Boo!
In their song ‘Mud’ 90’s band Boo! sung:
“enslave us! as slaves we now behave us! from the freedom that the good lord gave us, our money seems to have saved us, shame on us!”
-Mud, Pineapple Flavour, Boo! circa 1998
Many centuries earlier, Jesus said something similar:\
“No servant can serve two masters, either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
– Luke 16.13, Jesus circa 30-32 AD
Jesus held that we are only capable of being loyal, faithful or true to one thing. He used the example of money. Boo! looked at this problem quite pragmatically as they stated that due to money we are enslaved from the freedom of God.
With great cash comes great anxiety.
Jesus knew that fickle humanity could not serve the Father completely if we let any thing else be first in our lives and in serving other ‘stuff’ we consciously separate ourselves from the joy, peace and freedom that God so effortlessly gifts us with.
That is why the constant Biblical warnings against looking to self or things or others for our satisfaction and contentment.
It is also why we, especially with the Western mindset, have such issues with sacrificing time, money or property to others – even friends and family.
In the King James version, 1 Samuel 10.22 is translated:
“Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, if the man should yet come thither. And the LORD answered, Behold, he hath hid himself among the stuff.” Saul had hidden “among the stuff”. What an indictment on us – as God is looking for those to go for Him, instead of putting up our hands like Isaiah, we hide “among [our] stuff”
We find that, as soon as our stuff is His and not ‘ours’ we are much freer to make a meal for someone else; lend our stuff to someone who needs it or drive out of our way to get someone without transport to where they need to be. Or, dare I say, allow God to send us where He wants us to go.
But “our money seems to have saved us, shame on us!”
Jesus offers the solution: start as His servant and as you learn His ways, he allows you to become His friend and shares His ways and secrets with you (John 15.15). He places His easy yoke and light burden (Matthew 11.30) upon you and you start to co-labour with Him.
Father, help us to put you first. In a world filled with ‘the next’ (the next best deal, the next upgrade, the next model, the next trip…) may we be ever mindful of how we have the potential to enslave ourselves with and to hide our selves among our stuff. Holy Spirit give us wisdom and clarity of thought in every decision we make on every item that we buy asking ourselves how it brings glory to You and to have the boldness to turn it down if it doesn’t further Your purposes – no matter how much society screams that we need it. May we be truly in this world and not of it. For Jesus sake we pray. – So be it!