Money

Money is the currency of Christian Hedonism. What you do with it—or desire to do with it—can make or break your happiness forever. The Bible makes clear that what you feel about money can destroy you: “Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction” (1 Tim. 6:9, ESV).

Or what you do with your money can secure the foundation of eternal life: “They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life” (1 Tim. 6:18–19, ESV).

These verses teach us to use our money in a way that will bring us the greatest and longest gain. That is, they advocate Christian Hedonism. They confirm that it is not only permitted but commanded by God that we flee from destruction and pursue our full and lasting pleasure by the way we use our money. They imply that all the evils in the world come not because our desires for happiness are too strong but because they are so weak; we settle for fleeting pleasures that do not satisfy our deepest souls but in the end destroy them. The root of all evil is that we are the kind of people who settle for the love of money instead of the love of God (1 Tim. 6:10).

In his day as well as ours, Paul could respond to this effort to turn godliness into gain by saying, “Christians don’t live for gain. Christians do what’s right for its own sake. Christians aren’t motivated by profit.” But that’s not what Paul says. He says in 6:6, “There is great gain in godliness with contentment.”

Instead of saying Christians don’t live for gain, he says Christians ought to live for greater gain than the slick money lovers do. Godliness is the way to get this great gain, but only if we are content with simplicity rather than greedy for riches. “Godliness with contentment is great gain.”

If your godliness has freed you from the desire to be rich and has helped you be content with what you have, then your godliness is tremendously profitable: “For while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Tim. 4:8, ESV). Godliness that overcomes the craving for material wealth produces great spiritual wealth. The point of 1 Timothy 6:6 is that it is very profitable not to pursue wealth.