Answers
By BGEA Admin • May 1, 2019 • Topics: Lifestyle, Money, Money
Q:
The loss of my good-paying job has left me feeling desperate as I realize that I was living way over my means and am in debt. Why does the world tell us we can have it all, and why do most people believe it?
A:
From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham
A famous correspondent once said, “America’s greatest sin is materialism.” While sins are not numbered from smallest to greatest, there is no doubt that materialism has overtaken society.
The world tells us that life can be better if we make a lot of money. Society has enthroned the false gods of money, but it does not satisfy. While money in itself is not evil, money takes our minds off God. We put our hopes in materialism and it fails us. Materialism and self-centeredness are the great vices of our age.
No matter how much a person has or does not have, he wants more. Few people today can say as did the apostle Paul, “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Philippians 4:11).
It is significant how much Jesus spoke of money, although He had no personal interest in it. He had become poor that we might through His poverty be rich. He knows that our attitude toward money and things is an accurate gauge of our character and our sense of values. He knew that money can be either a symbol of selfishness or a token of selflessness, depending on the way we use it.
How wonderful it is when we come to understand that God’s truth will lead us out of whatever has trapped us. When we belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, He wants us to cast all our cares on Him. He will guide and teach us. He will grant His wisdom to help us know how to pay the debts we owe, for this glorifies Him.
(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)
