HAS COMMERCIALISM CHANGED THE CHURCH?
Gospel Reading: Matthew 8:28-34
The entire town came out to meet Jesus. When they caught sight of him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood. v. 34
Jesus Christ is not always good for business. If we let him cast all the demons out of our life, we may have to change our way of earning a living. If Jesus changes our personal morality, then he will also affect our business.
Jesus said, "You cannot give yourself to God and money. I warn you, then: do not worry about your livelihood ... Seek first his kingship over you, his way of holiness, and all these things will be given you besides."
DON'T LOVE THE WORLD OR ITS THINGS
Christianity cannot be compromised by commercialism. Yes, we must live in the world, but we must never be of the world. Jesus prayed to his Father, "I do not ask you to take them out of the world, but to guard them from the evil one. They are not of the world, any more than I belong to the world." The Apostle John wrote, "Have no love for the world, nor the things that the world affords. If anyone loves the world, the Father’s love has no place in him, for nothing that the world affords comes from the Father."
SHARE YOUR WEALTH WITH THE POOR
It is not only the spiritual dimension of detachment from possessions that makes Jesus a threat to our materialistic and commercial world. It is also his practical teaching about sharing our wealth with the poor. Our present expression of Christianity is a far cry from what was advocated by Jesus and the Apostles.
SPIRITUALITY OR COMMERCIALISM?
The selling of religious books, tapes, and records and the financing of large media and crusade ministries definitely affect many of our decisions in the church that would should be made by spiritual standards alone. Yes, God can work through these externals to manifest and accomplish his will, but economy should not dictate spirituality. Rather, spirituality should affect economy.
We must decide which door to choose: the door of spirituality or the door of commercialism. If we choose wrongly, we and perhaps the entire world, will perish.
John Michael Talbot
1 comments:
This is the great debate. I often struggle with it unknowingly. I travel to villages in Ghana and other places and am very comfortable there. During church services, people know the songs by heart and in their hearts. They don't have to rely on hymnals. Life is simples, less distractions. When I come home to the US, I often experience culture shock even though I lead a simple lifestyle. Yet, if He calls me to full time inistry abroad, I wonder, "What will I do with my stuff?' It shouldn't even be a question. After all, it is His.
Thanks for the food for thought.
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