If you want to walk with the majority of people, chase after the wealth of this world. Most people are obsessed with material things, and sometimes this preoccupation even plagues the people of God. Paul warns us about this.
1 Timothy 6:10 (ESV)
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
It is not money itself that is evil, but the love of money that causes the problem. We must determine that we will not allow ourselves to fall in love with material things, knowing that such affection will lead us away from God. Paul said that it caused some to leave the faith. Why would we not think it will do the same thing to us?
To love the riches of this world is to be guilty of a form of idolatry.
Colossians 3:5 (ESV)
5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
Why does Paul refer to covetousness as idolatry? It is because it involves a desire that is so intense that God is pushed aside. The material things pursued out of a desire to want more becomes the new god of the covetous person. I like what Nelson’s Bible Dictionary says about it.
Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
In the New Testament period the term “idolatry” began to be used as an intellectual concept. Idolatry became not bowing down before a statue but the replacement of God in the mind of the worshiper. Col 3:5 points in this direction: “Put to death . . . covetousness, which is idolatry.” (See also Eph 5:5.) At this point the modern believer must understand the vicious nature of idolatry. While we may not make or bow down to a statue, we must be constantly on guard that we let nothing come between us and God. As soon as anything does, that thing is an idol.
Will you allow the riches of this world to come between you and God? Do not forget the strong warning of our Savior on this subject.
Matthew 6:24 (ESV)
24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
Who will your master be in this life? Many people bow down to the god of money and material wealth. Let that not be us. We must follow the inspired exhortation of Paul and set our affections on things above (Colossians 3:1-2). Why would you put your soul in jeopardy for the riches of this world, when even if you obtain the wealth you seek, it is only temporary? It is a foolish choice to exchange the eternal salvation of the soul for something so fleeting.
Proverbs 23:4–5 (ESV)
4 Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. 5 When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven. As you wind down for the night, think about these things.
As you wind down for the night, think about these things.