Fixed on Things

  What do you believe to be the greatest hindrance to the work of the Lord in our day? This is a question that I like to pose to visiting evangelists at Faith Bible Church. Answers are varied, but almost always include two vital elements: complacency and prosperity.

   Complacency is that “I don’t care” attitude that is common in our day. Perhaps you would agree that, in our culture, complacency is inseparably linked to prosperity. It seems that everyone has developed ambitions and goals that literally fill their minds and years with endless busyness. Long ago, life was filled with the necessities of living such as raising food, sewing clothes and repairing one’s aged belongings. Today, most everything that we “need” falls into the category of consumable/disposable, and we have grown accustomed to having ours “instant.” We spend more money, and we have a lot more time to follow our dreams.
 
  Please don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that God requires that we be dirt poor, or sit and moan for hours under sackcloth and ashes, but be sure, our prosperity can and does effect our spiritual appetite and zeal. This was the context of our Lord’s’ comments in Matthew 19:24 “...It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” “The deceitfulness of riches” will keep many from entering the kingdom of heaven, according to Matthew 13:22, “...the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.”

   Nearly every week we are faced with another practical example of this cultural fixation on things. As we knock on doors to share the gospel in our neighborhood, we have discovered that the majority of our “good” visits are with our less affluent neighbors. People who have little, have more time for God. People who have much, think they don’t need Him. The Bible says, “...he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;" (Acts 17:25).