God or mammon

[Richard King]

I have someone arguing against capitalism using this verse...

Matthew 6:24 (Show me Matthew 6)
"œNo one can serve two masters, for 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.[1]


He is very mixed up in a works based theology and he thinks it displeases God for him to "make more money than he needs." I would like to convince him otherwise because he will waste his talent if he chooses to bail out of a capitalistic system.

 

[VictorBravo]

Mr. King, I occasionally rail against the modern capitalistic system and its Godless premises, but I would think the parable of the servants you hinted at would be more than enough to counter the idea of voluntary penury by just getting by.

But what does he mean about more money than he "needs"? I can't tell if it is a question of capitalism or an issue of false piety. Certainly if he makes enough money to meet his needs, there is no fault in that fact alone.

As in so many things, we are to avoid the ditches on both sides. In this case, greed and avarice on one, and the false humility of voluntary poverty on the other.

I like Agur's advice in Prov. 30:8: "Give me neither poverty nor riches." The problem, at least with me, is that I want it to be closer to the riches end of the spectrum but I don't really want to work for it.
Vic

 

[gwine]

Originally posted by victorbravo


I like Agur's advice in Prov. 30:8: "Give me neither poverty nor riches." The problem, at least with me, is that I want it to be closer to the riches end of the spectrum but I don't really want to work for it.
Vic

Ah, a man after my own heart.