Father in heaven, there is no one like you.
There is no one in history, no one in the past, present, or future that is comparable to you.
You are the great creator.
You are the great I am.
And Lord, this morning, we remember your goodness.
You promised you would send your son, Jesus, to save us from our brokenness, from our depravity, and from our sin, and you did.
Thank you that Christ came not after we repented.
He didn't come after we confessed our sin.
But Jesus, you came before.
You gave your life for us while our backs were still turned away from you.
Thank you, Jesus.
Thank you, Lord.
This morning, we remember Kevin as he is in Taiwan at the City to City intensive training.
God, may your spirit fill him to see more clearly your heart for church planting in Hong Kong and elsewhere,
and how Watermark fits into that plan.
We lift up City to City, Asia Pacific to you, asking God that your hand be upon this ministry.
We pray for Gunnar Raman and the City to City Asia Pacific leaders.
Please, God, would you inspire them to maximize the spread of the gospel through your vision for church planting.
Would you encourage them to persevere when times get tough?
Would you remind them that although we are all called to plant and water,
it is you, God, who brings the harvest.
So, God, may prayer be a core foundation of their work.
And we also lift up International Christian Fellowship to you.
Thank you, God, that many students in Hong Kong have come to dedicate their lives to you through ICF.
And thank you for the relationships that have been established there.
We pray that more students would come to know the love of Christ through ICF.
God, as this is exam time for the students,
we pray that your presence will be with them as they study and take these exams.
May they feel your peace instead of stress.
And I pray, God, that the students would know that their future is not tied up in grades,
nor A's or B's or C's, nor even career, God,
but their future is secure in you.
And I also want to pray specifically for the ICF students who will be returning to their home countries.
Simon, Alex, Shearer, Joanna, Annie, Justin, and Wayne.
I pray, God, as they head back to their home countries,
would you go before them?
May your spirit be with them.
Would you provide them with godly, centered relationships?
And finally, God, I pray for the rest of this service.
I pray for this sermon on the topic of money.
I pray that your truth will be made known.
May your word come through loud and clear.
May my word be in the background.
And would our hearts be soft and open to receiving and accepting
and responding to your word this morning.
In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray.
Amen.
Can I invite Kwadjo and Lorna up to read today's passage?
Good morning.
The scripture reading comes from Luke chapter 12.
Please follow along in your bulletins on the screen.
I think we might be blocking people.
Someone in the crowd said to him,
Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.
But he said to him,
Man, who has made me a judge or arbitrator over you?
And he said to them,
Take care and be on your guard against all covetousness.
For one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.
And he told them a parable saying,
The land of a rich man produced plentifully.
And he thought to himself,
What shall I do?
For I have nowhere to store my crops.
And he said,
I will do this.
I will tear down my barns and build larger ones.
And there I will store all my grain and my goods.
And I will say to my soul,
Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years.
Relax, eat, drink, be merry.
But God said to him,
Fool, this night your soul is required of you.
And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?
Soul is the one who lays up treasure for himself.
And is not rich toward God.
This is the word of God.
Thanks, Kwadro and Lorna, for reading the passage.
Money and greed are difficult topics to talk about.
So difficult, in fact, that both Kevin and Chris have took today off.
I'm kidding, of course.
As we prayed, Kevin is in Taiwan at the City of City conference.
And Chris has taken a delegation from Watermark to Turkey.
But money and greed are still difficult topics to talk about.
Even within our families, those to whom we're closest,
money is oftentimes a very sensitive subject.
At work, we openly talk about our career ambitions
or where we want to be financially in 10 years.
But admitting that we're greedy for money
because of the security and pleasure that money provides,
who says that, right?
And in the Christian church context,
I would argue we don't talk about money enough.
We talk about other messy things,
other aspects of sin in our lives.
But admitting we love money too much
or confessing we have a problem with materialism,
not very common, at least from my experience.
But Jesus Christ, when he walked this earth,
spoke about money a lot.
And that is because money has the ability to do a lot of good,
but a lot of harm as well.
15% of all of the recorded words of Jesus
were on the topic of money.
As a whole, the Bible mentions money 2,350 times,
more than faith and prayer combined.
An astonishing fact when you think about it.
And that is why at Watermark,
we've dedicated five Sundays to talk about
or to see what the Bible talks about
on this topic of money.
Because whether we lived in the first century in Israel
or in 2019 in Hong Kong,
the principle is the same.
How we view and treat money
is a measure of our true character.
Money is real.
It's tangible.
It's concrete.
How we spend it,
how we save it or hoard it,
and how we give it away
speaks to the very core,
the very essence of our lives.
As Christians.
So today as we continue this sermon series on money,
we will look at the teachings of Jesus Christ.
And as we consider this passage from Luke 12,
I'll try to make these three points.
Be on your guard against greed,
how the pursuit of money clouds our vision of God.
And finally, let's be rich toward God.
It's very quiet in here right now.
Let's dive right into it.
Be on your guard against greed.
Looking at Luke 12, verse 13,
the very first verse of this passage.
Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,
Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.
So, the context of this passage is
Jesus has been teaching about the kingdom of God.
And he taught that in his kingdom,
it's this upside down or counterintuitive kingdom
whose values and principles are totally opposed
to the values of this world.
Christ taught that blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are those who mourned,
for they will be comforted.
He taught that it's not the proud or the self-righteous
who will see God and know God.
No.
Jesus taught it's the meek, the lowly,
the one who humbles himself
and admits his desperate need
for God's grace and forgiveness.
That is a person who will see God and know God.
Then imagine, all of a sudden,
this man elbows his way through the crowd,
desperate for Christ to hear what he has to say.
He finally gets within earshot and he yells out,
Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.
Now, according to the Jewish law regarding inheritance,
which you can find in Deuteronomy 21, verse 17,
if a father had more than one son,
he must give his eldest son
a double share of the inheritance over other sons.
And so clearly, this man, this son,
didn't think the inheritance laws were fair.
But interestingly,
instead of addressing this man's request
or his demand,
instead, Christ uses this opportunity
to teach a very valuable lesson
on money and greed.
He turns to the whole crowd
and in verse 15, Jesus says,
Be on your guard against all covetousness,
for one's life does not consist
in the abundance of his possessions.
The NIV says,
Be on your guard against all kinds of greed.
Last year,
my wife and I heard about
an attempted abduction of a kindergarten student
right here in Hong Kong.
And when we heard about this,
we immediately started teaching
our three-year-old daughter, Kiva,
to be extra careful
when leaving her school.
In particular,
not to let any strangers
talk to her
or certainly not to touch her.
We tried to teach her
to be on her guard
against strangers.
This is kind of what
Jesus is saying here.
Be on your guard against greed.
It's the unseen villain
who prowls around
waiting to attack.
Let's think about a few examples.
You did not get a pay raise this year,
but your colleague,
who you don't think
works as hard as you,
got one.
And NIV starts creeping into your mind.
Be on your guard
against greed.
Or someone you know
just bought an apartment in Hong Kong
and you find yourself
feeling a little bit resentful
because you're still renting.
Be on your guard
against greed.
And so we need to recognize,
it doesn't matter where you are
on the financial spectrum,
whether you live paycheck to paycheck
or you have enough money
in the bank to retire today,
greed is a real danger
and temptation
for all of us.
It's kind of there.
It's like the virus
on the computer.
It's there,
we don't even know it.
Now most of us here
probably know
that do not covet
was the tenth commandment
that God gave Israel
in Exodus 20.
Do not covet
your neighbor's house.
Do not covet
your neighbor's wife
or his manservant
or maidservant,
his ox or donkey
or anything that belongs
to your neighbor.
The first nine commandments
were instructions
about outward actions.
Have no other gods before me.
Remember the Sabbath day.
Honor your father and mother.
Do not murder,
lie, steal
or commit adultery.
These are all
outward actions
that we can tangibly
do or not do.
But what's unique
about the tenth commandment
of do not covet
is that it has to do
with the inward motivation.
It has to do
with the heart.
And the Bible says
that everything we do,
good or bad,
comes from this
inward motivation.
It comes from the heart.
Listen to what Jesus said
in Luke 6, 45.
A good man brings
good things
out of the good
stored up in his heart.
And an evil man
brings evil things
out of the evil
stored up in his heart.
For the mouth speaks
what the heart
is full of.
Most people,
whether you are a follower
of Jesus Christ or not,
would probably agree
that murder,
stealing, lying,
adultery, or morally wrong.
But if you think about it,
coveting or greed
is a foundation
or root
of all of these
outward actions.
Let's look
at a few more examples.
You want a promotion
at work
for higher pay
so you can
buy the newest
gadget or
handbag.
And so you speak poorly
about your colleagues
so you look better.
Or,
in your heart,
do you secretly
desire your
married colleagues
so you'll flirt
with this person?
Maybe ask this person
out for a coffee alone?
This may end
in physical adultery,
but it would have
started
in the heart.
The Apostle Paul
gave this instruction
in Colossians 3.5.
He said,
Put to death,
therefore,
whatever belongs
to your earthly nature,
sexual immorality,
impurity,
lust,
evil desires,
and greed,
which is idolatry.
Greed is idolatry.
And like any kind
of idolatry,
it means this false idol
has been elevated
to a point in our life
which is higher
or greater than that
of God,
our Creator.
So why should we be
on our guard
against greed?
What is the big deal?
What's the consequence
if we have this
heart condition?
Well,
that leads us
to the second point,
which is that greed
and the pursuit
of money
clouds or obscures
our vision of God.
Greed and the pursuit
of money
clouds or obscures
our vision of God.
As it relates
to coveting
or being greedy
for money
and possessions,
we learn it starts
in the heart
but it manifests itself
physically
with how we deal
with money.
Specifically,
how we spend,
how we save
or hoard
and how we give away
money.
And so Jesus,
after warning
about greed,
tells a parable
or a story
to illustrate
in a concrete way
how this heart condition
impacts the way
we treat money.
He tells a story
about a wealthy farmer
whose land
produced plentifully.
So abundant
was his harvest
that he had nowhere
to store his crops
and so he tears
down his old barns,
he builds newer
and bigger barns
and he stores
all his excess grain
in there
and this,
he thinks,
will allow him
to relax,
eat,
drink,
and be merry.
Essentially,
this farmer
wanted to have
a cushy retirement
with a big bank account.
Anyone like that?
Okay,
you don't have to answer
that question.
It's okay.
He thought his life,
his security
were all tied up
in his wealth.
But God said to him,
you fool,
this very night
your soul
is required of you
and the things
you are prepared,
whose will they be?
So what's wrong
with the rich farmer?
Well, first,
let's be clear
in what Jesus
is not saying.
Jesus is not saying
that it's wrong
to work hard for a living.
He's not saying
that it's wrong
to be a successful
business person.
We need more
honest,
successful business people
to give their money
away to honest ministry
so that many
will be blessed,
the poor,
the marginalized,
the lost.
They would all know
the love of Christ.
But what Jesus
is saying
is that the rich farmer
elevated his personal wealth
and his desire
to retire rich
and eat,
drink,
and be merry.
He elevated this
far above
his view
of God.
in short,
his greed,
his desire
for wealth
and security,
that was his God.
And we know this
because the farmer
never acknowledged
that God was the one
that gave him
all that he had.
He wasn't thankful.
Psalm 24,
verse 1 says,
the earth is the Lord's
and everything in it,
the world
and all who live in it.
It's hard to argue
with that one.
James 1, 17 says,
every good
and perfect gift
comes from above,
coming down
from the Father
of the heavenly lights.
Also hard
to argue with.
And second,
the farmer
never thought
about how he could
use the blessing
he received
to bless others.
He wasn't generous.
He hoarded,
he hoarded
all that stuff
to himself.
And so God,
his creator,
the one who generously
gave him
all that he had,
says to him,
you fool.
So how does
the pursuit of money
make us foolish?
How does the pursuit
of money make us foolish?
Well,
there are probably
many reasons,
but the one I'm focusing on
and highlighting is
because the pursuit
of money
clouds or distorts
or obscures
our vision
of God.
Going back
to what Jesus said
in verse 15,
for one's life
does not consist
in the abundance
of his possessions.
Okay?
So what is the point
of life then?
Maybe your answer is
to have a fulfilling career.
The point of life
is to have meaningful
relationships,
to fall in love,
get married,
have children,
raise a family.
These are all
good things.
But throughout the Bible,
both the Old
and the New Testament,
the purpose of
every human life
is to glorify
the name of
Almighty God.
Life consists
in making God's
name great,
to worship him
by finding our deepest
and truest delight
in him,
and by living lives
that reflect his goodness,
his sacrifice,
and his love.
But we can only do this
if we have the correct
vision of God
as sovereign,
as holy,
as perfect
and righteous,
worthy to be praised
above all things
created on this earth.
And we can only do this
if we see God's Son,
our Lord Jesus,
as our greatest treasure,
understanding that
although Jesus
was rich,
he became poor for us,
that you and I
may know God.
I've talked to many
Christians
over the years,
and I
think,
if we're really honest
with ourselves,
many of us struggle
to see God
as real,
as tangible.
We read about God
in the Bible,
we listen to sermons
on Sunday morning,
but day to day,
God is not real,
he's not tangible,
he's not there
in the nitty-gritty
everyday moment of life.
Maybe that's why
we worry so much.
And I think
for many of us,
this is because
the pursuit of money,
or the struggles
with money,
or our desire
to make more money,
clouds
our vision
of God.
Two reasons for this.
First,
it's distracting.
It takes up so much
time and effort
to pursue money.
Whether you're living
paycheck to paycheck
or you can retire
today
with the money
in your bank,
pursuing money
takes up so much time
in our hearts.
How can we fit
the worship of Christ
in there?
Much more than actual
hours spent working,
it's the time spent
worrying about money
or striving to make
more money
that drains our spirit
the most.
And second,
the pursuit of money
clouds our vision of God
because it's deceiving.
In a different passage,
Jesus talks about
how the deceitfulness
of riches
can choke his word.
Meaning we can hear
the good news
of the gospel
with our ears
but it has no relevance
in our day-to-day lives
because the worries
of the world
or the lies
that wealth
would give us happiness
blinds us
as to the realness
and the power
of God.
A number of years ago,
Watermark hosted
an executive
at one of the world's
largest technology companies.
This man was a Christian
but he's also wildly
successful in his career.
He gave a small group talk
and out of the many words
of wisdom that I heard,
one thing I'll never forget
is this man said that
as his career progressed,
as he got very successful,
the main temptation
he faced was this idea
that it was him himself
that drove his success.
You see, success
in any sense,
doing well on your exams,
getting a good bonus,
getting a promotion,
success in any sense
can lead us to believe
that it's our hard work,
it's our great
decision-making abilities,
it's our great network
of relationships
that drives everything.
We work hard,
we deserve it.
That's a lie.
That is money obscuring
or blocking
our vision of God.
Think about it this way.
Think about stargazing.
Think about stargazing
in Hong Kong, right?
Hard, yes.
In Hong Kong,
at night,
you look up at the sky,
you would struggle
to see even one star.
There's so many bright lights
out there,
you can't see anything.
But it doesn't mean
the stars aren't there.
The stars are always up there
in all their God-created beauty.
But we can't see them
in most places in Hong Kong
because of the distraction
of the man-made light.
Now imagine you're
on the plains of Mongolia.
No 10-tower apartment complexes,
no skyscrapers in Central,
no man-made light,
nothing to obscure
or block your vision
of the stars.
Look up at the sky at night,
you'd see hundreds,
if not thousands,
of stars.
We need God
to remove
that which blocks
or obscures
our vision of Him.
Because in Hong Kong,
perhaps more than
in any other city
in the world,
we are constantly blinded
as to the realness of God
because,
let's be honest,
the God here is money.
All over Hong Kong,
billboards are telling me
that money will make me happy,
safe and secure.
The slogan of Hong Kong,
the unofficial slogan
of Hong Kong is,
you have to have a property.
If you do,
you'll be happy.
This culture is telling me,
have a good career,
have a property,
be happy,
be your own God.
Sorry,
I lost my place now.
I'm getting too passionate
about this.
But that worldview
leads to death.
Because you'll never
be truly satisfied
because we all know
that if you're fortunate enough
to have a one-bedroom apartment,
pretty soon you want
a two-bedroom apartment
and then you want
a three-bedroom apartment
and then you want
a bigger three-bedroom apartment
and so on and so forth
because earthly possessions
will never quench
our intrinsic thirst
for something
that is not from this earth.
earthly possessions
will never quench
our intrinsic thirst
for something
that is not
from this earth.
Or,
as in today's passage,
literal death
will come knocking
at your door
when you least expect it.
And all the stuff
that we store up
in barns
will be,
will turn into dust
pretty quickly.
Developed cities
like Hong Kong
are getting more
and more materialistic,
not less.
More than ever,
we need Almighty God
to cut out
all these material distractions
which leads to death
and open our eyes
to see God again
in all His beauty
and majesty.
And if people
like you and I,
people who are clouded
by our wealth
and our pursuit
of money,
if we really
want to see God,
not just hear about Him,
not just read about Him,
but truly know God
deep in our hearts,
then we need to be
rich toward God.
Jesus ends this parable
by saying,
so is the one
who lays up treasure
for himself,
i.e.,
the rich fool
and is not rich
toward God.
So what does it mean
to be rich
toward God?
Well, first,
every single aspect
of our lives
should be dedicated
to God.
Our careers,
our families,
our children,
our money
and possessions.
And this is because
we realize that
we only have anything
in this world
because God
has been so
incredibly generous
to us.
John Piper
says it like this,
being rich
toward God,
therefore,
is the heart
being drawn
toward God
as our riches.
Rich toward God
means we are drawn
or pulled,
excuse me,
rich toward God
means counting God
greater riches
than anything
on this earth.
It means using
earthly riches
to show how much
you value God.
So,
instead of being drawn
in the direction
of money
and possessions
and the security
and comfort
that money provides,
being rich
toward God
means we are drawn
or pulled
toward God,
dedicating our lives,
giving our lives,
including our money
as worship to Him
because God
is our greatest treasure
and our highest value.
value.
So,
what does this look like?
Well,
as it relates to money,
being rich
toward God
means we regularly
give financially
back to God
what He has first
given us
as worship.
Being rich
toward God
means we regularly
give financially
back to God
what He has first
given us
as worship.
we don't just
talk about
giving back
to God.
We don't just
pray about it.
We don't just
do it once in a while
when it's convenient
or when we remember.
We regularly
give back to God
what He has first
given us
as worship.
Now,
I don't know
about you,
but this idea
about being rich
toward God
has been very
challenging to me
my whole life.
See,
I grew up
believing
that money
equaled
security.
And so,
as a teenager,
as a college student,
fresh grad,
I worked hard
because I thought
that having a good career
would give me money
and money
would give me security.
The 2008 financial crisis
had a big impact
on me.
I was living
in New York
at the time
and I lost
my high-paying job
in New York
and I also lost
a decent amount
of my savings
during the crisis.
And this made me realize
that life
does not consist
in the abundance
of possessions.
And over the years
as I've invested
my own money,
I began to realize
I was only doing so
for myself.
before I invested
I never prayed
and I never asked
God
how can he use
the profits
to bless others.
I realized
how greedy
I was.
Generosity
was never
in my vocabulary
up until
a few years ago.
when my wife
and I
first got married
she told me
that it's tradition
in her family
for all the married
couples
to give presents
to all the children
in the family
and Celeste
has a very big family.
So I was like
there were so many kids
we had to give presents
to every single one of them
and two months later
we had to give
life seed
to all of them as well.
We got into
a massive fight
over this.
I realized then
how much
this idea
of giving
being generous
it bothered me.
I had been attending
Watermark
for a number
of years
but my giving
to God
it
it wasn't
it wasn't regular
it wasn't
sacrificial
it certainly
wasn't
worship.
See what I'm trying
to say is
I've been the rich fool
most of my life.
Most of my life
as a Christian
I've been pursuing
my own gain
trying to build up
stuff in barns
for myself
and I have never
truly been rich
toward God.
That Christmas
when I gave
those presents
to the kids
who are now
part of my family
it was God
slowly
starting
to change
my heart.
As I gave
those Lego toys
to them
or the Marvel
toys to them
I could see
the joy
on their faces
and I
also received
joy.
As I finally
confessed
my sin
of greed
my sin
of this
lack of
generosity
I began
to see
Christ
in a new
way.
As I realized
how truly
messed up
I was
how truly
sinful
I was
I was more
desperate than
ever
for the grace
of God
and as I
received
that grace
Christ
became more
beautiful
and wonderful
to me
than ever
before.
and then
I
started giving
regularly
to God
through this
church body
at Watermark.
I was
convicted that I
needed to give
a meaningful
sacrificial amount
of my monthly
income
back to God
as worship.
And then after
I started giving
to other ministries
families
and individuals
who
through prayer
I thought
God wanted to
bless
through me.
See I
wasn't
blessing them
it was
God
blessing them
through me.
I was just
I'm just
this conduit
I'm just
this middleman
of sorts.
But you know
even today
man I still
struggle
and I still
wrestle
with this idea
of giving
to God.
Every time
I write
a check
to Watermark
or I give
money
and I think
about my
monthly expenses
with three
kids and all
that stuff
man it's
painful.
Does anybody
know what I'm
talking about?
Anybody?
You know one of
the beautiful
things about being
part of a church
body is that
all of us come
from different
walks of life.
But this topic
of money
and greed
touches every
single one
of us.
For some
of us here
giving to
God is a
regular activity
in your life.
My challenge
to you is
let's not do
that religiously.
You know
we worship
God through
sung worship
right?
But if we
sing songs
with our
mouths but
our mind
is on the
football game
or on
dim sum
afterwards
that's not
worship.
We worship
God with
our heart
soul
mind
and strength
and so
my challenge
to you is
the next
time you
write a check
do so
prayerfully
and worshipfully
praying that
God would
multiply
those resources
a hundred
times for
his kingdom
so that
many would
know the
love of
Christ.
For others
here
perhaps giving
to God
isn't something
you're used
to doing
or maybe
you don't
think you
can give
to God
because of
your financial
circumstances.
some of
you I
imagine
are thinking
even right
now
don't you
know Oscar
that my
salary in
Hong Kong
hasn't changed
in ten
years but
property
prices are
up two
to three
times?
Or don't
you know
Oscar that
I have to
give a
huge percentage
of my
monthly income
to my
parents and
I have no
money for
myself left
over?
I can't
give.
I need to
save.
I'm not
hoarding,
I'm being
prudent.
I can
relate to
that.
My wife
and I
had our
second and
third child
seven months
ago and
man when I
was crunching
those numbers
on diapers,
formula,
potentially school,
tuition,
man I just
stopped.
I had a
headache.
But you
know in
spite of our
financial
struggles,
in spite of
our financial
uncertainties,
I want to
encourage us
to follow
God's
kingdom
principles,
this upside
down
counterintuitive
kingdom
principles.
I want to
encourage us
to be rich
toward God.
As I
close,
let me
highlight three
reasons why.
First and
foremost,
because Christ,
Jesus Christ,
has made us
incredibly rich.
rich, but
it's only
because Christ
became poor
so that you
and I
through his
poverty might
become rich.
Before the
world began,
before any
human was
ever born,
before money
and banking
existed,
Jesus Christ
decided to
come to
this earth
and live a
very poor
life.
He lived
33 years
financially
poor,
he served
thousands of
people,
he worked
hard,
but he never
started up
anything in
barns for
himself.
and then
he died
for us.
And on
that cross,
when he
died,
he died
poor,
in spirit
and in
finances.
Through the
poverty of
Christ,
you and I
have become
rich.
Do we
see ourselves
as rich?
Do we?
If I were
to guess,
I would say
most people
would say
no.
Lee Ka-Shing
is rich,
Jeff Bezos
is very
rich,
but you
and I,
we're not
rich.
But if you
are running
water and
a roof over
your head,
you are among
the richest
people on
this planet.
How much
more then are
you and I
spiritually rich
because our
faith is in
Jesus Christ?
Because our
faith is not
in stocks,
not in bonds,
it's not in
real estate.
All those
things can be
wiped out in
a heartbeat
during any
random financial
disaster.
No.
Our faith
is in
God,
the one
who is
unshakable,
unchanging,
eternal,
the one
who existed
before time.
And our
faith is
in Jesus
Christ,
his son,
who paid
that ultimate
price for us
so that you
and I
have an
eternal
future
which is
secure.
Today,
if your
faith
is in
Jesus
Christ,
you are
the son
or daughter
of the
great king.
Forget about
dividing the
inheritance.
You and
I will
receive the
full
inheritance
in heaven.
Amen.
Therefore,
we can be
rich toward
God in
this life
because we
know our
inheritance is
eternal
through the
blood of
Jesus.
Second
reason is
because it's
the only
way to
fight
greed.
If this
warning about
greed that
Jesus gives,
if this
has impacted
you today,
then you
realize it's
a battle we
need to
fight.
So let's
fight this
battle together.
And the
only way to
fight greed
is to
regularly give
your money
away.
The only way
to tear down
these false
idols of
materialism,
comfort,
pleasure,
is to
regularly give
your money
away.
Why?
Because then
it's not about
you.
It's not about
me.
money.
Worried about
how you're
going to
raise your
children in
Hong Kong
when the
city is so
expensive?
Give your
money to
God.
Worried about
how you're
going to
pay rent
when property
prices here
are the
most expensive
in the
world?
Give your
money to
God.
Concerned
that perhaps
money has
too tight a
grip on
you?
Yeah,
you guessed
it.
Give your
money to
God.
And as you
do so,
get on your
knees and
pray.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
that God
would tear
down this
false idol
of money
and greed
and put
Christ in
his rightful
place as
the only
one we
worship.
If you
are a young
adult this
morning or
fresh grad
here today
and you've
never given
to God,
I want to
encourage you.
Look,
I know how
difficult it
is to
part with
money you
think you've
earned.
You think
it's yours,
but it's
not.
You only
have it
because God
gave it
to you.
So just
start by
giving $50
or $100
a month
and pray
that God
will change
your heart
to start
giving
sacrificially
and worshipfully.
Final
reason
to be rich
toward God
is because
you will
receive
eternal
joy.
If you
want to
receive
eternal
joy,
joy which
transcends
all the
temporal
materialistic
joy that
we have
in materialism
and possessions,
then give.
If you
want to see
the beauty
of Christ
more clearly
without being
blinded by
this pursuit
of money,
then give.
Jesus said
it's more
blessed to
give than
to receive.
This is so
true.
I believe
there's a
very close
relationship
between
giving to
God
and receiving
incredible
joy.
And that
is because
as we
give to
God,
praying that
he would
multiply
or giving
a thousand
times so
that the
poor,
the marginalized,
the widows
and orphans
would be
comforted,
so that
the woman
in the
red light
districts
of Hong
Kong
would be
free of
that bondage,
so that
the lost,
those who don't
know him,
would know
the love
of Christ.
And as
we see
God's hand
working in
those lives,
we receive
joy because
we receive
a glimpse
of God's
own heart.
Because
God loves
the poor.
God loves
the marginalized.
He loves
the lost.
So as
we give,
we receive
joy.
And as
we receive
joy,
we're encouraged
to give
more.
As we
give more,
we are
encouraged,
we receive
joy,
we give
more,
there's
this
symbiotic
two-way
feedback loop
that goes
on and
on.
So let's
be rich
to our
God because
Christ has
made us
rich,
because it's
the only
way to
fight greed,
and because
you will
receive
eternal
joy.
Let me
close.
friends,
the world
is constantly
telling us
this lie
that money
will make
us happy.
That is
a lie.
That is
the foolishness
of greed.
Let's not
let money
cloud our
vision
of God.
God,
there's an
eternity
after this
life.
If your
faith and
hope is
in Jesus
Christ this
morning,
on the last
day,
you and I
will stand
before him.
He'll show
us his
scars on
his hands.
He'll show
us the wound
on his
side.
And I'm
pretty sure
you and I
will fall
to our
knees in
worship,
finally realizing
the depth
of the love
and sacrifice
of Christ.
But before
then, we
have a little
bit of time
left on
earth.
So let's
be rich
toward God.
Let's give
Jesus everything
we have,
our lives,
including our
money,
because he
has given us
a secure
future,
and he
alone is
worthy.
Let's pray.
Father,
this is a
challenging
subject.
It's very
challenging for
me, Lord.
You know my
heart, God,
and you know
my struggles.
You know all
of our
struggles,
Lord.
Forgive us,
God,
where greed,
the pursuit
of money,
have clouded
our vision
of you.
Forgive us,
Lord, where
we've elevated
this idol of
money above
you.
Oh, God,
would you
tear down
this idol of
money, God,
of greed,
Father?
Father,
comfort us,
Lord,
when we worry
about money.
Teach us,
Lord,
that money
is not the
key to
happiness,
that we can
only receive
true joy
in you,
Jesus,
that you are
our greatest
treasure
and our
highest value.
Lord,
we're
rich toward
you.
And,
Father,
help us
to be rich
toward you,
not because
of some
religious need,
not because
of legalism,
not because
of guilt,
but help us
to be rich
toward you,
God,
because we
see you
as wonderful,
we see you
as beautiful,
we know you
as holy,
as sovereign,
as perfect,
as righteous,
and worthy
to be praised
and worshipped.
Give us
the vision
of you,
God,
that is so
beautiful
and so
wonderful
that all
these idols
of life
are meaningless
and nothing
compared to
you.
I want
to invite
the prayer
team
to come
up
in a
moment.
If
this warning
against greed,
if
this,
the word
of God
today has
impacted you,
right,
and you
realize that
greed is
something which
has gripped
your heart,
that the
worries about
money,
the lies
that this
world tells
us that
money will
give us
happiness,
if this
is something
that you
have
realized
has gripped
your heart
and you've
never been
rich toward
God,
I encourage
you to
come up
here for
prayer.
We would
love to
pray with
you and
walk with
you.
Pray for
God to
plant his
spirit into
your heart
to see that
he is our
greatest treasure,
not money,
to tear down
these idols
of materialism,
gaining
possessions,
storing up,
securing stuff
because we're
worried about
the future.
Let's pray
together.
Let's be a
church who
truly elevates
Christ at the
forefront of
our lives,
doing so
because we
have this
picture and
vision of
him as
awesome and
sovereign.
Maybe be a
church who
worships the
only God who
is worthy.
Amen.