I have enjoyed fielding several questions about prosperity from those who have been reading these articles. Those questions have helped me refine and expand some thoughts about how money works in our lives as believers. One of the questions revolved around the concept of Mammon (see Luke 16:9-13) and why it was referenced as such rather than simply saying the word, “money”? I have personally come to the conclusion that there is more at work with our money than simply a tool of transacting business. Money has a unique and special authority in most people’s lives. It has the capacity to make us do both incredibly generous things as well criminal things. It controls us at various levels of existence. We worry about it and have anxieties concerning it. Money may be a tool for navigating an economy, but it’s power far exceeds a wrench.
If I were to ask most people what “mammon” is, the short answer would probably be money. That is true to a degree, however, mammon is not simply money, but I have come to the conclusion that it is the “spirit” which is attached to our money.
Mammon was actually the Syrian god of riches and wealth. That information is more than interesting historical fact. It tells us that money is not neutral. It is true that money can be used for either good or evil purposes, but it transcends that practical reality. Your money and my money has a spirit inherently attached to it. As it works its way through the world it is used for benevolent and nefarious purposes. If we are willing to believe that idols and icons which are venerated can have demons attached to them, then it is no leap at all to suggest your money might have some devils on it as well.
Especially if you venerate and shall I say, “worship” money…
I know what some people may say. They will say, “I’m not sure I buy into the notion that my money has a spirit on it.” What if I could give you some indicators? For example:
1. Money tries to rule you.
Jesus tells us that a person cannot serve God and mammon. This means there is a struggle for allegiance and rulership in this area of dealing with your finances. Mammon tries to promise you everything that God said He would provide for you. Why do we think our happiness is linked to money rather than the Lord? What about our peace, or our freedom? Why is our identity and significance linked to our bank accounts? It is the spirit of mammon at work. In fact, the spirit of mammon is linked to the rule of the antichrist as we are told at the end of the age we will be unable to buy or sell without the mark (Revelation 13:17).
2. Money will speak to you.
You may have heard the old saying, “Money talks.” That is truer than you might have thought. Your money has a spirit on it that can speak to you. Money can talk you out of following the will of God (Matthew 13:22). It can tell you that if you had more of it then people would respect you, listen to you, or admire you. How many decisions for or against the will of God are finally decided by money? Yes, that bill has a voice.
3. Money can open a door to other spirits.
Paul told Timothy that the love of money can open a door to various kinds of evil (I Timothy 6:10). It carries with it a spirit of deception. Have you ever noticed how people who have great wealth (celebrities, athletes, corporate moguls, etc.) often have lives of complete dysfunction? Their money doesn’t insulate them from tragedy or pain. In fact, it can accentuate it. I have, after decades of pastoring, hundreds of stories of how money opened a door in people’s lives to all sorts of problems. Consider the history of lottery winners who in an instant become millionaires and yet statistically those same people (unless helped by wise counselors) find themselves in worst situations in less than 5 years.
But the question is, “How can we navigate life without using money?”
The answer is, “You can’t.”
This is why I came to the personal conclusion that the tithe (the first 10% of a person’s enlargement) when returned to God redeems and sets free the use of the remaining 90%. In Malachi 3:8-12, we are told that somehow a curse surrounds the non-return of the tithe. One might rightly infer, (at least I do), that the obedient return of the tithe would break the curse. What might that curse be?
The activity of the spirit of Mammon.
Like any demonic spirit, its mission and assignment is to “steal, kill and destroy”. This is why those whose lives are consumed by money often find themselves in the proverbial ditch despite their net worth. The redeeming of your money through the return of the tithe, releases the 90% to function in far greater ways than the 100%. I understand that doesn’t make sense with regards to arithmetic, but obedience to God’s ways will defy logic and reason on numerous occasions.
What does that mean practically in my household?
We anticipate, expect, and believe that our faithful obedience to God in this regard will enable our 90% to work more effectively in our lives. We believe the 90% is blessed supernaturally to do things which cannot be done in the natural. It is working with Kingdom effectiveness and favor.
Just another reason…
I am not ashamed of prosperity.
Dave Sadler
June 2, 2021 at 3:07 amThank you for that scriptural insight.