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Red Script = Main Point / Blue Script= Directive / Double underline= Important to remember / Boxed= Biblical Text & SDA Commentary Reference / GREEN SCRIPT: A Possible AnswerLesson 1 THE INFLUENCE OF MATERIALISM December 30-January 5/6
Memory Text: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2, NKJV).
The Word of God tells His people not to “be conformed to this world” (Rom. 12:2, NKJV), but the lure of materialism, the inordinate desire for wealth and for what we think wealth can bring, is powerful. Very few people, whether rich or poor, are beyond the reach of materialism.
This includes Christians as well.
Nothing is wrong with being rich, or even working hard to get ahead in order to provide comfortably for yourself and your loved ones. But when money, or the pursuit of money, becomes all-encompassing, we have fallen into the devil’s trap and have, indeed, become “conformed to this world.”
The world conveys the idea that the good life, the abundant life, can be found only in money. But money is one mask that Satan hides behind in order to secure our allegiance. Materialism is one of Satan’s weapons of choice against Christians. After all, who doesn’t like money and what money can bring us in the here and now? Its greatest achievement is instant gratification, but in the end it cannot answer our deepest needs.
Sunday The God of This World December 31
Money has become the god of this world, and materialism is its religion. Materialism is a sophisticated and insidious system that offers temporary security but no ultimate safety.
Materialism, as we define it here, is when the desire for wealth and possessions becomes more important and more valuable than spiritual realities. Possessions may have value, but their value shouldn’t possess us: “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income” (Eccles. 5:10, NIV). That’s the problem with desiring the things of this world: no matter how much we get, it’s never enough; we push harder and harder for more and more of what can never satisfy us. Talk about a trap!
Read 1 John 2:16, 17. What does this text tell us about what really matters?
1 John 2:16, 17 16For all thatisin the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.17And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. 16. Lust. Gr. epithumia, “desire,” “craving,” “longing” (see on Matt. 5:28; John 8:44; Rom. 7:7). Flesh. The sensuous nature of man in which “dwelleth no good thing” and which lusteth to evil (Rom. 7:18; cf. Rom. 8:1). The lust of the flesh is the craving of the flesh for indulgence in evil... The expression “lust of the flesh” includes all strong desires for indulgence contrary to the will of God. The apostle was not accusing his readers of heinous sin, but warning them of the inherent enmity that exists between God and all forms of sin. He trusted that the warning would serve to save them from sin’s snares. Lust of the eyes. If “lust of the flesh” applies particularly to sins arising from the body, “lust of the eyes” may be understood to refer to mental pleasure stimulated through sight. Much of the sinful pleasure of the world is experienced through the eyes (see on Matt. 5:27, 28). Many who would hasten to disclaim any intention of indulging in open sin themselves are eager to read about sin, to study it in a picture, or to watch it depicted upon a screen. Here the words of 1 Cor. 10:12 apply: “Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (cf. on Gen. 3:6). John may have been thinking of spectacles of brutalizing sports in the Roman arena, where men fought each other or wild animals to the death. Those spectacles aroused the same morbid curiosity that sadistic sports do today. Pride. Gr. alazoneia, “vainglory,” “boasting,” “display” (cf. on James 4:16). Life. Gr. bios, here, “manner of life” (see on Rom. 6:4). The expression “pride of life” implies a materialistic satisfaction with worldly goods, a state of mind that substitutes the material for the spiritual. All, in varying degrees, are prone to such pride and need to guard against it. Some take undue pride in their work, others in their possessions, their own beauty, or their children. Of the Father. Literally, “out of the Father.” Neither the lust nor the pride of which John has just spoken proceeds from the Father. Both undesirable qualities originated with Satan (cf. John 8:44).
Of the world. Hence, at enmity with God (see on v. 15). 17. The world. See on v. 15. Here the term apparently refers to principles that oppose God and that produce the lusts discussed in v. 16. Passeth away. Or, “is passing away” (see on v. 8). John reminds his readers that the questionable objects of men’s love are transitory. Many of them may now appear permanent and important, but they will all come to an end. Accordingly, what is to be gained by coveting them and pinning the affections upon them?
He that doeth. See on Matt. 7:21. The doer of God’s will applies God’s revealed will to his own daily life, in contrast with the man who ignores God and prefers the enticing ways of the world. For ever. Gr. eis ton aiōna (see on Matt. 13:39; Rev. 14:11). The apostle stresses the contrast between the transitory life of the lover of the world and the abiding experience of the doer of God’s will. Death may overtake the faithful Christian, but he has the assurance of eternal life and may thus be said to abide “for ever” (see on John 10:28; 11:26). He who loves the world loves what is temporary, what has become so fully identified with death and sin that it must perish with them. With the passing of the world and its sinfulness the lover of sin also passes away, but he who sets his affections on the eternal God and on His everlasting kingdom and its ever-living principles of righteousness will abide forever.[1]
A POSSIBLE ANSWER: It tells us that what really matters is having an abundant abiding experience or relationship with Jesus as a result of doing the will of God.
Read Luke 14:26-33. What is Jesus telling us here, too, about what is of supreme importance for the Christian?
Luke 14:26-33 26“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.27And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.28For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he hasenoughto finishit—29lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who seeitbegin to mock him,30saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?31Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?32Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.33So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple. 26. If any man come. Jesus now sets forth the four following principles: (1) that discipleship involves cross bearing, vs. 26, 27; (2) that the cost of discipleship should be carefully counted, vs. 28–32; (3) that all personal ambitions and worldly possessions must be laid on the altar of sacrifice, v. 33; (4) that the spirit of sacrifice must be maintained permanently, vs. 34, 35. Hate not his father. Scripture usage makes it clear that this is not “hate” in the usual sense of the word. In the Bible, “to hate,” often should be understood simply as a typical Oriental hyperbole meaning “to love less” (see Deut. 21:15–17). This fact stands forth clearly in the parallel passage where Jesus says, “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me” (Matt. 10:37). This striking hyperbole is apparently used to make vivid to the follower of Christ the fact that at all times he must make first in his life the kingdom of heaven. Again, in regard to material possessions, the governing principle is a matter of what we make first in life (see on Matt. 6:19–34). Cannot be my disciple. Not “will not,” but “cannot.” Whoever has personal interests that take precedence over loyalty to Christ and devotion to His service will find it impossible to meet the requirements Christ makes of him. At all times and under all circumstances the call of the kingdom must take precedence. The service of Jesus calls for the entire and permanent renunciation of self. For comment on vs. 26, 27 see on Matt. 10:37, 38. 28. Which of you? The twin parables of vs. 28–32 constitute a warning against lightly assuming the responsibilities of discipleship. Those guests who first accepted the invitation to the feast, only to change their minds when other interests arose, had not given the invitation serious thought when they first accepted it. The two following parables were especially applicable to such people. 29. Mock him. His lack of foresight incurs not only failure but also personal embarrassment. 31. What king? For the meaning of this parable and its relation to the discourse as a whole see on v. 28. The previous illustration is from the business world; this, from the political world, illustrates the same truth.
A POSSIBLE ANSWER: Jesus is telling us that what is of supreme importance is for the Christian to come to Him and that resulting relationship cost something. (see note on verse 26). Further, in coming, completely surrender all that one has in this life—plans, ambitions, friends, relatives, possessions, riches—anything and everything that might interfere with service for the kingdom of heaven.
Maybe it could be said like this: those for whom money, or the desire for money, becomes an all-consuming reality should, indeed, count the cost. “And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?” (Mark 8:36, NLT).
“When Christ came to the earth, humanity seemed to be fast reaching its lowest point. The very foundations of society were undermined. Life had become false and artificial... Throughout the world all systems of religion were losing their hold on mind and soul. Disgusted with fable and falsehood, seeking to drown thought, men turned to infidelity and materialism. Leaving eternity out of their reckoning, they lived for the present.” - Ellen G. White, Education, pp. 74, 75.
People drawn to infidelity and materialism and living only for the present? Sound familiar?
Who doesn’t like to own things? The question is: How can we know if the things we own, even if not many, own us, as well? A POSSIBLE ANSWER: We can tell by observing... A) The value we place on them. B) How much we invest in them in terms of time, energy and importance. C) How their absence impacts us. Are we bent out of shape when we do not have them or cannot use them or D) They own us when we have an inordinate emotional attachment to them or experience negative emotional vibes as a result of their absence.
Who alone should own us, and how can we be sure that He does? A POSSIBLE ANSWER: Jesus should own us. We can be sure He owns us by observing what motivates us, what drives us. That ownership would be seen in our experiencing His transforming love... a love that makes Him first in our lives.
Monday Filling the Barns January 1
Read Luke 12:15-21. What’s the message to us here?
Luke 12:15-21 And He said to them,“Take heed and beware of covetousness,for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” 16Then He spoke a parable to them, saying:“The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17
And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’18So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.19And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink,andbe merry.”’20But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ 21“Soishe who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” 15. Covetousness. Gr. pleonexia (see on Mark 7:22). Covetousness may be defined as undue affection for the material things of life, especially those belonging to someone else. The man addressing Christ did not need more riches; what he needed was to have covetousness erased from his heart, after which riches would be of little concern to him. If there were no more covetousness in the heart, there would be no dispute to settle. As always, Jesus went to the root of the difficulty and proposed a solution that would preclude the necessity of similar problems arising in the future. He put forward no temporary panaceas, such as those represented by the social gospel today. What men need most is not higher wages or larger profits. They need a change of heart and mind that will lead them to seek “first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness,” in full confidence that the necessities of life will “be added” (see on Matt. 6:33). Abundance of the things. See on Matt. 6:24–34. Materialism is at the root of many of the world’s major problems today. It provides the basis for most political and economic philosophies, and is thus responsible for most of the class and national conflicts that plague mankind. Dissatisfaction with what we have creates the desire to secure more by forcing others to give up all or part of what they have rather than by toiling honestly ourselves. Covetousness is the cause of many of the world’s insoluble problems.