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00:00:01 “Lovers of money”—that didn’t sound too bad. 00:00:05 I mean, compared to “betrayers,” “fierce,” 00:00:08 “slanderers,” and other traits 00:00:10 listed in 2 Timothy 3, 00:00:13 what’s so bad about being a lover of money? 00:00:17 A lot. 00:00:19 Once a person loves money more than anything or anyone else, 00:00:23 it corrupts them. 00:00:25 For example, let’s consider what lovers of money 00:00:28 have done—the effect on big business. 00:00:32 Now, businesses that produce a good product at a fair price, 00:00:36 consumers and others appreciate. 00:00:39 However, when a business is run by lovers of money, 00:00:43 they cut corners, they lie about risks, 00:00:47 and they accept or offer bribes or basically do anything they can 00:00:51 to raise their stock price or increase profits. 00:00:54 We’ve all seen the constant upgrades 00:00:57 and the completely false advertisements. 00:01:00 And many people today just accept that as so common and so normal 00:01:05 that they say, “It’s just business.” 00:01:09 How have lovers of money affected governments? 00:01:13 Well, when lovers of money get into power, 00:01:16 government for the people becomes government for them. 00:01:20 Public money is diverted into private bank accounts 00:01:24 that makes these politicians and government leaders very wealthy 00:01:29 —the power that love of money has to corrupt 00:01:33 even the most well-meaning men and women in politics. 00:01:37 We can see it in full effect around us. 00:01:40 It’s an everyday occurrence. 00:01:42 No government on earth is immune to the effect 00:01:45 that lovers of money has on government. 00:01:48 In fact, the suffering of many people around the world 00:01:52 can be traced back to greed 00:01:54 and lovers of money in government. 00:01:57 Well, what effect has lovers of money 00:02:00 had on Christendom and false religion? 00:02:03 Well, once Christendom’s priests or ministers 00:02:06 started to charge for their services 00:02:09 or press their congregations very hard for money, 00:02:13 it had a corrupting influence on the worship of God. 00:02:17 Money changed how religion worked. 00:02:21 It changed the relationship 00:02:23 between people and ministers to their congregation. 00:02:27 I mean, to illustrate for a moment: Think of a wife 00:02:30 that goes to her husband and hands him a bill 00:02:33 for all the work she’s done in the family, 00:02:36 and the husband turns around and gives her a bill 00:02:39 for all the work he’s done in the family. 00:02:41 Do you think that might change the relationship in the family 00:02:45 and about how they feel about one another and the work they do? 00:02:48 Of course it would. 00:02:50 Jehovah inspired Paul to see the corrupting influence 00:02:54 that lovers of money would have on religion 00:02:58 at 2 Timothy 4:3, 4 00:03:04 —2 Timothy 4:3, 4. 00:03:07 He says: “For there will be a period of time 00:03:09 “when they will not put up with the wholesome teaching, 00:03:12 “but according to their own desires, 00:03:14 “they will surround themselves with teachers to have their ears tickled. 00:03:19 “They will turn away from listening to the truth 00:03:22 and give attention to false stories.” 00:03:25 Well, today, as mentioned in these verses, 00:03:29 many religions are based on tickle-their-ears messages, 00:03:33 false stories, platitudes, 00:03:36 and kind of feel-good-about-yourself messages. 00:03:39 You know, when I searched on the Internet about the effect of money on religion, 00:03:43 I came across several websites 00:03:46 that explain how to form your own religion 00:03:50 (what to say and what to do), 00:03:52 with the whole purpose of getting rich. 00:03:56 So once a religion is run by lovers of money, 00:04:01 they’re no longer lovers of truth, or lovers of God’s Word. 00:04:05 Sermons are no longer about Bible truth; 00:04:08 they’re more about what people are willing to pay for. 00:04:12 People are even told that they can buy God’s forgiveness. 00:04:17 Basically, you can bribe God not to punish you. 00:04:21 It kind of goes like this: You’ve done bad. 00:04:25 God is going to punish you. 00:04:27 So give money to me and the church, 00:04:29 and God will forgive you. 00:04:32 You see, this scam and variations of it 00:04:35 have a long history. 00:04:37 Indulgences sold by the Catholic Church back in the 16th century 00:04:41 are very good examples of such greed. 00:04:44 Indulgences were basically the church saying 00:04:46 that you can pay for God not to punish you. 00:04:49 The Awake! of August 1989 explained how Martin Luther 00:04:53 felt about the Catholic Church selling such indulgences. 00:04:57 It says: “The selling of indulgences originated during the Crusades, 00:05:01 “when they were granted to believers willing to risk their lives in a ‘holy’ war. 00:05:05 “[But] later they were extended to people 00:05:08 “offering financial support to the church. 00:05:11 “Soon, indulgences became a convenient method of raising money . . . , 00:05:15 “‘the bingo of the sixteenth century.’ 00:05:19 “With the sharp tongue for which he became noted, 00:05:22 “[Martin] Luther asked: 00:05:24 “‘If the pope does have the power to release anyone from purgatory 00:05:28 “‘[basically on the basis of indulgences of the money], 00:05:31 “‘why in the name of love 00:05:34 does he not abolish purgatory by letting everyone out?’” 00:05:40 Well, this really should not surprise us. 00:05:43 The biggest bribe on record 00:05:45 was the one Satan offered to Jesus. 00:05:48 Satan said: ‘I will give you [bribe you] 00:05:52 ‘all the kingdoms of the world [basically pay you] 00:05:55 if you fall down and do an act of worship to me.’ 00:05:59 Now let’s contrast Satan’s and Christendom’s view on love of money 00:06:04 with Jesus’ words at Matthew 10:8 00:06:11 —Matthew 10:8. 00:06:13 Now, here Jesus was giving some instructions 00:06:15 to his disciples about the message 00:06:17 they should give as they go out and preach the Kingdom. 00:06:20 And he told them: “Cure the sick, raise up the dead, 00:06:24 “make lepers clean, expel demons. 00:06:28 You received free, give free.” 00:06:31 Now, why, after stating 00:06:33 these beautiful, wonderful things they could do for people, 00:06:36 would Jesus say something like, “You received free, give free”? 00:06:41 Because Jesus knew that the love of money could corrupt 00:06:46 these wonderful miracles that they could do for others. 00:06:50 I mean, Jesus had seen how money 00:06:53 had corrupted many 00:06:55 over the years he had seen mankind. 00:06:58 For example, when he saw— 00:07:00 When Naaman wanted to give expensive gifts to Elisha 00:07:04 because he had cured him of his leprosy, 00:07:08 Elisha would not have any of it. 00:07:11 See, Elisha knew that it was wrong 00:07:14 to try to profit from the operation of God’s holy spirit. 00:07:19 Gehazi, though, couldn’t resist. 00:07:22 His love of money 00:07:24 totally corrupted his faithful service. 00:07:28 Of course, today, we can’t cure leprosy or raise the dead. 00:07:33 But the lesson that Jesus gave here 00:07:36 at Matthew 10:8 is still very applicable to us: 00:07:40 “You received free, give free.” 00:07:44 It’s a clear message. 00:07:46 Don’t accept money for the work of the holy spirit. 00:07:51 The Kingdom message and its blessings 00:07:54 are simply not for sale. 00:07:57 Now, we’re truly blessed to be part 00:07:59 of God’s spirit-directed organization, 00:08:02 who are lovers of God rather than lovers of money. 00:08:06 We don’t have collections at our meetings or our conventions. 00:08:09 Donations are made discreetly, 00:08:12 and funds are used wisely and modestly. 00:08:16 And we also follow the Bible’s requirement for elders. 00:08:20 In 1 Timothy chapter 3, 00:08:22 it says that elders should not be “a lover of money.” 00:08:27 See, how important it is that the elders —those taking the lead— 00:08:30 should not be a lover of money! 00:08:32 Otherwise, it can corrupt their relationship with the congregation. 00:08:36 Interestingly, that expression 00:08:38 that they should not be “a lover of money” 00:08:41 is the same expression that’s used in 2 Timothy 3 00:08:44 about how other people would be lovers of money, 00:08:46 and that’s the only time that expression —“lovers of money”— 00:08:48 is used in the Scriptures. 00:08:51 See, when we see the corrupting influence 00:08:54 that lovers of money have had on business, 00:08:57 government, and false religion, 00:09:00 it teaches us a very powerful lesson. 00:09:05 Money has its proper place in our wallets but not in our hearts.
00:00:01 “Lovers of money”—that didn’t sound too bad. 00:00:05 I mean, compared to “betrayers,” “fierce,” 00:00:08 “slanderers,” and other traits 00:00:10 listed in 2 Timothy 3, 00:00:13 what’s so bad about being a lover of money? 00:00:17 A lot. 00:00:19 Once a person loves money more than anything or anyone else, 00:00:23 it corrupts them. 00:00:25 For example, let’s consider what lovers of money 00:00:28 have done—the effect on big business. 00:00:32 Now, businesses that produce a good product at a fair price, 00:00:36 consumers and others appreciate. 00:00:39 However, when a business is run by lovers of money, 00:00:43 they cut corners, they lie about risks, 00:00:47 and they accept or offer bribes or basically do anything they can 00:00:51 to raise their stock price or increase profits. 00:00:54 We’ve all seen the constant upgrades 00:00:57 and the completely false advertisements. 00:01:00 And many people today just accept that as so common and so normal 00:01:05 that they say, “It’s just business.” 00:01:09 How have lovers of money affected governments? 00:01:13 Well, when lovers of money get into power, 00:01:16 government for the people becomes government for them. 00:01:20 Public money is diverted into private bank accounts 00:01:24 that makes these politicians and government leaders very wealthy 00:01:29 —the power that love of money has to corrupt 00:01:33 even the most well-meaning men and women in politics. 00:01:37 We can see it in full effect around us. 00:01:40 It’s an everyday occurrence. 00:01:42 No government on earth is immune to the effect 00:01:45 that lovers of money has on government. 00:01:48 In fact, the suffering of many people around the world 00:01:52 can be traced back to greed 00:01:54 and lovers of money in government. 00:01:57 Well, what effect has lovers of money 00:02:00 had on Christendom and false religion? 00:02:03 Well, once Christendom’s priests or ministers 00:02:06 started to charge for their services 00:02:09 or press their congregations very hard for money, 00:02:13 it had a corrupting influence on the worship of God. 00:02:17 Money changed how religion worked. 00:02:21 It changed the relationship 00:02:23 between people and ministers to their congregation. 00:02:27 I mean, to illustrate for a moment: Think of a wife 00:02:30 that goes to her husband and hands him a bill 00:02:33 for all the work she’s done in the family, 00:02:36 and the husband turns around and gives her a bill 00:02:39 for all the work he’s done in the family. 00:02:41 Do you think that might change the relationship in the family 00:02:45 and about how they feel about one another and the work they do? 00:02:48 Of course it would. 00:02:50 Jehovah inspired Paul to see the corrupting influence 00:02:54 that lovers of money would have on religion 00:02:58 at 2 Timothy 4:3, 4 00:03:04 —2 Timothy 4:3, 4. 00:03:07 He says: “For there will be a period of time 00:03:09 “when they will not put up with the wholesome teaching, 00:03:12 “but according to their own desires, 00:03:14 “they will surround themselves with teachers to have their ears tickled. 00:03:19 “They will turn away from listening to the truth 00:03:22 and give attention to false stories.” 00:03:25 Well, today, as mentioned in these verses, 00:03:29 many religions are based on tickle-their-ears messages, 00:03:33 false stories, platitudes, 00:03:36 and kind of feel-good-about-yourself messages. 00:03:39 You know, when I searched on the Internet about the effect of money on religion, 00:03:43 I came across several websites 00:03:46 that explain how to form your own religion 00:03:50 (what to say and what to do), 00:03:52 with the whole purpose of getting rich. 00:03:56 So once a religion is run by lovers of money, 00:04:01 they’re no longer lovers of truth, or lovers of God’s Word. 00:04:05 Sermons are no longer about Bible truth; 00:04:08 they’re more about what people are willing to pay for. 00:04:12 People are even told that they can buy God’s forgiveness. 00:04:17 Basically, you can bribe God not to punish you. 00:04:21 It kind of goes like this: You’ve done bad. 00:04:25 God is going to punish you. 00:04:27 So give money to me and the church, 00:04:29 and God will forgive you. 00:04:32 You see, this scam and variations of it 00:04:35 have a long history. 00:04:37 Indulgences sold by the Catholic Church back in the 16th century 00:04:41 are very good examples of such greed. 00:04:44 Indulgences were basically the church saying 00:04:46 that you can pay for God not to punish you. 00:04:49 The Awake! of August 1989 explained how Martin Luther 00:04:53 felt about the Catholic Church selling such indulgences. 00:04:57 It says: “The selling of indulgences originated during the Crusades, 00:05:01 “when they were granted to believers willing to risk their lives in a ‘holy’ war. 00:05:05 “[But] later they were extended to people 00:05:08 “offering financial support to the church. 00:05:11 “Soon, indulgences became a convenient method of raising money . . . , 00:05:15 “‘the bingo of the sixteenth century.’ 00:05:19 “With the sharp tongue for which he became noted, 00:05:22 “[Martin] Luther asked: 00:05:24 “‘If the pope does have the power to release anyone from purgatory 00:05:28 “‘[basically on the basis of indulgences of the money], 00:05:31 “‘why in the name of love 00:05:34 does he not abolish purgatory by letting everyone out?’” 00:05:40 Well, this really should not surprise us. 00:05:43 The biggest bribe on record 00:05:45 was the one Satan offered to Jesus. 00:05:48 Satan said: ‘I will give you [bribe you] 00:05:52 ‘all the kingdoms of the world [basically pay you] 00:05:55 if you fall down and do an act of worship to me.’ 00:05:59 Now let’s contrast Satan’s and Christendom’s view on love of money 00:06:04 with Jesus’ words at Matthew 10:8 00:06:11 —Matthew 10:8. 00:06:13 Now, here Jesus was giving some instructions 00:06:15 to his disciples about the message 00:06:17 they should give as they go out and preach the Kingdom. 00:06:20 And he told them: “Cure the sick, raise up the dead, 00:06:24 “make lepers clean, expel demons. 00:06:28 You received free, give free.” 00:06:31 Now, why, after stating 00:06:33 these beautiful, wonderful things they could do for people, 00:06:36 would Jesus say something like, “You received free, give free”? 00:06:41 Because Jesus knew that the love of money could corrupt 00:06:46 these wonderful miracles that they could do for others. 00:06:50 I mean, Jesus had seen how money 00:06:53 had corrupted many 00:06:55 over the years he had seen mankind. 00:06:58 For example, when he saw— 00:07:00 When Naaman wanted to give expensive gifts to Elisha 00:07:04 because he had cured him of his leprosy, 00:07:08 Elisha would not have any of it. 00:07:11 See, Elisha knew that it was wrong 00:07:14 to try to profit from the operation of God’s holy spirit. 00:07:19 Gehazi, though, couldn’t resist. 00:07:22 His love of money 00:07:24 totally corrupted his faithful service. 00:07:28 Of course, today, we can’t cure leprosy or raise the dead. 00:07:33 But the lesson that Jesus gave here 00:07:36 at Matthew 10:8 is still very applicable to us: 00:07:40 “You received free, give free.” 00:07:44 It’s a clear message. 00:07:46 Don’t accept money for the work of the holy spirit. 00:07:51 The Kingdom message and its blessings 00:07:54 are simply not for sale. 00:07:57 Now, we’re truly blessed to be part 00:07:59 of God’s spirit-directed organization, 00:08:02 who are lovers of God rather than lovers of money. 00:08:06 We don’t have collections at our meetings or our conventions. 00:08:09 Donations are made discreetly, 00:08:12 and funds are used wisely and modestly. 00:08:16 And we also follow the Bible’s requirement for elders. 00:08:20 In 1 Timothy chapter 3, 00:08:22 it says that elders should not be “a lover of money.” 00:08:27 See, how important it is that the elders —those taking the lead— 00:08:30 should not be a lover of money! 00:08:32 Otherwise, it can corrupt their relationship with the congregation. 00:08:36 Interestingly, that expression 00:08:38 that they should not be “a lover of money” 00:08:41 is the same expression that’s used in 2 Timothy 3 00:08:44 about how other people would be lovers of money, 00:08:46 and that’s the only time that expression —“lovers of money”— 00:08:48 is used in the Scriptures. 00:08:51 See, when we see the corrupting influence 00:08:54 that lovers of money have had on business, 00:08:57 government, and false religion, 00:09:00 it teaches us a very powerful lesson. 00:09:05 Money has its proper place in our wallets but not in our hearts.
