Cherish Ephesians 6:4 Presents: Choose Your Master: God Or Money. Written And Read By Michael Lee

Cherish Ephesians 6:4
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Cherish Ephesians 6:4 Presents: Choose Your Master: God Or Money. Written And Read By Michael Lee

I created this podcast for two reasons. First, God calls us to a higher standard of living through obedience to him. His ways are always the very best way for us, and how we think about and use money is an incredibly important part of the Christian life. But there is a clear and present danger to the Christian and it is the love of money. Listen to Paul's words to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:6-10: "But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs." Loving money is an incredibly dangerous thing to your soul. I know because I have the experience of making terrible mistakes in my life that were built on worldly, unchristian thinking, and I have also seen what happens in your life when you do things God’s way. But it is also important to remember that money is NOT sin. It is only a tool, and it if thought of and used like God tells us to think and use it, it can be a great blessing to us and others. Second Reason for doing this podcast- It is painful to me when I see wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ doing the same foolish things that I did and getting the same disastrous results. Maybe, just maybe someone will hear this podcast and change their ways. The meaning of the title of this podcast is drawn from Matt 6:24 where Jesus says, "No 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." I pray that you will listen carefully again and again to the passages that I have chosen in this podcast. If you do, I have no doubt that they will change your thinking and habits about money forever! You can peruse all of the free recordings at the Cherish Ephesians 6:4 Channel here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/channel/cherish-ephesians-6-4/id6449722161 Copyright © 2023 CherishEphesians64, All rights reserved.

Episodes

  1. 05/03/2023

    Episode 10: Prayer

    Should you desire to obey God in all of the aforementioned commands and precepts stated in this podcast and do not pray, you will fail. Prayer holds all of it together and as you walk with God makes obedience and success possible! For more on prayer, visit www.cherishephesians64.com and choose the podcast: "A Call To Prayer."

    3 min

  2. 05/03/2023

    Episode 9: The Love Of Money, Contentment, And Giving.

    THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE LIFE CHANGING VERSES! Philippians 4:11-13 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Note godliness with contentment is contrasted with those who desire to be rich. 1 Tim. 6:6-10 But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. Hebrews 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” And by the way, no matter what some televangelist may tell you, God does not intend to prosper very Christian, nor does He give to everyone in equal measures. In Mathew 25:14-15 we see the master giving different amounts for each steward to invest for Him. For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Hebrews 11:36-38 says, Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. Do you want to be blessed by God? Acts 20:35 In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Attitude. 2 Corinthians 9:7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Focus. Matthew 6:19-21 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. How much? The old testament teaches us that God’s people gave a tithe or a tenth of what they had. Giving a tenth of your income is a safe way for many people to faithfully give back to the Lord. But 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 can help us think through this a little more: We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. 1 Timothy 5:17-18 says, Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.” Find a way to give to the poor. This was a priority for the disciples in John 13:27-29 and Galatians 2:9-10.

    14 min

  3. 05/03/2023

    Episode 8: Children

    Parents have a tremendous responsibility to teach their children about stewardship. These lessons will shape them for life.

    6 min

  4. 05/01/2023

    Episode 7: Investing

    This episode does not provide individual financial plans, but seeks to direct the listener to helpful ideas to consider as they plan to invest. This is not professional advice. THINK DEEPLY ABOUT GOD'S WORD AND THE APPLICATION TO YOUR LIFE. Proverbs 27:23-24 says, Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds, for riches do not last forever; and does a crown endure to all generations? Get good counsel. Proverbs 12:15 says, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.” And Proverbs 15:22 says, “Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.” Biblical counsel. This is what this podcast is all about- providing you with Bible based counsel. Listen to Psalm 119:24 Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors. And Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. The Bible provides us with all we need to know through commands and precepts and examples. 2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him.

    17 min

  5. 05/01/2023

    Episode 6: Work Is Not A Bad Thing.

    Christians often think about work in a very negative way and this is not Biblical. Let's change that! THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE VERSES. IT IS THE WORD OF GOD. Genesis 2:15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. This is before sin, so this must be good for man. We are to work hard. Proverbs 18:9 says, Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? Proverbs 6:9-11 describes one who is lazy and the consequences: When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9 we get a pretty good idea how Paul thought about work: For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. Working for Jesus- Ephesians 6:5-9 Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a bondservant or is free. Colossians 3:22-25 Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. Proverbs 14:2 Whoever walks in uprightness fears the LORD, but he who is devious in his ways despises him. Proverbs 21:6 says The getting of treasures by a lying tongue, is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death. Ex. 34:21 Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. Psalm 75:6-7 For not from the east or from the west and not from the wilderness comes lifting up, but it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another. Deuteronomy 25:13-16 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. A full and fair weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore, go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”

    12 min

  6. 05/01/2023

    Episode 5: Planning Is A Must!

    Every faithful steward must have a plan for how they will steward God's assets for the years to come. This is an oft neglected area of the Christian life. Don't wait any longer to get going your your planning! THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE VERSES. IT IS THE WORD OF GOD. James 4: Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

    11 min

  7. 05/01/2023

    Episode 4: Debt Is A Ball And Chain Tied To Your Entire Life.

    This episode is focused on what may be the most destructive money related influence on the family- debt. One of the blessings of living in America is the availability of so many things that can make our lives easier or just things that are fun. And one of the great curses of living in America is the availability of so many things that can make our lives easier or just things that are fun. What do I mean by that? Is it a blessing or a curse? Depends on your heart. If you run your home like Joshua- for me and my house, we will serve the Lord- you will enjoy the blessings as you stay within your financial means. But if you begin to fall in love with those material things that surround us, you will leave the godly constraints of good stewardship, and chase after those things, even if you have to borrow money to get them. The consequences of debt are powerful and long lasting. THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE VERSES. IT IS THE WORD OF GOD. If you read Deuteronomy chapters 15 and early in 28, you will see that the Lord is making promises of blessings to the Israelites if they obey His commandments. One of those promised blessings is that they would be in the ruling position of lending to the other nations around them. • He says in chapter 15, “For the LORD your God will bless you, as he promised you, and you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow, and you shall rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over you.” • And again, in chapter 28, God is reiterating the blessings and says, “And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow.” We find this same idea in Proverbs 22:7 The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender. • Psalm 37:21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives. • Proverbs 3:27-28 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it. Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give it”—when you have it with you. • Proverbs 22:26-27 Be not one of those who give pledges, who put up security for debts. If you have nothing with which to pay, why should your bed be taken from under you? • Proverbs 17:18 One who lacks sense gives a pledge and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor. • Proverbs 6:1-5 My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor, have given your pledge for a stranger, if you are snared in the words of your mouth, caught in the words of your mouth, then do this, my son, and save yourself, for you have come into the hand of your neighbor: go, hasten, and plead urgently with your neighbor. Give your eyes no sleep and your eyelids no slumber; save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

    10 min

  8. 04/19/2023

    Episode 3: The Meaning And Responsibility Of Stewardship

    What is a steward? A steward is a manager of someone else’ possessions. And stewardship is how you go about managing those person’s possessions. Hopefully, you have concluded from episode 2 that that that stuff that you call your money isn’t actually yours. For that matter neither is “your” home, “your” car, or even, the clothes on your back. It all belongs to the Lord, and you are just managing those things for Him. THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE VERSES Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” Psalm 8:4-6 what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet. 1 Corinthians 4:2 Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. Romans 14:10-12 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. 2 Corinthians 5:9-10 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. Matthew 25:14-30 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So, take the talent from him and gi

    12 min

  9. 04/19/2023

    Episode 2: The Importance Of Understanding And Believing That God Is Absolutely Sovereign Over All Things- Including Money.

    THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE VERSES. IT IS THE WORD OF GOD. Deuteronomy 10:14 Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. Psalm 24:1 The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, 1 Cor. 10:26 For “the earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof.” Lev. 25:23 The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. Psalm 50:10-12 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine. “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine. Haggai 2:8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts. Then, let’s learn what the Bible says about His sovereign control over men Psalm 135:6 Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps. Proverbs 21:1 The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will. Is 40:21-24 Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble. Acts 17:26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, Acts 2:22-23 Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. Matt:6:31-33 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Psalm 34:9-10 Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack! The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. Job 1:20-21 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” Jeremiah 27:5 It is I who by my great power and my outstretched arm have made the earth, with the men and animals that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever it seems right to me. 1 Chronicles 29:10-12 Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens

    10 min

  10. 04/19/2023

    Episode 1: The Incredible Danger That The Love Of Money Can Bring Into The Christian Life.

    Money is absolutely necessary in our lives, but what happens when we begin to love it? This episode brings a first look and introduction to the concern. THINK DEEPLY ABOUT THESE VERSES. IT IS THE WORD OF GOD. Matthew 6:24 “No 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. Matthew 6:18- 6:34 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Moving down to verse 24, “No 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. “Therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:18- 6:34

    10 min
  • 10 Episodes

About

I created this podcast for two reasons. First, God calls us to a higher standard of living through obedience to him. His ways are always the very best way for us, and how we think about and use money is an incredibly important part of the Christian life. But there is a clear and present danger to the Christian and it is the love of money. Listen to Paul's words to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:6-10: "But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs." Loving money is an incredibly dangerous thing to your soul. I know because I have the experience of making terrible mistakes in my life that were built on worldly, unchristian thinking, and I have also seen what happens in your life when you do things God’s way. But it is also important to remember that money is NOT sin. It is only a tool, and it if thought of and used like God tells us to think and use it, it can be a great blessing to us and others. Second Reason for doing this podcast- It is painful to me when I see wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ doing the same foolish things that I did and getting the same disastrous results. Maybe, just maybe someone will hear this podcast and change their ways. The meaning of the title of this podcast is drawn from Matt 6:24 where Jesus says, "No 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." I pray that you will listen carefully again and again to the passages that I have chosen in this podcast. If you do, I have no doubt that they will change your thinking and habits about money forever! You can peruse all of the free recordings at the Cherish Ephesians 6:4 Channel here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/channel/cherish-ephesians-6-4/id6449722161 Copyright © 2023 CherishEphesians64, All rights reserved.

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