3. A Minister’s Healthy Mindset
First of all, the celestial should be occupying a whole lot more of his thoughts than earthly riches and such.
No person can enter heaven if he harbors the sin of Covetousness
Matt 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Mammon is riches, economic power. This is the idol that opposes God, and it is a deceptive thing that overpowers your life to become your god without you noticing it.
Matt 19:23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. Matt 19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Mark 10:23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! Mark 10:24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! Mark 10:25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Our understanding of riches is that those who seek to become rich are usually not even saved, despite what they consider themselves to be. Riches are a spiritual enemy that wars against our soul. Christ says that it is almost impossible for a rich man to be saved. He must attack his riches as an evil spiritual influence in his life, and he must out give what the tendency of gathering and retaining riches in his life is pushing for.
1Cor 6:10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
Eph 5:5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
When this character trait overcomes a person, it is idolatry against God. Do not be deceived. You cannot highly esteem riches and money, and more specifically, the high desiring of them, whether you actually obtain them or not is not important, it is the desiring and organizing your life around obtaining them as a priority of your life, that is the sin here.
The deceptiveness of Riches.
Earthly riches do not give real satisfaction. They do not last. They always without exception waste away and disappear. (Isa 55:1-2). Only the spiritual is eternal, and only the spiritual can give eternal satisfaction. Only in heaven will we have joy everlasting.
John 16:22 And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.
Having money is not necessarily a sin, but the constant desire to have money and more money so as to fulfill your desires and lusts is a sin. Every man is to work to fulfill his own basic needs, his daily bread. But at some point, there is a line that crosses his basic needs into luxuries, and when your heart gets even more agitated over those things, your God is your covetousness.
If you measure how much time and energy and resources you spend on your relationship with God versus doing everything else to sustain life, you will get an idea. A godly person will work hard and long and then stop. He has done his best, and then he goes home and forgets work, and reflects on his God.
More articles of Interest
Covetousness attracts and drags other sins into your life
The excessive desire to enjoy things is a sin that will allow and empower other sins in your life.
1Tim 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.
The “love of money”, not necessarily money, is the evil here. This high driving desire is what causes the problem. It overwhelms the life and reaches its black sin into all corners of life if you allow it to do so.
This sin is so dangerous that God commands us to cut off fellowship with Christians who manifest this in their life. The intent is that they are false Christians, people