40 The Problem with Money

The problem with riches is the self-sufficiency they create which frequently turn people away from God. They just don’t see the need for God when they have anything they can imagine acquiring. So what the wealthy view as abundance actually is deficiency. They don’t realize their ultimate end and can’t see the Kingdom of God. It is as if a blinder has been drawn over their genuine needs. So if they persist in this view to the end of their life they lost the greatest prize of all, salvation in Christ Jesus, Heaven, and the Kingdom.

The disciples knew that the wealthy and influential Pharisees loved money (Luke 16:14) and wanted to lord it over them. They were also aware of the prevailing view of the time that riches were a sign of God showing favor toward someone. So they were astonished at his words. In fact He repeated them. This was very difficult to understand. This is because the Pharisees who thought that they were surely on their way to the Kingdom trusted in their money. So with the prevailing attitude toward wealth they must have thought the rich young ruler was a prime candidate for the Kingdom. When he went away empty handed and sad at Jesus’ words they were amazed. This sad picture of a wealthy young man exchanging eternal life for some temporary materialism was what provoked Jesus to explain the situation to them.