More Than My Balance

Every one of those reactions is understandable. But underneath them sits a bigger question: does that number actually tell you who you are?

This message is not anti-money. Money is good, prosperity is not wicked, and nobody is closer to God because they are broke. But money makes an offer: security, significance and status. The offer is attractive because it is partly true, and that is exactly what makes it dangerous.

Jesus tells the story of a farmer whose harvest overflowed, and instead of widening his world, it shrank it. He fed his soul on his inventory, and God called him a fool. Then Jesus names the real issue: you cannot serve God and be enslaved to money. Whatever you treasure quietly shapes your heart, and the heart is more than feelings. It is your will, your character, the core of who you are.

So where does your worth actually come from? Before Jesus had preached a sermon or performed a public miracle, the Father called him his beloved Son. Identity came before performance. In the wilderness, Jesus refused to prove himself through bread, power or glory, because he already knew who he was.

And at the cross, the record against us was cancelled and paid in full. A price tag is set by the market and moves every day. Your value was fixed at the cross, and it does not move at all.