A Mindset Switch About… Money as an Expression of Love
Money makes the world go round. As you walk through your daily life, money is often a main character. Most things we need for survival cost money—food, clothing, shelter, etc. Some people would also argue that money buys power, status and prestige. In some cases, people who have more money also have greater access to certain things/people/opportunities. Unfortunately, with the way the world works, people with less money seem to be at a disadvantage in a variety of ways.
Because of this, we value money. We crave jobs with higher salaries, and we aim to purchase cars, homes, electronics, travel experiences, etc. that have a high monetary value. Money is something that we want as much of as possible.
With that in mind, imagine that you are given a check for $1 million. What would you do with it? Would you save it? Invest it? Spend it immediately? Store it away while you make a plan, and then spend it wisely? Would you give any of it away?
In Jesus’ economy, the money mindset is different. People with more money do not necessarily have more status and power. I cannot think of a place in Scripture where Jesus celebrates and commends a rich person because of his or her wealth. Can you? Nowhere do we see Jesus saying, “Blessed are the rich, for they are clearly more important than other people.” Nowhere do we see Him saying, “The amount of money you store up and/or spend on earth will be remembered and recognized in eternity.”
In a parable, or story, about a rich man, this is what Jesus had to say about the man who had selfishly stored up all kinds of possessions and wealth:
- But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” -Luke 12:20-21
But on the other hand, Jesus speaks highly of those who do the exact opposite of storing up financial wealth. He celebrates people who are generous in sharing wealth with others. Here are some of the Bible’s words to/about people exhibiting generosity:
About the poor widow who put two coins into the offering right after rich people were throwing in large amounts, Jesus said:
- “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” -Mark 12:43-44
To the widow of Zarephath who generously made bread for the prophet Elijah with her very last bit of flour and oil, God said through Elijah:
- “The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.” -1 Kings 17:14
To the Shunammite woman who was generously hospitable to the prophet Elisha, God said through Elisha:
- “About this time next year, you will hold a son in your arms.” -2 Kings 4:16
About Mary of Bethany, who anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive oil in a generous demonstration of her love for Him, Jesus said:
- “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” -Matthew 26:10-13
Although the Bible has a LOT to say about generosity and generous people, these four quick examples say enough. In response to generosity, which was often sacrificial, the Bible shares words of honor, celebration, remembrance, provision, abundance and blessing. You will not find a passage of Scripture where someone acted in generosity and then was scolded, punished or chastised by God. While the world tells us it’s better to acquire wealth, the Bible suggests quite convincingly that it’s better to generously give our wealth away.
There is no place for stinginess in the kingdom of God. Imagine if God had been stingy in figuring out a way to offer us redemption from sin… I wonder what that ‘solution’ might have looked like. Maybe He would have offered forgiveness to only some people? Or maybe His gifts of forgiveness and eternal life would have had a price tag on them to be paid by the guilty (which is us). Thankfully, God modeled sacrificial generosity when He sacrificed the very life of His only son. He sent Jesus into the world on our behalf—not because we’d done anything to earn redemption through the blood of Christ, but simply because God loved us. That love was expressed through extreme generosity.
How do you express your love? When you take stock of how you spend your time, energy and money, does it show tangible proof of your love for God? Generosity is rooted in love. I encourage you to stop and reflect on how you’re being generous and/or stingy in different areas of your life. How can you let your love for Jesus be seen through generosity? The world tells us if we give too much away, we won’t have enough left for ourselves. The world also tells us that the more we store up for ourselves, the better off we’ll be. God tells us something different, though. He says:
The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. -Proverbs 11:24
Whose word will you act on? The world’s or God’s? I dare you to be generous and see how God expands your world.