Kingdom Spirituality (part two): Moving beyond the consumer illusion

Kingdom Spirituality (part two): Moving beyond the consumer illusion
Matthew 6:19-24
A study of the kingdom of the heavens
Spring 2008

“No one can be a slave of two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be slaves of God and of money.
-Matthew 6:24

Affluenza - n. a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more.

Affluenza - n. 1. The bloated, sluggish and unfulfilled feeling that results from efforts to keep up with the Joneses. 2. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste and indebtedness caused by the pursuit of the American Dream. 3. An unsustainable addiction to economic growth.

“No one can be a slave of two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be slaves of God and of money (“Mammon”).
-Matthew 6:24

“Mammon” = material goods personified & deified

What is the cure for affluenza?
• We must become dis-illusioned with consumerism
• It is an empty, impermanent illusion…
• “Don’t collect for yourselves treasures Or on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. (Matt. 6:19)
• It is a path that leads to pain & a shriveled soul… (1 Timothy 6:6-10)
• We must embrace the life of the kingdom of the heavens.
• It is a satisfying, permanent reality that leads to joy & a growing soul…
• “But collect for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal.”
(Matthew 6:20)
• We must plan to live this way.
• For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light within you is darkness—how deep is that darkness! (Matthew 6:21-23)

So, what about you? What kingdom will you invest in?