Here is why I believe this to be true:
Without Jesus, money is the source of our:
Provision (Money is where I get what I need to survive)
Security (I will be able to protect myself when I have more money)
Status (I am more important if I have more money)
Peace (I won't worry if I had more money)
Joy (I will be happy when I have more money)
Power (I will be able to control things when I have money)
Purpose (the goal in life is to accumulate more money)
Identity (I am who my bank account says I am)
But here's the thing: For us as Christians, God wants to be the source of each of those in our lives. And that is why money is the perfect idol and false God. Because an idol is "anything that takes the place of God in our lives."
When we look to money for any of these things that God wants to be in our lives, we are missing out at best and at worst, living in bondage.
For example, if we are looking to money for our peace, it will never provide the peace that Jesus gives.
Money provides a false sense of peace that can be stolen or robbed at any time. And you and I both know, there are plenty of non-believing multi-millionaires who realize that money didn't bring the peace they hoped.
Or maybe we are looking to our bank account for our identity and allowing our self-worth to be determined by how little or how much we have. That is a terrible way to live when our true identity is in Christ and we are sons and daughters of the living God! That's our true identity!
And so this is the True Financial Freedom that we talk about all the time: Where God is our ultimate source of provision, security, status, peace, joy, power, purpose, and identity.
When we have that right, it doesn't matter whether we have $5 or $5 million in our bank account – we can be living at peace and full of joy, as God sits in His rightful place as our God, and money is dethroned as an idol and instead is a tool that we use to fulfill our purpose and advance the Kingdom.
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