Materialism

3) How can I escape materialism?

· Change your focus. Matt. 6:19-21. What does it mean to ‘store up’? It means to accumulate an abundance of. Therefore, Jesus isn’t saying it’s wrong to have material things. He’s saying it’s wrong to have the mindset to accumulate an abundance of possessions with the thought of them being my security, passion and joy-my ‘treasure’. We need to put things into perspective. We need to prioritize correctly. Making more money and accumulating more stuff cannot be at the top of the list. Instead, my joy and passion needs to be found in the treasures I store up in heaven. When we recognize that the greater treasure is a heavenly one then we will pursue it. I need to change my focus from ‘me’ to ‘God’ (vs. 33). When I become God centered instead of me centered I will understand that building up treasures on earth will not get me anywhere. But what constitutes ‘heavenly treasure’? Salvation (Matt 13:44-46), the Gospel (2nd Cor. 4:1-7), helping others (Matt. 19:16-22), wisdom (Prov. 2:1-6), generosity (1st Tim. 6:17-19). When I become others centered instead of me centered I will understand that part of my treasure in heaven will be people I’ve influenced for Christ. Where my treasure is, there my heart will be also. In Disciplines of a Godly Man, R. Kent Hughes states, “God can have our money and not our hearts, but He cannot have our hearts without having our money.” We need to be like the psalmist who wrote in Psalm 119:35-37, “Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight. Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain. Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.” If we are going to escape the trap of materialism we will need to change our focus.

· Guard your eyes. Matt. 6:22-23. Whatever my eyes take in fills my mind and heart. I need to be careful about how I react to what I allow my eyes to see. If my eyes are taking in bad things my whole being will be dark. If my eyes are focused on material things, causing me to lust, envy or covet then I will be in darkness. But if I focus on spiritual things like the wonderful beauty of creation or having compassionate eyes for the needy and if I have eyes to see the Spirit of God at work and not be blinded by materialism then I will be full of the light of Christ. 2 Cor. 4:18, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” Spiros Zodhiates in Behavior of Belief said, “When you fix your eyes on things, invariably it leads to materialism. You fix your eyes on things and you will continually be attracted to gadgets, money, an abundance of the plastic, chrome, metal, wood, all the elements about us. You will continually be dissatisfied.” If I’m going to escape materialism I have to guard my eyes.