In the materialistic world of 2024, money rules supreme. Materialism is the concept or belief that nothing exists except matter and its movements and modifications. Differently stated, it is the tendency to consider material possessions and physical comfort as more important than spiritual needs.
Materialism has a long and complex history. Its beginnings are associated with the Carvaka School of ancient Indian philosophy. Its underlying claims are that the material matters and is the only thing in our reality that truly exists.
The first documented literature on the subject was Lucretius’ De Rerum Natura. Many other great names in philosophy, like Hobbs an Gassendi being the forerunners of the movement in the 17th century, followed suit. Familiar names such Darwin, Aristotle, Democritus, and Descartes all tried to make sense of the unseen world that cannot be defined by matter.
Today, these philosophical ideas have translated into a society that is measured by possessions. Materialism holds the view that all facts, including the human mind, are casually dependant on physical processes.
Jesus had a completely different viewpoint. He said do not worry what you will eat or drink, or what you will wear. Your heavenly Father knows that you need these things. Jesus further instructs His disciples to seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these material things will be added.
But moreover, Jesus told His disciples not be anxious for anything. He repeats the word “anxious” four times in seven verses of Matthew 6. It is therefore important to know what Jesus meant by the word. The Greek word is μεριμνήσητε, merimesete. This means not to be distracted, or figuratively speaking to go to pieces. The Hebrew for the same word is אל תדאגו al tidagu. As each Hebrew letter is associated with picture, the two words from their pictographs read in a sentence: The strong leader on the cross is the doorway that connects the humble to God. No eternal damnation. No reason to be anxious. Jesus was not focussed on the material needs, as He knew that our Heavenly Father will supply these. He was concerned about the spiritual, as this is the choice of every individual.
Jesus, said that He has gone to prepare a place for those who follow Him, so that where He is, they may be also. This is what He referred to in the parables of the Kingdom of God. It is like a net that gathers good and bad and it is like a hidden treasure and it is like a pearl of great price.
Therefore, Jesus said not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, or In today’s vernacular, material possessions. The reason is that nothing here, is of permanent nature. It will either degenerate or it could be lost. The only lasting “possession” is to seek the Kingdom of God as it is not subject to the rules of the world. But the more important fact is that if you treasure these earthly possession, you will lose interest in what is a pearl of great price, the Kingdom of Heaven because:
Where your treasure is, there will your heart also be.
