The enemy and the world says, ‘chase money, and success at any cost,’ but the Bible says otherwise.

1 Timothy 6:9–11 says, “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, endurance, and gentleness.”

I get it, money is a prerequisite to living and without it life would be extremely difficult. However, my point today is that money should not be the center of your life. When you chase after Jesus, the right doors will always open. However, chasing money will lead down a winding road.

To my seasoned saints, do you remember the song, For the Love of Money, by the O’Jays? It talks about people doing all sorts of things for the mighty dollar. Changing genres, Curtis James Jackson III (aka) 50 Cent debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin’ smashed the billboards and according to RIAA as of 2020 this album is certified 9x Platinum. With that said, you can’t convince me that money chasing isn’t a problem in all economic and social classes.

It’s truly unfortunate to see people spend their entire life chasing after money and fame. People literally clutch at these straws, thinking they are their only means of support, as if by having them they could keep on living, could exempt themselves from death. But only when they are close to dying do they realize how distant these things are from them, how weak they are in the face of death, how easily they shatter, how lonely and helpless they are, with nowhere to turn. They realize that life cannot be bought with money or fame, that no matter how wealthy a person is, no matter how lofty his or her position is, all people are equally poor and inconsequential in the face of death. They realize that money cannot buy life, that fame cannot erase death, that neither money nor fame can lengthen a person’s life by a single hour, a single minute, or a single second.

Family and friends, the enemy wants us to chase money because he knows that whatever we chase becomes our god. In Matthew 6 we find Jesus teaching his disciples on this very same subject matter. He said in v24, “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.” Then he brings it home in v33, “Seek [chase]the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

I know I am preaching to the choir for most of you who live by the Dave Ramsey’s proven plan for financial success, but please make note that most if not all of his financial strategies are built on proven biblical money principles.

Fact is, God’s word shows us a clear way to practice. If we wanted to shun the enemy’s and the world’s wicked temptations and say farewell to our old life of exchanging life for money, then we must let go of wrong life pursuits and no longer live by the enemy’s and world’s fallacies, but instead conduct ourselves as God’s people and walk the onward path in light and in sync of God’s words!

In all honesty, I can truly say, ‘I’ve been there and through my own personal experiences, I saw that my previous outlook on life, which was that I considered money to be life, was actually the enemy and the world toying with me!! It was a chain the enemy and the world had put on me, a nothingness that was gone in the twinkling of an eye. In the time I have left to me, I thought, I can no longer allow myself to fall into the enemy’s and the world’s cunning schemes. I am made by God and I should seek to worship God and obey God and live under God’s sovereignty and guidance. Only that is a life with a genuine future and true value.

Most people will say pursue purpose, but how can one pursue purpose if they don’t first pursue the One that authored it!