Hebrews Chapter Thirteen, Justifying Greed

 

We are to be content with what we already possess. Paul went so far as to say that Christians ought to view their possessions like, “those who buy as though they did not possess,” 1 Corinthians 7:30. Materialism distracts from a Christian’s purpose, which is the furtherance of the gospel and our Master’s business. 

Christians are stewards of the gospel, given talents to trade, but are accountable for how this money was used (or squandered) during our stewardship. Covetousness is the love of money that Paul warned the saints about in 1 Timothy 6:10. Money too is a conveyance, a channel or means through which the greedy may attain what their sinful heart desires, even if it is the celebrated status of being considered wealthy by those they deem beneath them. Furthermore, the apostle warns that greed’s pursuit shipwrecks faith, being the cause of what the apostle calls, “foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition…and pierced themselves through with many sorrows,” 1 Timothy 6:9, 10. Again, money or things are not what is evil. It is the inordinate desire to pursue them to the abandonment of our ministry of the gospel that creates in us this paradox. The saints want to serve God, but want the finest of the world as well. James calls such professing Christians adulterers and adulteresses, James 4:4. Why? We are being spiritually unfaithful to our Lord by pursuing lesser gods, whose salvific power (that is, the power to deliver us from material want) is temporal and uncertain, 1 Timothy 6:17.

 

The reason behind the author’s insistence regarding contentment is God’s assurance that He is with us always. Listen to His words in this passage and one may derive the deepest comfort as it bolsters the biblical doctrine of eternal security. God said unconditionally that He will never leave us or forsake us. Quoting from Deuteronomy, the passage at length states, “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you,” Deuteronomy 31:6. See also Deuteronomy 31:8, Joshua 1:5.

 

Moses was charging Israel in general, and Joshua in particular, that God was the One that went before them in the conquest of Canaan. Because of this, the Jews were to be strong and of good courage, not to be dismayed or fearful. The satisfaction and peace of the people were bound up in their realization of God’s presence and purpose for them. He was determined to fulfill His word to Abraham, given more than 400 years prior, that the seed of Abraham would possess the land of the Amorites, Genesis 15:16. It was fitting, then, that Og and Bashan, defeated in Moses’ time, were both Amorite kings, Deuteronomy 31:4. God was showing them, even in their wilderness wanderings caused by their disobedience, that He was with them and would deliver the enemy into their hands. Their victory was provided by God, it was assured not by weapons or military might, but by God’s predetermined purpose and power.

 

The writer states that it is the Christian’s prerogative to boldly say that the Lord is our helper. Earlier in the epistle the Hebrew Christians are told that, as sons and daughters of the Father, we may boldly approach the throne of grace, Hebrews 4:16. Yet this boldness is not derived from any native element residing in us. It is because we know, as saints, where we stand in Christ. We may boldly approach God’s throne as His children to find mercy and grace, or God’s unmerited favor to help in time of need. Hebrews 13:6 (quoted from Psalm 118:6) and Hebrews 4:16 are closely linked. The Lord is our helper. How does He help? He generously provides mercy and grace in time of need. The alternative, which is covetousness, arises when we do not trust God to provide. The only alternative at that point, if we reject God’s word of provision for His children when we petition Him, is to fend for ourselves. In that case, the errant saint justifies greed in the name of provision. In fact, we may perhaps sanctify covetousness under the guise of meeting needs.

 

Christ warns that man cannot serve the opposing masters of God and wealth, Matthew 6:24. We cannot genuinely serve both; we accept one and tacitly reject the other. The saints are cautioned to practice contentment, because learning contentment provides a shield from falling into the error of greed. The notion of God being our helper indicates that it is He, not wealth or possessions, that delivers the saint from peril or need. This realization is intended to banish fear of things to come, in terms of food, clothing, and shelter, Matthew 6:30-32.

 

In Psalm 118, where this quotation is derived from, the Psalmist writes, “I called on the Lord in distress; The Lord answered me and set me in a broad place. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” Psalm 118:5, 6. The saint may recognize that we are suffering distress, of course. Jesus warned that we would suffer tribulation in this world. Where the recognition of that suffering leads us, and how we attempt to extricate ourselves from it is very telling, however. The Psalmist called out to the Lord, and the Lord answered him, setting him in a broad place, essentially stating that God removed the believer from the narrow confines of his distress and set him at liberty. The Tanakh, translating verse 5 a little less poetically, states, “the Lord answered me and brought me relief.” The Septuagint renders verse 6, “the Lord is my helper; and I will not fear what man shall do to me.” The cause and effect is simple and sublimely comforting. The Lord is the Psalmist’s helper; therefore he will not fear the wrath of man. God willing, every saint that belongs to Christ ought to learn the valuable and perhaps elusive lesson of godliness with contentment.