Luke 16.11 11 “So if you have not been trustworthy
in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?” - Jesus
Yesterday, I was having a conversation with a friend and
I mentioned the word dogma. While
dogma tends to lean toward creed, doctrine, or canon, it also leans toward
belief. What one believes is not necessarily the truth; but it is what one
believes. The stronger the belief, the more dogmatic the belief. In Jesus’ day,
like ours, there were those with strong (dogmatic) beliefs.
Jesus said things we take as canonical or dogmatic. For instance,
Jesus said (speaking to the Jews of His day): “It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a
certificate of divorce.’ But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife,
except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who
marries a divorced woman commits adultery. (Matthew 5.31-32) Yet in our
day, divorce and remarriage is quite common.
Does that mean that those who’ve divorced and remarried for
reasons other than sexual immorality are forever adulterers and there is no
remedy for their sin? That sounds like the only other sin Jesus didn’t die for
is divorce. (The other, other sin
Jesus didn’t die for is unbelief.) Nonsense.
Truly, divorce is a serious thing, but it isn’t unforgivable. Many remarriages beyond
divorce are happy and lasting.
In the context of the above, Jesus is addressing money
and the proper use of money. He said: “So
if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you
with true riches?” To my knowledge, a lot of people (especially in the
west) have issues with money handling. It is said: either you have money, or it has you. Many are in the, it-has-you
group. The question is, in the areas of money and marriage, what do we do?
What we do is allow
the Lord to lead us in money and marriage. Both are serious issues. Both are
issues of the heart. And both (if not handled properly) have major
consequences. Jesus I think was making a fairly obvious statement: if you’re not good with money or marriage,
who will seek you out for guidance and counsel? No dogma – just fairly
obvious observation.
To my knowledge, everything can be forgiven – except unbelief.
Marriage matters, money matters – all can be forgiven. What cannot be forgiven
is the heart that persists in unbelief. Many have unbelief. At some point – I contend
– unbelief has them. When unbelief reaches stage two, in my mind, then there is
no turning back.
The dogma is this: Let
Jesus have our money and our marriages (and everything else) and He will help
us do what is right. We may not end up being money managers or marriage
counselors, but we will be taught by the Lord to do what is right, and
honorable. True riches, I’d say…
Father, help me to
learn, repent, and to learn. Teach me Your ways, and may I walk in them. Use me
to help others and encourage them along life’s path. Give me serenity to accept
the things I cannot change, the grace to change the things I can, and the
wisdom to know the difference and walk therein. Amen.
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