by Elisha Ann Wahlquist, 5/13/06
"[God] bringeth the princes to nothing; He maketh the judges of the earth as vanity…. He shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble." (Isaiah 40:23-24)
At 10:30 p.m., on May 9th, 2006, a tornado ripped through our little town of Westminster. By the grace of God, our home was spared - the tornado missed us by less than two miles! In just a few moments that night, the tornado crunched, smashed, and carried away 35 homes. Practically all the belongings that those families treasured were gone in the blink of an eye. As my family and I viewed the wreckage the next day of flattened homes, denuded and mangled trees, and smashed vehicles, I was forcefully reminded of the futility and foolishness of one of the "gods" of our culture - materialism.
In Christian circles, materialism usually is not as blatant as this definition of a materialist: "One who denies the existence of spiritual substances," [1] but it is there nonetheless. Materialism today says "You deserve it," "This [thing] will make you happy," "Life isn't worth living without…" "Satisfy your personal cravings [by getting this or doing that]," or "Do what feels good [no matter what the long-term results are]." Because we live in a culture steeped in a materialistic worldview, it is easy for us to unknowingly slip into that mindset. But what are some ways that we build our lives on falsehoods, not the truth of God's Word?
We unconsciously base our lives around things. 1 John 2:15-17 says,
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
So we are not supposed to build our lives around the world, but around our relationship with God, His Word, and others - what God says will last! Because material things are what we can touch and see, it is easy for us to think that they are reality, and forget that they are only transient - we can take none of them with us into eternity. We all need the following admonition:
"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)
This reminds me of a quote by C.S. Lewis;
"Hope is one of the Theological virtues. This means that a continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of those things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. The Apostles themselves, who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English Evangelicals who abolished the slave trade, all left their mark on earth, precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since Christians largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth "thrown in": aim at earth and you will get neither…" Christian Behavior, chapter 10
We need to focus our attention on serving God. Our eyes should not be on this perishing earth, but on investing in people and the things that will last.
It is not wrong at all to enjoy the things that God has given us! But when we base our lives upon them, then they become a snare. We are to delight ourselves in the Lord, and to use the talents and material possessions He has given us to glorify and serve Him. By keeping her home clean, orderly, and presentable, a homemaker makes it possible for her husband to fulfill the admonitions in Scripture to be hospitable.[2] As he works alongside his son to build a special cabinet for a sister's birthday, a father is pleasing God by investing in his children and teaching his son to work well with his hands (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12).[3] By creating beautiful artwork or harmonious, orderly music that honors and glorifies God, artists and musicians can use their God-given talents to uplift and rejoice the hearts of others (the Psalms are wonderful examples of an art form being used correctly). And, as a farmer spends time caring for and looking after his livestock to provide for his family, he is obeying Proverbs 27:23-27.[4]
Are you basing your life on things that will perish? Do you treasure the things of this world more than the relationships that will last for eternity? Seek the Lord and His Word in this area. Invest your time and energy in fulfilling what is important to God. Then, as you lay up your treasures in heaven, you will be able to say with righteous Job, "the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD."
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you," (1 Peter 1:3-4)
Footnotes:
[1]. Noah Webster's 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language.
[2]. "Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality." (Romans 12:13), and "A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;" (1 Timothy 3:2)
[3]. "And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing." (1 Thess. 4:11-12)
[4]. "Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds. For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation? The hay appeareth, and the tender grass sheweth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered. The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field. And thou shalt have goats' milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household, and for the maintenance for thy maidens." (Proverbs 27:23-27)
Other verses on the subject:
"…All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: … The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever." (Isaiah 40:6,8)
"Flee, save your lives, and be like the heath in the wilderness. For because thou hast trusted in thy works and in thy treasures, thou shalt also be taken: …. And the spoiler shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape: the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the LORD hath spoken." (Jeremiah 48:6-8)
