Monday January 8
We don’t need the Bible to teach us one obvious truth: the cares of this life and its riches are temporary. Nothing here lasts, and certainly not long either. As Paul said: “We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). Christians have myopic vision when they are fixated on the cares of this world rather than on the path to heaven. And few things can blind their eyes to that path more than the deceitfulness of riches. Helen Keller, who was blind, said: “The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.” The Bible is filled with examples of those who could see but were, indeed, spiritually blind.
“Some love this world so much that it swallows up their love for the truth. As their treasures here increase, their interest in the heavenly treasure decreases. The more they possess of this world, the more closely do they hug it to them, as if fearful their coveted treasure would be taken from them. The more they possess, the less do they have to bestow upon others, for the more they have, the poorer they feel. O, the deceitfulness of riches! They will not see and feel the wants of the cause of God.” - Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts, vol. 2, p. 267.
Blurred spiritual eyesight puts eternal salvation in jeopardy. It is not enough to keep Jesus in view; we must keep Him in focus.
Read Matthew 13:3-7 and 22. What danger is Jesus warning us about here? Why is this an easy trap for anyone, rich or poor, to fall into?
First, Jesus warns us regarding “the cares of this world” (Matthew 13:22, NKJV). Jesus knows that we all have cares, including financial ones. The poor worry that they don’t have enough, the rich worry about what else they might want. We just need to be certain that we don’t let such cares “choke the word” (Matthew 13:22, NKJV) in our lives.
Second, Jesus warns us of “the deceitfulness of riches” (Matthew 13:22, NKJV). Though riches themselves are not evil, they still possess the power to deceive us in a way that can lead to our ultimate destruction.
What are ways that you can see in your own life the “deceitfulness of riches”? What practical choices can you make to protect yourself from this deception?
