Buried with Christ
27th Mar 26 | 13:38
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LUKE 19 1-10 SEEKING TO SAVE THE LOST 06 The church must be free from the love of money
📖 Luke 19:1-10
20Nov2020 - *The church must be free from the love of money* - _Luke 19:1-10_ - SEEKING TO SAVE THE LOST 6 – Bible reading: _I Timothy 6:6-10_
_Luke 19:2-4 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. (3) And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. (4) So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way._
Let us keep in mind that Zacchaeus had no intention to let go of his attachment to materialism or greed. This was his life and he had no apology over the philosophy of mammon that he worshipped.
Nevertheless, Zacchaeus was curious about Jesus, because his riches, his power and his position had not filled the emptiness in his heart.
This was the common identity between Zacchaeus and the Rich Young Ruler. Both of them knew that there was a lack within them. Both of them were conscious that their riches, their status in life, their power was not giving them the deep fulfilment that their heart desired.
The Rich Young Ruler was acutely aware of what he needed, to fill the barrenness of his life, and so he very specifically asked Jesus what he must do to have eternal life.
_Mark 10:17 Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" Matthew 19:16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"_
Zacchaeus, in contrast, had not yet reached this point in his life journey to be conscious of what he was lacking.
When we are seeking to save the lost, we must understand that people will be at different points in their life journey. Some may be very specific, as the Rich Young Ruler was, but most others may not even be able to pinpoint their need.
However, let us be certain, that all people who are not in the breath to breath relationship with God, are at a place of dryness in their life and our task is to bring them to Jesus, the life-giving stream. Our task is to seek and save the lost.
It is obvious, that unless we ourselves are being nourished and fed with the fullness of Jesus, we will not be able to sense the bankruptcy in the lives of people around us neither will we be able to lead them to our Lord Jesus, the bread of life.
It was to a man, such as Zacchaeus, that the Lord was reaching out. There are people such as Zacchaeus all around us. The church must demonstrate, through its culture of the kingdom, that we do not worship mammon.
Sadly, what we see in us is that though we claim to worship God, in our hearts, it is the attachment to money that is driving us. We have somehow equated ministry to activities that we do. We have prescribed for ourselves several non-negotiable actions that claim that we are in a relationship with God and that we are seeking the lost.
The frightening reality is that we have mastered the art of living the Christian life externally but in our hearts, it is the love of money that is driving our choices and decisions.
Look at your life, dear friend. Take a hard look at all the choices, both the major and minor ones, that you and your family have made, over time, and ask yourself, “What was the basis of those choices that me and my family made?”
I will say, that for the majority of us in the church, the basis of most of our choices was simply mammon and nothing else.
_Ezekiel 33:31 So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain._
This is the reason why Apostle Paul was admonishing Timothy to teach the church on the danger of attachment to money. The attachment to money will cause us to stray away from our faith. If this is our status, how will we seek and save the Zacchaeuses around us?
_I Timothy 6:6-10 Now godliness with contentment is great gain. (7)
For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. (8) And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. (9) But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. (10) For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows._
*Thought to ponder*
```God’s heart breaks, looking at the hypocrisy of so many Christians, and the Lord, in these end times, is refining the church to love Him with all our heart.```