually as adults, you know, older adults reading that book because in that book Orwell's describing a community where truth is actually seen as a lie and what's a lie is actually seen as truth, people have no ability to see things as they actually are or for what they really are, and there's total emotional and sociological chaos in a community like that because they don't know where to put the decimal point. More recently the movie The Matrix, remember in the movie The Matrix, this is what, ten or fifteen years ago now this movie came out? You have the blue pill and the red pill, and if you take the blue pill in the movie The Matrix, that allows you to continue to see the illusion as reality, but if you take the red pill, which is illegal, if you take the red pill, which you have to find underground, the red pill allows you to see things as they actually are in The Matrix. Remember that part? Here's what contentment is about, the first step toward achieving it, discern the decimal point, know the true value of things or always swallow the red pill. We understand this concept, we're better at this than you might realize. For instance, even though we struggle living into it and act as though it's not true, we all know that respect has greater value than prestige. We tend to yield to prestige, it's a quick fix, but the fact is respect is worth more than prestige, we know this. Substance is worth more than celebrity. Celebrity is public recognition, can't have little or nothing to do with the level of character and the person that's recognized. Substance is actually worth more than celebrity, we will often choose celebrity over substance, but we're choosing that which is of lesser value, we know this inherently, right? We know that being honorable is worth more than being comfortable, but honor is costly. Comfort happens easily, sometimes with great pain, but in us, I'm arguing, we already have the understanding of where the decimal point should go, and we know that it's not always in the same place. Here in this text, we're told, in effect, you know what, content is actually worth more than capital, contentment is worth more than most of the things for which we trade it. Verse 6, God, he's talking about some people considered in verse 5, people are thinking that guidance is a form of financial gain, and Jeff dealt with that well last week. He says in verse 6, "Godliness with contentment is actually of great gain," now this is in contrast to a focus exclusively on financial gain, and then he says in verse 7, "We brought nothing into the world, we can take nothing out of it," so he's offering perspective here, and we all say, yeah, actually intellectually, that's logical and that's right, emotionally, I'm not feeling it, but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. The same idea is expressed by Paul in another letter where he says, "I have learned to be content in all things," whether I'm experiencing all sorts of abundance or lack. They have no effect on my level of contentment. We'll be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and all kinds of things that harm them. The love of money is a root of all sorts of evil. Some people hungry for that have actually gone off the deep end and even left the faith. He's arguing discernment is of greater value than capital even, contentment is a greater value than capital. He's saying that contentment is greed's grip tonight. When you're content, when your pockets are already full, but what I mean is your emotional pockets, your spiritual pockets, your longing for purpose in life, knowing what you're about, your heart is already full. When your pockets are full, they're less susceptible to the dictates of greed, the fear that comes. I'll never have enough. I don't measure up. I'm not enough of a person. I'm not respected enough. People are going to think, "less of me if I do this or do that or don't have this or don't have that." We all know inherently that that is the road to emotional and spiritual poverty, yet we're still susceptible to it. Hello, am I the only one? Contentment, if we can acquire it, is greed's grip tonight. It buckles the needs of greed. There's no room for insecurity to dominate when I know I'm already full, when I'm cherished and valued by the one who created me. Now that's easy to talk about, not that easy to experience, but we need to get down the road to it. Contentment is not only greed's grip tonight, it's faith's coworker. When contentment is freedom, the whip is pulled out of the hands of all of those insecurities that tend to beat up on us and drive us. It's greed's grip tonight, it's faith's coworker, it's of great value. One of the steps toward acquiring that, experiencing that, knowing that is to discern the decimal point, know the true value of things, take the red pill. And let me tell you, man, the value of things in God's economy and the value of things in the economy that is our context are drastically different. We have a propensity to love to receive from God what God wants to give us, but not to yield to the values, the definitions, the placement of the decimal point that God wants to give us. And that's not to induce guilt in us, but it is to invite us into a journey, a radical journey of turning things upside down, but actually right side up. Know the value of things. Until that happens, we'll never experience contentment. In this journey, the warning is don't go on an adventure in search of gold and fill your hands on your pockets with pyrite, full scope. It glimmers, it looks like gold, it's heavy in the pan, but it's worthless. That's the caution that Paul's offering in this first step toward contentment, discerning the decimal point, second step. It's found in the first part of verse 17, where he says, "Command those who are rich in this present world," and then he goes on with specific instructions. We discern the decimal point, second step, discover the variety. In other words, learn to see that there is more than one expression of wealth. There are actually many expressions of wealth. Here's why we're stuck, because we think there's really only one expression of wealth, and that's financial wealth. Even when we're saying, well, but other things are also valuable, but they're really sort of wealth, one A, one B, one C, one D. I actually prefer to say, "May the Lord smite me with it, and may I never recover," that one kind of wealth. They'll never be the experience of contentment until we recognize there are many expressions of wealth, and the Bible from cover to cover is trying to send us this message. It's certainly right here. Learn to see that there's more expression of wealth, and it's sort of implied in that first part of verse 17 that I read. Then those who are rich in this present world implies that there are forms of wealth other than financial wealth. So you have a descriptor of this present world, kind of descriptor of the wealth, as this is the form of wealth we're talking about, the kind of wealth that is wealth measured by this present world, financial wealth primarily, and things related to it. But the fact that he goes out of his way to describe that implies or assumes that there are other expressions of wealth, other kinds of wealth. You see the logic of that? So here, this specific group of people who happen to have this expression of wealth give them this instruction, but we understand it goes without saying, there are other kinds of wealth as well. He's not the only one, Paul, who's making that point. In Luke chapter 12, this is a list of mile long of these examples, but here are just a few of them. In Luke chapter 12 at verse 21, this is how it says, this is how it will be with those who store up things for themselves, but are not what, rich toward God, different kind of wealth, rich toward God. In Luke 16, so if you have not been trustworthy and handling worldly wealth, which is always buzzword for finance or that kind of wealth, gold, diamonds, whatever, who will trust you with, oh, this is sweet, true riches. Oh, well, substantial wealth, other than worldly wealth. James 2, listen, my dear brothers and sisters, has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world, poor in the way Marin County measures poverty, to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him. And then here in 1 Timothy 6, 18. He says, of those who happen to be rich in this present world, command them to do good and to be what, rich in good deeds. You discern the decimal point, but then discover the variety, learn to see that there is more than one expression of wealth, and here's the tricky part, because so far we can all nod our heads, here's the tricky part, grow the level of maturity that you can actually give equal value to all of those expressions of wealth, not stack them, equal value to all of them. Here are the facts. The fact is, wrestle with this a little bit, every single human being on the face of the earth has tremendous wealth, everyone in some measure, and always with that understanding is this understanding, equal to it, can't be separated, and every single human being on the face of planet earth has enormous poverty. Trick is, how do I find my expression of wealth and address someone else's poverty with it and equal to that? How do I find my poverty and align myself with somebody's expression of wealth to address my poverty? And there's this reciprocal movement toward health that's going on. So we discern the decimal point. Let's remember what's really valuable and what's trash compared to it. And let's discover the variety, learn to see that there's more than one expression of wealth. Revalate, we can't go into this, it would take us all day. This is worthy of a seminar itself. Everyone has profound poverty. I mean I referenced Revelation 3 in reference to that, but there are a quote, "revalations 3 in reference to that," you think you are rich, but you are actually what, very poor. There's that understanding being worked out as the church is addressed. So we all have tremendous wealth, we all have profound poverty. Now we have to be careful with that because you can use those facts to justify ongoing greed and oppression with their wealth, oh good, cool. We all have tremendous wealth, we all have tremendous poverty, I'm very happy with me keeping my form of wealth and you have any other kind of wealth. So we have to be careful with that understanding. And also remember we have tremendous poverty and we live life with humility. So Brendan and I are thinking about what's our version of wealth? And we've had this discussion, we think that we have, now you could apply this individually and also as couples, but we think we are relationally wealthy. We think for whatever reason, God has decided to give us relational wealth, wealth of friendships that, well it really is matched by very few people that we need, I don't mean to boast about that, it just happens to be something we're blessed with. We don't know very many people that have as many rich life-giving friendships, relationships as we have and we love that, it's got nothing to do with anything we earned, God gave it to us. We're wealthy relationally, it just happens to be the way life works out. I'm not going to speak for her in terms of poverty, I'll speak for me. I've been searching this question, Lord what is my poverty, my primary poverty? Because I'm pouring a lot of ways. And I think, I think my primary form of poverty might be I have a poverty of joy, I'm a feeler. So everything that I experience goes right to my heart and sometimes painful ugly things that I see and experience robbed me of my ability to have joy, I'm not naturally inclined to a light heart, it's a bit of melancholy in me. And that is one of the expressions of my poverty. So I want to address that poverty and I get around my friend to whom I was addicted, John, to help me have a little more joy. And I want to maximize my wealth and use our friendships and relationships and how can we use those for the kingdom of God. Does that make sense? I hope it makes sense, you'd be thinking about that. Every human being on earth has profound wealth and profound poverty. So we discern the decimal point, remember what's really a value and what isn't. Take the red bill and then we discover the variety, there are different forms of wealth and they're equal, they're equally valuable in God's economy. And then there's this last step that Paul mentions. The last part of verse 17 and through the end of the text, through the end of 19, discern the decimal point, discover the variety of expressions of wealth and then deploy what you discover. He picks on to make his example those who are wealthy by the common definition of wealth, by a financially wealthy, that's the most measurable, so he wants to make his point. But this is true of any expression of wealth, but he wants to point out, now those who are financially wealthy, for instance, watch out, here's what I want you to pay attention to, deploy your wealth, give from your wealth. In other words, do good with the wealth you have, the wealth you have, whether it's financial or emotional or relational, whatever it might be, educational, whatever it might be. God gives it to us not primarily or exclusively for our benefit, take that wealth and invest it somehow in the good intentions God has for all of creation. So if I have, as many of us do, a wealth of education or a wealth of insight, I am to enjoy that, that's great, but I'm to be employing that, deploying that somehow for the good God wants to do in the world. Here he's saying if you happen to have financial wealth, great, enjoy life, there's nothing wrong with that, we're to the point where we say either we have to despise an envy and hate financial wealth or get all caught up in it and be obsessed with it. And God just doesn't see things that way, there's nothing right or wrong with it, only the way it's acquired and the way it's used. Deploy it, use it. He says of those who are financially wealthy, wealthy according to this world, be wealthy and good works too, be careful not to let that stuff define you and own you, define you and own you because your financial wealth is given to you for divine purpose. Enjoy the use of it, what a blast. Instruct these folks not to be arrogant or to put their hope in their version of wealth. That's uncertain that wealth, but to put their hope in God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment, command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds and to be generous and willing to share and they're going to lay up for themselves real wealth. As a firm foundation for the coming age, these treasures so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. People come to the wealthy and say this is the life, I would not really, this is a tool, this is the means we have to finding life and helping other people find life. This is our contribution, this is our wealth, here's what's truly life. Once we realize what things are really worth, once we discover our version of wealth and importantly, get to the point where we don't think our wealth is worth less than somebody else's or more than somebody else's, our expression of wealth. And we are aware of that and then we deploy it, we use it for good, we all have the same goal to serve God in his purposes on earth. There's a chance at contentment. I don't just say this out of philosophical hope. I can tell you, I'm actually experiencing some growth in this area. Less and less and less is my life run and informed and dominated by my insecurities. Not there, never will get there, but this stuff has worked for me and it should because it's scripture, of course it's worked. In that same musical, Tevya sings several songs and he starts out, worried about finances and trying to give the best life, his young daughter is going to marry laser wolf who's the butcher, oh joy, you know, and she's, everything is going to be good because he has financial wealth. Like that's the answer to everything. He also sings early on in the song, if I were a rich man, remember that one? If I were a rich man, never that. I love it, he's in his barn all by himself and he goes, and his little tassels are flying everywhere and he's shaking and the dust is flying and everything is a bit crescendo. But in that song he says things like this, if I were a rich man, you know what happened? I'd have, I'd have geese in the front yard, not the way we measure wealth today. I'd have chickens everywhere, it's just crowing and people would walk by and they would hear the geese and see the chickens and see all the livestock and they would say, oh, in that house lives a wealthy man, like that's all that matters. That's what Tevya is. I would have servants, I wouldn't have to work hard. By the end of the musical, he's stopped bemoaning the fact that he does not have the curse for which he longs. God has not smited him, he's fully recovered, if God has. By the end of the musical, Tevya comes to grips with the fact that he actually is a wealthy man. He has greater wealth than the wealth for which he longed early on because he has honor. He has faith. He's not willing to sell out the joy of his daughters because of social pressure. He realizes he's wealthy because he's loved. Remember the song he sings to his wife, "Do you love me?" She says, "What do you mean do I love you? What a crazy question. I've been washing your socks, I've been fixing your food." When they work through this discourse, "Yeah, but do you love me?" Which was a crazy question at the beginning of the play. She at the end says, "Come to think of it in tune, I guess I do love you." Then the resolve, he says, "I think I love you too." That's the discovery of wealth. He's loved, he loves his family, and he lacks nothing he truly needs. That's Tevya. Fither on the roof is about marriage, it's about Jewish life and community, it's about love, it's about family, it's about faith, but it's ultimately a story about contentment. It's about riches and how to gain a life, giving perspective on them again, "Oh, have we ever floated in the wrong direction." The poison we drink when we lose perspective. Fiddler on the roof is about discovering not the curse of wealth, but the true definition of wealth. We have a couple of minutes left before I'm going to dismiss you, and I want to do this with it. Give you a chance for a moment to reflect, but we're not going to reflect in order to get this all settled done, taken care of, and then on to lunch. This is an opening of a door. Take a moment and reflect on a couple of questions that I'll have put up on the board there, on the screen. And see this as an invitation to dwell on this, to simmer with this question, launch into a week of thought. What is my primary form of wealth? Start thinking about that, and along with it, what's my primary form of poverty, and am I humble enough to admit it? How might God want me to deploy that wealth, to maximize it for the good He wants to do in the world with it? Where am I jealous of someone else's expression of wealth, Lord? How do you want to deal with that? Can you deal with that? Might I please take steps toward contentment and the freedom that's always attached to it? Take a moment, just a moment in silence, think about that, that I encourage you to keep I've been thinking about it for a while. [BLANK_AUDIO]