For the Love of Money They Have Erred From the Faith - 1 Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Man has a dual nature, a physical and a spiritual. Our physical side has needs without which it will die: such as food, sleep, etc. Our spiritual side also has needs without which it will also die such as prayer, worship and the word of God. This dual nature is the essence of our test in this life - since one can only think one thing and hardly do more than one thing at a time, our thoughts and pastimes are a very good indicator of where our heart is.

A man whose every waking moment is focused on making money, climbing the corporate ladder and business dealings is truly starving his spirit. Yet as man becomes more spiritual, he realizes that he can easily survive, nay thrive, without focusing on material things. As the Lord said: "seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you".

The fact is, we must have material things, albeit very few, to survive. But survival should not be our focus. When we can shift our focus from those base things that have no life, to eternal life, we find that the worries of "making a living" fall into the background and what's left is a much richer and fulfilling life. Again the Lord said: "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

When God said "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread", He was saying that we have to work for our living. But he was not saying that working for a living was the purpose of our existence. Rather, it is a necessary evil, a part of the test, a distraction as it were, to prove us whether we will focus on the means or the end of our existence.

Another point that needs to be made here is that our labors should mostly be for the good of others, not for ourselves. "laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish." Since we must all work, the question is really; What are you working for? Mammon or God, money or Zion, generosity or selfishness, carnal or spiritual, terminal life or eternal life?

Choose you this day whom ye will serve; ... but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15