'Where do your loyalties lie?'
Jesus speaks of God and Money as masters—both make demands of you, but they are moving in different directions. You can’t follow both. It’s like trying to keep one foot on land and the other on a boat drifting out to sea - it doesn’t work. The competition usually begins subtly. Maybe it’s in your goals, your desire for a bigger nest egg, or your personal definition of success. Eventually, money tries to slip into the role of master, challenging your allegiance to God. We have to decide who it will be. You can only serve one master.
Matthew Bates, in his book Salvation by Allegiance Alone, explains that the Greek word pistis, usually translated as “faith,” is better understood as allegiance, especially in political or royal contexts. Salvation isn’t just about mentally agreeing with facts about Jesus, but about swearing loyal allegiance to Christ as the risen King. True faith includes trust, but it also means loyal obedience like a subject serves a king. In this light: The Gospel is that Jesus is the risen King. Our faith is our allegiance to the King. And our salvation is our participation in His Kingdom.
God knew that wealth would challenge the loyalty of His people. After centuries of slavery, abuse, lack of dignity, even death, the Israelites were preparing to enter the land promised by God. The Promised Land would be a place of great abundance. God was going to make them prosper, their flocks would grow and their fields and vines produce great crops. God knew that the Israelites would be tempted by the abundance to throw off loyalty to Him. He gave them a warning. “Remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth…” (Deut 8:18). In other words, God is saying, “Do what I say and the prosperity will never end; lose sight of Me, and you’ll lose it all.” Jesus echoes this with His question: “What good is it if you gain the whole world but lose your soul?” We must remember—God is the source of every opportunity, every paycheck, every blessing.
That’s why Jesus taught his disciples to, “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matt 6:33). We need to seek out what God is doing and join in his work. When we remember the Lord, and listen to his voice, we can reaffirm our loyalty to His Kingdom by participating in it as He directs. Doing God’s will is what defines us as his loyal people, people of faith and action. After all, He is our King.
Prov 3:9 says, “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops.” The way we use our money reflects our loyalty to God. Giving our first and best reminds us that everything we have—and the ability to earn it—comes from Him and belongs to Him. Giving first, and building generosity into our lives, is one of the clearest ways to demonstrate loyalty and allegiance to the true King.
A good friend from college and a fellow pastor has a great way of remembering God and putting Him first. He has a close group of men that encourage each other in the faith. They speak boldly into each other’s lives and hold each other accountable. When they gather for dinners they raise a glass. My friend says, “To the King.” And they lift up their glasses responding, “to the King!” Jesus isn’t my sidekick, or a friend I call when I want to play church or have a problem, and he isn’t a gumball machine in which we put a quarter and out pops a sweet. Jesus is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the Almighty God and the Everlasting Father. The government is upon His shoulders, and of His Kingdom and of His rule there will be no end. This is the One to whom we bow our knee, the One to whom we declare our allegiance. It is to Him we raise our cup and say, “To the King!”
Blessings,
Jonathan