Dear Lighthouse,
Back to Bible-Busters! Just a quick one this week:
Myth #3: The Bible states the following two axioms: “Money is the root
of all evil” and “Cleanliness is next to godliness”.
So, right off you can probably guess that neither
statement is actually found in the Bible; you’re right. The first one is
close, though. Check out I Tim. 6:10,
“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.”
Notice the difference in the actual subject of the sentence. Money is
not evil in and of itself, but it is the love for money that may cause the believer to stray and become ensnared in the world’s
trap. Why? It is because money represents
power and, in our culture, enjoyment. The more money you have the “better
off you are”. So, in an effort to advance and gain more fun, power, and
security in our lives we seek to gain more and more money. At this point, when
money becomes the chief priority and central drive in one’s life, the love for it becomes sin. Jesus makes it clear in Matt. 6:24, “No one can serve two
masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted
to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” Notice, again, the focus here. Jesus
personifies money and sets up a choice between the two. A believer who does not
feel like God can supply all their daily needs, provide for their security, or support them adequately, will turn to another
source for these things – themselves. They begin to think that if they
could just make more money they would be okay. Again, at this point, money becomes
an idol and a god. It is a very unforgiving and uncompassionate god. Money makes its worshippers slaves to work, fear, and resentment.
You will never have enough, you will feel insecure if you have too little or too much, and you will hate what you have
to become to get more. To underscore the point, just look at the verse preceding
I Tim. 6:10, “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and
into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.”
(I Tim. 6:9) And so goes the worshipper of Money – never will he
or she find rest. If you have little you want more. If you have much then you may fall into indulgence and the sins that accompany it. So, choose your God well.
The second statement is not found in the Word
either, but aptly fits the Puritan Movement and the mentality that spurred it and survives still today. Puritans were praised for their neat, tidy, straight-lined farms and communities. The idea was that order and cleanliness could bring about the type of discipline required to translate
that order into the spiritual realm. It didn’t. It’s the same mentality that Jesus exposes in Matt. 15 (that we just covered in Sunday School). Jesus, when asked why His disciples did not wash their hands before eating, responded,
“What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean’,
but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean’.” (Matt. 15:11-11) Then, “But the things that come out of the mouth come from
the heart, and theses make a man ‘unclean’. For out of the heart
come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
These are what make a man ‘unclean’; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him ‘unclean’.” (Matt. 15: 18-20).
So what is next to godliness? Well, the writers Paul and Peter have a lot to say on the subject. Paul
says it’s more important than physical exercise because it has benefits that will last far beyond the grave (I Tim.
4:8). Peter says we’ve been given everything we need (because of Christ)
to achieve godliness and that we should make every effort to attain it (II Peter 1:3-6).
Ironically, and to hone the point to a sharp
edge, the two statements have a common ground that is interesting. If we go back
to I Timothy and look at the context of the whole of Ch. 6, then we find these lines from Paul, “If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and
to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has … constant
friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial
gain. But godliness with contentment is great gain.” (I Tim.
6:5-6)
I found this interesting because it connects
the two thoughts so well. Both statements we’re dealing with are ultimately
about your relationship with the Father. Is He your first and most important
priority? Are you pursuing Him before money?
Do you love Him more than your own self? And the second set of questions
are similar. Is your relationship to the Father merely external or is it a deeper,
internal commitment? Are you more concerned with what the outside looks like
than what is going on within yourself? Are you watching what you eat more than
what you speak? These are tough questions, but good to check yourself on.
Overall, it is important to accurately quote
the Bible if you are going to reference it at all – which you should! If
you devote yourself to daily Bible reading with some amount of care you might find that many things you thought were in there
are not and many things you didn’t expect to find are spelled out plainly. So,
I encourage you to check it out and let’s read together.
But as far as these two statements go…
Bible Myth Busted!
Serving with you,
Evan
