Christianity and Financial Abundance

I find myself arguing with others on this subject lately.  The conversations usually start the same.  We’re talking about the intriguing story of Jesus Christ.  I always remark about some of the quotes and stories… How Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” [Matthew 7:20, NIV]

The Bible also records the experience of Jesus and Peter, walking on water.  It notes that Peter’s ability to do so required his faith (or belief) that he could, and that it was when he observed the physical things (wind and water) that he let his faith wane and began to sink.  What better story to support the Law of Attraction?

That said, the argument usually ensues when someone suggests that the Bible or Christianity can promote the accumulation of material wealth.  I approach it somewhat cautiously; I don’t want to start an argument.  The truth is, I believe wealth in all areas of life is a good thing, though it might come with accompanying challenges.  And I understand that some may choose to embrace some Bible teachings as valuable, while dismissing others as ancient dogma or possible misunderstandings.  I don’t consider it any of my business to tell them such a policy is wrong.  But…when they actually propound that Christianity, as expressed in the New Testament, promotes material abundance, I just can’t seem to let it go.  I spent an enormous percentage of my life studying the Bible.  And while it’s true that part of that time involved being indoctrinated with the tenets of a particular sect, it’s also true that I became very familiar with the scriptures in general.  Here are some verses that come to mind…

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” [Matthew 6:19-21, NIV]

“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” [Matthew 6:24 & 25, NIV]

People acknowledge these scriptures.  But they suggest that Jesus was not condemning wealth; he was instead merely trying to encourage a proper perspective of it.  Quicker than Joe Vitale can come up with a new marketing concept, they will say, “And remember:  it’s not MONEY that is “the root of all evil,” but the LOVE of money!”

It’s really funny that I find myself in these conversations.  I no longer consider myself a Christian–although I certainly respect the religious beliefs of others and acknowledge some of the positive qualities I now possess as probably coming from my Christian upbringing.  I suppose it has to do with observing people who are (I believe) deceiving themselves.

Some will spend all of their time dissecting the many scriptures that clearly discourage the pursuit of material wealth, and try to find little snippets here and there that might, in some indirect way, prove their point.  And if they can’t find anything substantive in the actual Christian scriptures, they’ll pop back to the Old Testament for a nugget about God promising to “multiply Abraham’s seed,” which to them means he wants us to have lots of money.  Ask them about other Old Testament teachings, which allow for the owning of slaves and putting others to death for working on the sabbath, and they’ll smirk dismissively.  And they will SWIM past verse-after-verse, which expressly dissuades the faithful from pursuing riches, to find anything that can make them feel better about doing so.

I recognize that Christianity, as expressed in the Bible, does not prohibit a person from having material wealth, but my point is that there is no way an honest-hearted person can examine the New Testament and come away with the idea that Jesus Christ wanted us to pursue it.  Neither can you avoid the fact that, at nearly every opportunity, he strongly warned against it.

There is the account at Luke, chapter 16, in which Jesus provides a parable about a rich man and a poor man named Lazarus.  It’s one of those stories that people scratch their heads over, but the gist is that the rich guy went to a place of fiery torment and the poor guy “was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham.” The rich man appeals to Abraham, but is told that he received his good things while on earth, but poor Lazarus evil things.  Now Lazarus was being comforted, but the rich man was in agony, and not a darn thing could be done about it.  The only thing the rich guy can think of is to warn his still-living brothers.  He wants Lazarus to go and caution them, suggesting that seeing a dead man would prove an effective warning.  But Abraham says, “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”

Why is the rich man being punished?  The account doesn’t say that he had been evil; only that he had “dressed in purple and fine linen, and feasted sumptuously every day.” It also mentions that the poor man laid at the rich man’s gate, longing to satisfy his hunger from “what fell from the rich man’s table.” We can certainly conclude that the rich man was being punished–not for being rich, but for failing to give to the poor from his riches.  Fair enough.  But we still cannot deny that Jesus is, yet again, speaking negatively of wealth.  And we certainly can’t use this perspective to conclude that He wants Christians to pursue monetary wealth, can we?

Maybe you can be a Christian and be wealthy.  Fine.  But you can’t use the New Testament of the Bible to suggest that Jesus encourages you to pursue wealth.  Paul, who wrote more New Testament books than any other writer, indicated that the seeking of wealth was a trap.

“People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction… But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.” [1 Timothy 6:9-11, NIV]

What is Bible message about the desire for wealth?  Is it that we should go for it–as long as we proceed with caution?  No.  It distinctly instructs Christians to ‘flee from it’! And it’s kind of ironic, because just as the aforementioned rich man’s brothers would not listen to a risen dead man on this subject, many Christians today will not listen to Jesus, whom they believe has risen from the dead, and who is the leader of their own religion.  They keep trying to find ways to justify somehow, some way, that it’s okay to focus on material wealth–and still be a zealous Christian.

“Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” [Matthew 19:24, NIV]

“Ahhh, but it doesn’t say it’s impossible, now does it?!”

Sigh… To be clear, I want you to have wealth.  Emotional wealth, spiritual wealth, relationship wealth, and even material wealth…  If, like me, you simply enjoy reflecting upon and discussing what’s in the Bible, more power to you!  If you believe that, among many good things, the Bible may also contain teachings that are based upon misunderstandings–or that have been altered by possibly well-intentioned humans over the years–but that it’s still something sent to you by God, I understand.  Further, if you believe in a form of Christianity that does not require the use of the Bible, I nod respectfully.  But, if you consider the Bible to be the inspired Word of God and the final word regarding the Christian faith, to ignore all it has to say about wealth, while still choosing to believe that biblical Christianity encourages the pursuit of money, is an exercise in self-delusion.

I’m aware that some might not appreciate this–or be ready for it, so I’ll just ask for your understanding.  In the last few years I’ve come into a new way of comprehending the world, which includes the Law of Attraction and other related concepts I see as universal truths.  Unlike the culture I once embraced, which was marked by judgmentalism, I have finally realized the peace of not expecting everyone to agree on all matters…of true freedom of thought and expression.  But I’ve also seen the wisdom in releasing our attachment to unhealthy, untrue and limiting beliefs, and it’s in this spirit I have offered this piece.

If you’d care to point out what I’m missing here, I assure you, I’m open to your comments.  Do you believe that New Testament Christianity not only allows for the pursuit of financial wealth, but encourages it?  Do you believe your case for it is stronger than the case made against it?  I await your replies.

God?

It occurred to me, during the third Law of Attraction Success Stories interview, that I’d like to ask each person, “Do you believe in God?”

The responses have been very interesting (at least to me.)  But it addresses something that most of us have to contend with when we begin to embrace a new understanding of The Universe.  Can we harmonize the LoA with our former religious beliefs?  Must we turn our backs on them, or at least modify them?

I’m aware that for most, this may not be an extraordinary challenge.  In considering the experiences of many of my friends, it seems clear that–even when they come from “religious” households–changing their worldview doesn’t produce substantive upheaval in their lives.  They may have incredible, eye-opening experiences, they may reset former patterns of thought, but most people don’t have a difficult time releasing previous beliefs that they didn’t feel too strongly about anyway.

For some of us, it’s an entirely different matter.  If you’ve read my About page, you know that I was born into the third generation of a religious organization that I now recognize isn’t what it claimed to be.  (And it only claimed to represent the sole channel of communication from Almighty God to all of humankind…nothing major.)  I’ve given it some thought and decided (at least for now) not to identify this organization here–although I reserve the right to do so at a later time.  I don’t want this to be about my former religion, and I don’t find it necessary to expend a lot of energy, shining the spotlight on it.

But my point is that, since I was so deeply involved in a religion that most would agree subscribes to a variety of rather extreme viewpoints, it was not something that I could easily sidestep.  I had to deal with it.  There was no allowance, in my former faith, to (for instance) consider oneself an actual extension of The Divine.  God was God–and you were you, and suggesting anything else was nothing less than blasphemy.

In my first podcast, I spoke about readjusting my former understanding of God as being “that chubby guy hanging in the clouds.” I say that because that’s how I always pictured him.  Yep, I had a very clear picture of a mostly bald, bespectacled, rotund and smiling older man.  What’s funny is that, at some point in my teen years, I was looking through my parents’ old photo album and saw the man (apparently a friend of the family) whose exact image I’d evidently borrowed for my concept of The Creator.

“Holy crap, it’s Jehovah!”

Did I just give it away?

Anyway, as I scanned through Google Images for an artist’s rendering of God, I didn’t really find any “chubby guys.”  In fact most were powerful, athletic images that looked like something chiseled by Michelangelo.  As you see, I settled on one that obscured “His” physicality.  The point?  Not only might we all have had different mental images of God, but these images–and even our understanding of His/Its nature–has both evolved and may continue to evolve.

If you’re planning to connect with me in one of the cities I’ll be traveling to, I hope you won’t mind if I ask you this question.  And, rest assured, I won’t mind whatever you say!

And what about the rest of you?  How exactly has your understanding of God changed?  Do you still use the word, “God,” or is there some other word you prefer?  Do share…