Daily EncouragementSample

The man of God is to be on the move, fleeing from “all this” and pursuing every desirable virtue.

What is “all this?” The emphasis has been on material wealth, in particular “the love of money.” False teaching and false teachers have been on the apostle’s mind, and their materialism is the chief characteristic of their teaching - they “think that godliness is a means to financial gain” (verse 5). It is the attitude towards money that is in question, and what emerges is an unhealthy desire for it which ultimately leads to “ruin and destruction.”

Men of God have always fled “all this.” “I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing,” says Paul to the Ephesian elders (Acts 20:33). Speaking of money, John Wesley testifies, “I count it dung and dross; I trample it under my feet; I (yet not I, but the grace of God in me) esteem it just as the mire of the streets. I desire it not, I seek it not.” However, no servant of God is immune from temptation and some have fallen into the enemy’s trap in connection with “all this.” A man does not have to possess much money to love it.

The way to flee materialism’s stranglehold is to pursue the real wealth of “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.”