Kent Hughes’ chapter on materialism and money in Set Apart is a great discussion of Christian stewardship. In our wealthy Western culture, this is for sure worth thinking about. “Along with this understanding that our money is not our own, we must give it away joyfully. Theologian Jacques Ellul says that the only way to …
Do Not Love the World… (Bernard)
Around the year 1129 AD St. Bernard of Clairvaux wrote a letter to Alexander, a bishop who was known for his greed and injustice. Among other things, Bernard addressed Alexander's greed. This is worth thinking about today. He said, "[I exhort you] lovingly not to take the glory of the world seriously as something …
Chesterton on Riches, Needles, and Camels
"Only the Christian Church can offer any rational objection to a complete confidence in the rich. For she has maintained from the beginning that the danger was not in man's environment, but in man. Further, she has maintained that if we come to talk of a dangerous environment, the most dangerous environment of all …
Continue reading "Chesterton on Riches, Needles, and Camels"
The Art and Jewel of Contentment
Working through Burrough's Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment has been a great exercise. I'm not quite finished with it, but so far I've been making many little notes based on Burrough's wisdom. There are some aspects of it I probably wouldn't capitalize on, but others I am trying to etch in my memory and on my …
Materialism, Wealth, and Idolatry
This is quite the book - a truly deep and thought-provoking read. Although it was written around 30 years ago, the message is still relevant. Schlossberg takes the reader through the main things in American culture that serve as people's idols. At first I thought it was going to talk about how Christians end up …
The Reformed Reader Blog 