“For the love of money is the root all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” NLT
This verse is often misquoted as just ‘money is the root of all evil.’ I disagree. You use money to buy books that bring you joy. You use money to buy food to share with friends and family. You can even use money to help out with things at Church.
How can something that can do so much good be considered inherently evil? It’s like how a knife can be used to hurt someone but can also be used to slice and dice to make a delicious meal. Is the knife evil because it can do harm? You can get hurt on the stairs so does that make it evil too?
The verse is clear. The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. I’ve often seen this verse taken out of context and it’s good to know what the Bible does and does not say.
Jesus told us to love God, and our neighbours as ourselves. Never did He say love money because loving money makes it an idol. It’s giving an inanimate object deep reverence and power over your life. It can breed greed, selfishness and envy which are things a child of God needs to avoid. Jesus doesn’t want to us to be slaves to paper. You are the master of your money.
So how does this apply to us?
First of all, it’s important to know that there’s no problem with having money but it’s important to set your priorities. Also, it’s necessary not to compromise your morals and relationships for money. Although it’s usually a problem that adults face, the earlier you define what you will and will not do as well as highlight who and what matters most to you, the easier it will be to resist temptation in the time of adversary.
Psalm 3:5