June 1, 2024 Daily Dose of Discernment

Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. (1 Timothy 6:17)

Man is a hybrid of the spiritual and material. God created him and knows what he needs to sustain his life and bring him joy, which things He abundantly provides. It’s not wrong to indulge in material blessings; excess is what makes it wrong. As Paul says, it is the love of money, not money per se, that is the root of all evil.

What also makes material possessions wrong is a lack of understanding of their purpose. While God richly supplies us with all good things to enjoy, He doesn’t want us to have them exclusively for ourselves, thinking we’re blessed and others are not. But He wants us to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share and store up for ourselves treasures for the life of the world to come, and that take hold of that which is truly life (1 Timothy 6:18-19).