God is a loving heavenly Father to those who obey the gospel of Christ. One of the greatest promises God ever made is found in 2 Corinthians 6.
2 Corinthians 6:17–18 (ESV)
17 Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, 18 and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”
What a great promise! To have God Almighty as a Father to watch over us and guide us through life is more valuable than all the wealth this world has to offer.
There is, however, something that God requires of us. He wants us to be holy.
2 Corinthians 7 (ESV)
1 Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.
Peter reminds us of this as well.
1 Peter 1:14–16 (ESV)
14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
In its moral and spiritual significance, the word holy means to be separated from sin and consecrated to God. One who is holy is a person who is completely dedicated to God, putting Him before and above anything or anyone else. This is what God requires.
Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Our loyalty to God must be undivided. Why? Because we cannot serve two masters.
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.
What did Jesus mean when He said we cannot serve two masters? Well, let us look first at what He did not mean. The statement of Jesus is not all-inclusive. There is a sense in which we might serve two masters. For example, we can serve two masters who are not asking conflicting things of us. From that standpoint, we might serve a plurality of masters at the same time.
A young Christian must remain under the subjection of his parents, his teachers at school, and anyone else who might have authority over him. He can serve them and God at the same time if they do not demand of him anything that is contrary to God’s divine law (Acts 5:29).
Another example of this would be wives. They must submit themselves to their own husbands (Ephesians 5:22, 23), while at the same time being faithful servants of God.
It is obvious that this is not what our Lord was talking about in Matthew 6:24, seeing that it is something very possible to do.
Furthermore, Jesus was not saying that we cannot serve two masters who are contrary to each other at different times. One might be a servant of God today but end up being a servant of the devil tomorrow. We call this apostasy and, sadly, it happens all the time.
What is it, then, that Jesus was teaching in Matthew 6:24? He told His disciples that those who serve two masters will either “hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other.” The word for “other” is heteros and refers to “one that is not of the same nature, form, class, or kind” (Thayer). Jesus is saying that we cannot simultaneously serve two masters that are different in nature; thus, asking conflicting things of their subjects. In this context, Jesus is referring to material possessions which He personifies and calls mammon. Man cannot serve God and mammon at the same time.
This is not something hard to do; it is something impossible to do. Man “CANNOT” serve two masters. Mammon demands our time and affection and so does God. Mammon demands to be sought first in our lives and so does God. Thus, a choice must be made between them.
The choice really should not be that hard, seeing that God offers so much more than Mammon. God offers eternal bliss in heaven. Mammon offers the temporary pleasures of life now. These pleasures, however, do not completely satisfy.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 (ESV)
10 He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.
Mammon is not the only master that we are susceptible to putting in God’s place. We can make a master out of several things. To some, education is their master. To others, the praise of men is their master. To still others, the pursuit of pleasure is their master. Anything that we become obsessed with and servants to becomes the master of our life. Even sin can be served.
Romans 6:16 (ESV)
16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
We should not allow anything to take the place of God in our lives. We should serve God with all our heart, soul, and mind, allowing Him to have pre-eminence. Given all that God does for us, and offers to us, not only now, but also in the life to come, it seems to be a small thing to require us to put Him first. What do you think?