Their land is full of silver and gold; there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots. Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made. Isaiah 2:7-8
“Whenever I see hesitance to trust God surface in someone’s spiritual life, I ask questions. And the first that I ask is whether there is some unacknowledged idol that is inhibiting trust. Money can easily become such an idol. We are accustomed to thinking that it’s our money, and therefore we spend our money in the way that we see fit. We assume that the God who created the known and the unknown subatomic particles that comprise creation is somehow uninterested in the details of our spending.”
Justin Coleman in Saving Grace: Hope-Filled Devotions Along the Way to Financial Well-Being (Nashville: Abingdon, 2020) 77-78.
Is there is an unacknowledged idol in your life called money?
Ask God to reveal this to you. Don’t think for a minute that God does not see the balance of your bank accounts or that He is somehow uninterested in your fixation with the deceitful level of security that wealth promises.
I arrived safely back in Denver late last night. Hear two things related to this today.
I am shouting these ideas in my service around the world because few are willing to proclaim truth about unacknowledged realities. Most want to continue to act like God is uninterested in their stewardship.
Firstly, whatever we hold on to demonstrates where our trust is placed. Where is your trust? If you have a hesitance to trust God, your hands are likely gripping something else, the wrong something else. Let it go.
Secondly, if you know someone in this quandary, with Coleman, ask them questions. Get them thinking about ideas such as: Whose money is it? What does He desire for you to do with it? Where will it be in 100 or 100 million years?
Followers of Jesus are not labeled in Scripture for what they believe but for what they do. Even the demons acknowledge Jesus for who He is. It’s what we do that counts.
What we do it with all God supplies shows where we place our trust.