Into The Breach – Being A Christian ManSample

Day 7 — Avoiding traps

Read: 1 Timothy 6:6-19

Hunters know the effectiveness of a trap for ensnaring prey and the dangers of tumbling into a trap themselves. Paul warns that those who want to be rich fall into a trap that will “plunge them into ruin and destruction” (v. 9 NABRE). As a hunter entices his victim toward the trap, the man who is greedy for material wealth is tempted by “many foolish and harmful desires.” The often-quoted proverb, “the love of money is the root of all evils,” emphasizes the disastrous effects that avarice can have on a man seeking to live the Christian life (v. 10 NABRE). Worse of all, it has led many to stray from their faith, piercing themselves like wounded prey ensnared in the trap of sin. 

To avoid this ruin, Paul counsels his readers to cultivate the virtue of “contentment” (v. 6 NABRE), a sense of satisfaction with what one has been given in life. We brought nothing material into the world at birth; and we will take nothing out of it at death, which is the reason the hearse is never towing the U-Haul. With contentment, a “man of God” is able to pursue the virtues and behaviors that reflect the gospel (v. 11 NABRE). As in an athletic game, the man of God must “compete well for the faith” with discipline and purpose (v. 12 NABRE). Resolute in the struggle, he must “lay hold of eternal life,” the prize that is already in his grasp because of his noble confession of Christ and his public commitment to serving him. The one who is “rich in the present age” must trust in God and be generous in sharing wealth and doing good works (vv. 17-19 NABRE). Thus, persevering until the glorious coming of Jesus Christ, he will gather a genuine treasure for the future and win “the life that is true life.” 

REFLECT: What is the trap I must avoid and the virtue I must pursue so as to compete well for the faith? 

PRAY: O God, who dwells in unapproachable light and gives life to all things, keep me steadfast in the baptismal calling you have given me and generous in doing good until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.