Men have always struggled with making money their God, and they always will. There was a guy in Jesus day who struggled with this also, and we have it recorded for us in Luke chapter 12. It gives us a few warning signs that we might be putting money over God.
You know you’re putting money over God if you measure success by how much you own.
So many men do this. Their self-worth is wrapped up in their possessions. But Jesus says that’s greedy and wrong. In the end, life is not measured by that.
Luke 12:13-15 Then someone called from the crowd, “Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father’s estate with me.” Jesus replied, “Friend, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that?” Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”
You know you’re putting money over God if you keep building bigger barns for your stuff.
We all fall into that trap. We store up our possessions here on earth, amassing more and more stuff. But in the end, it’s meaningless. We can’t take it with us beyond this life.
Luke 12:16-19 Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’
You know you’re putting money over God if you invest in your stuff more than your God.
At the end of the day, we have to make a choice. It’s not hard to see where our money is going. The more we keep for ourselves, the less we invest in God and his purposes. We only have so much money.
Luke 12:20-21 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’ “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”
Be real with yourself now, and ask if you’re putting money over God. If so, stop doing it. Jesus called it “foolish”.
Discussion Questions:
- Watch the video together or invite someone to summarize the topic.
- What is your initial reaction to this video? Do you disagree with any of it? What jumped out at you?
- Examine your own life with the list above. Which of the points above are true of you?
- How do you measure your success as a man? How big of a factor is your money or job?
- If you’ve ever moved, how big of a truck did you have to rent? Were you surprised?
- How big was the house you grew up in? How big is your house today? How big do you think your house will be in the future?
- How much money do you invest in the church or missions each month? How does that compare to your other financial obligations? Do you think that’s an indicator of your priorities? Explain.
- Write a personal action step based on this conversation.
