Money Is Good And Very Good
Almost everyone reading this has heard that “money is not everything”,
“money does not grow on trees”, and that “money is the root of all
evil”. Money is portrayed as dirty and evil when a phrase such as
“filthy rich” is used. These and similar phrases have been around for
thousands of years and do more harm, a lot of harm in fact, and
absolutely no good.
My father, a Hindu, and now a highly
respected Hindu priest, though far advanced in age, even quoted the Holy
Bible to us as children, saying, “seek ye first the Kingdom of God … “
Well,
in my opinion money is good and very good. A lot of good can be
accomplished with money. We can take better care of ourselves and our
families, pay for our children to go to better schools, get an excellent
education, and be successful. We can live in a better home in a better
neighbourhood, drive a fabulous car, go on great vacations, and help
others. A lot of good can, and is being done, with money.
Even
Mother Teresa needed money. She was helping very poor people in India,
people who had very little or no money. Without the gifts of money she
received from those who had money to give, Mother Teresa’s work would
have ground to a halt.
I have no idea how money got such a bad
reputation, but if we look at the facts we will see that it is
irrational to have a negative view of money, and to treat it, and the
wealthy, with disrespect or scorn.
Let us take “money is not
everything”. It may not be everything but it comes really close. Some
would say that “love” is the most important thing in life. Try taking
“love” to the local grocery store to pay for your purchases. To the
destitute of the world, in Asia, Latin America, Africa, and yes, in the
USA, money is everything. Such people know the value of money. It would
eliminate a great deal of their suffering.
As for “money is the
root of all evil”, this is supposed to be a quote from the bible. The
correct quote is, “For the love of money is the root of all evil; which
while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced
themselves through with many sorrows.” – 1 Timothy 6:10. It’s not money.
It’s “the love of money”, or greed, or covetousness that is the
problem, not money.
Let us take the “seek ye first the Kingdom of
God … “ quote. The full quotation is: “But seek ye first the kingdom of
God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto
you.” – Matthew 6:33. So, we are to seek the Kingdom of God. Where is
the Kingdom of God? “Neither shall they say, lo here! or lo there! for
behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” – Luke 17:21. The kingdom of
God is within us.
Now, after we find the Kingdom, which is not
hard to do since it is within us, “all these things shall be added unto
you”. We will be given everything. You see, God has no problem with
giving us all, good and wonderful things. In fact Jesus said, “Fear not,
little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the
Kingdom.” – Luke 12:32. The Kingdom, not a part of it, but the whole
Kingdom, and he has pleasure giving it to us. How is that for
generosity?
God wants to give us everything; it is man who thinks
that there is something wrong with riches and a luxurious lifestyle,
and that there is some kind of virtue or spirituality in being poor.
This is utter foolishness. It is absolute nonsense.
There are so
many rich people in the bible who God loved, that it is very difficult
to understand why wealth is viewed negatively by so many. King David was
probably the richest of them all, and God loved him. God blessed Job
and made him even wealthier than he was, before he lost everything. “The
Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first.” – Job
42:12. If God thought that being wealthy was evil, why would he bless
Job so richly?
Jesus had rich friends. But then, Jesus was
everyone’s friend, so this is probably not such a good point, but I am
sticking with it. And even Jesus needed money. Remember when he sent one
of the twelve to get a coin from the fish’s mouth?
Millions in
the world suffer greatly because of the lack of financial resources.
Adults and children in some countries hunt in garbage dumps for their
daily meal. If money was available, these children would be in school
and their parents would be able to buy real food, nourishing food, for
their children, and the entire world would be a much better place for
it.
Without money, people suffer and die needlessly in the slums of the world.
Money is not evil; the lack of it is. Wealth is not sinful; poverty is.
It
has taken me a long time to gain this understanding. No one is to be
blamed. This is just the way it is. I consider myself lucky that I have
been able to, and that I live in one of the wealthy, and prosperous
countries of the world.
And I now know, without a doubt, that money is good and very good.
