It’s not just the Netflix series about corporate corruption. It’s the headline some believers apply to money.
After all, Jesus Himself said it was dirty — once, sort of, when He called money “adikia” — unrighteous, unjust, iniquitous, wrong. But this was as a postscript to His story about the shrewd money manager.
“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” (John 6:27, NIV)
I saw it this morning, while walking my dog. An hour before daybreak, the shadowy figure of a coyote disappeared and re-appeared between the streetlights just ahead of us. After my dog let out a nervous huff, it stopped, turned to stare at us, and then kept trotting ahead.
It depends on the type of cost, right? Fees for renewal programs range from hundreds to thousands of dollars; but there’s also the human cost of soul searching, prayer and repentance.
I once suggested to a funeral director that his standard pay rate for conducting a funeral service be raised. His curt reply: ‘I thought you did this for ministry.’
Ouch
So when does greed leach into ministry? Where’s the line and how do we know it’s been crossed?
“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.” 2 Corinthians 5:14
Trust me, you’ve already seen this movie a time or two: a pastor is asked to sit down to “hear what some people are saying” about the church’s current ministry.
The lines are so tired, you can parrot them as they’re spoken: “The sermons are weak. The flock isn’t being fed. There’s too much emphasis on the community. What about us?”