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. 1 Timothy 6:10 [NIV]
I am no longer surprised by the behaviour of the major banks. There seems to be no end to the moral bankruptcy in the banking sector where the mis-selling of PPI, the fixing of Libor, the selling of toxic assets leading to colossal losses and the lack of governance and regulation have contributed to tough times for all – except the bankers who are now back in the black with their 6-figure bonuses.
There are some ethical bankers, and banks, but on the whole the love of money has proven to corrupt and divert the morals of many at the top. While the poor get poorer, the rich get richer – one of the fastest growing sectors is the ultra-luxury brands where the super-rich can spend jaw-dropping sums on the most mundane of possessions. I watched a brief part of a programme on TV where the wife of a billionaire was shopping for 3 suits and 3 watches for her husband and not receiving much change from £1 million.
At the same time as spending colossal amounts of money on “stuff” many of the above delight in paying as little tax as possible, by virtue of non-domicile arrangements and the use of accountants who can find and exploit all the available loop-holes.
How does God view those whose lives are built around the acquisition of money and the stuff that it buys? How can we guard ourselves against being motivated by the love of money? What is our attitude to paying tax, or our tithe?
No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Matthew 6:24 [NIV]
Lord, help us to avoid the love of money and to recognise that we can’t serve two masters. Amen.
Dave MacLellan
No comments:
Post a Comment