“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

— Matthew 6:24

15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world.

17 The world is passing away, along with its desires; but whoever does the will of God remains forever.

— 1 John 2:15-17

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

— Romans 10:17

The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of discipleship, to sustain the weary with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning; He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.

— Isaiah 50:4

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

Jesus told us that on cannot serve God and mammon. When we look into the word mammon in the original language Greek, mammon doesn’t represent only the love of money. Mammon means “wealth regarded as a false object of worship and devotion. It means anything of this fallen world that is placed in a position higher than God. This passage of Scripture is describing to us that spiritual commitment and maturity — where the heart is focused — reveal whether our eyes are full of light and ears can hear the truth.

This passage of Matthew 6 also teaches us how to develop into a mature follower of God — a disciple of Jesus. It guides us to be committed to continuing in faith. It is equally important for us to speak aloud Scripture promises, and to proclaim their authority over us in all the situations. According to Romans 10:17 — “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God,” our faith will grow stronger by reading God’s Word out aloud. Just as our natural eyes were created to see natural things, our spiritual eyes could discern spiritual things. Likewise, our natural ears could hear natural sounds, but our spiritual ears could hear God’s Word and turn that truth into faith for us.