For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.
Love of money, wealth, and possessions—the sin of greed (covetousness)—can take over our lives if we aren't careful. The god of wealth is Mammon (an Aramaic word), and he has many followers. This is the topic of today's talk (8 mins).
“No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one and love the other. Or else he will hold fast to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and Mammon” (Matthew 6:24).
Comment
- Mammon is the Aramaic term for riches.
- Love/hate in Matt 6:24 and Luke 16:13 sheds light on how to interpret love/hate in Luke 14:25.
- Mammon is not just a master; it is a god. “For you know this that no fornicator … nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God” (Eph 5:5). A covetous man is an idolater, and he serves another god.
- It isn’t surprising that Jesus speaks of Mammon or wealth as though it were a god. Roman satirist Juvenal says sarcastically, “No deity is held in such reverence among us as Wealth.” Satire I.
- This verse is Jesus’ third angle of approach to the important topic of wealth (Matt 6:19-34).
Conclusion: An extended quotation from Donald Hagner, Word Biblical Commentary 33A: Matthew 1-13 (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1993), 160.
Next: Anxious