Putting God First in Your Finances

Jesus calls unbelievers to new life and calls believers to a higher way of living. His concern is not just outward conduct, but the character underneath it. Christ wants to do more in a person before He does something through that person, because believers are meant to respond differently when life gets hard. Faith is personal, but it was never meant to stay private. If Jesus really is the hope of the world, that hope has to be lived and shared publicly.

Matthew 6 brings finances into view, not because money is the point, but because treasure reveals the heart. The gospel of America says, “Get and get and get some more,” because more stuff is supposed to make life happier. The gospel of Jesus says God blesses people so they can bless other people. Contentment pushes back against the lie that every want is a need, creates margin, and keeps immaturity from running the budget.

Jesus first calls His people to invest wisely. Earthly treasure can rust, break, disappear, and be stolen, but treasure in heaven lasts. The heart does not lead the treasure. The heart follows the treasure. Bank statements can tell the truth when words cannot, because money shows what a person truly loves and where that person is putting first things first.

Jesus then calls for intentional focus. The healthy eye is not merely eyesight, but a disciplined, generous focus that refuses to get pulled around by all the glitz and glamour. Mammon is not a demon to blame for bad decisions. Mammon is wealth, riches, and profit becoming a master. Sometimes the issue is not spiritual warfare. Sometimes the issue is self-control.

Jesus also says, “Do not worry.” Worry imagines the worst-case scenario and lives inside what might happen. Faith trusts the Father after a person has done what he or she can do. The birds and lilies prove that God cares for what humanity has dominion over, and that care points to how much more He cares for His children. Responsibility still matters, because a budget, generosity, and wise stewardship are part of doing all a person can do.

Jesus closes by putting the kingdom first. Tithing declares obedience and puts Jesus first. Offerings become investments beyond the tithe. Alms, or blessing money, develop a heart of generosity by creating margin and responding when the Holy Spirit says to give. God’s Word can be salve for the soul, but it can also be a scalpel that cuts out what is unlike Him.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Treasure leads the heart [42:38] Jesus reverses the usual assumption that giving simply follows affection. Treasure goes first, and the heart follows behind it. Financial habits can therefore either train the heart toward the kingdom or slowly tether it to lesser loves. Honest stewardship begins by letting actual spending expose actual devotion. [42:38]
• 2. Contentment creates room for generosity [41:44] Contentment does not mean pretending needs do not exist or refusing every good gift. Contentment means being okay with what God has provided rather than being ruled by the next desire. That settled posture creates margin, and margin makes room for a person to bless somebody else. [41:44]
• 3. Focus defeats glitz and glamour [50:16] The healthy eye is a life aimed at a God-given destination with intention and discipline. Distraction turns every passing desire into a demand and every shiny thing into a rival master. Financial focus helps a believer direct resources toward what breaks God’s heart rather than toward whatever catches the eye. [50:16]
• 4. Worry cannot add anything [56:40] Jesus does not deny that financial pressure feels real, but He refuses to let fear become a master. Responsibility requires doing what can be done, including budgeting, meeting obligations, and living generously. Trust begins where faithful action ends, because the Father’s care is not limited by the scenarios worry creates. [56:40]
• 5. Generosity develops through obedience [01:09:36] Alms are not merely extra dollars handed away after every personal want has been satisfied. Blessing money trains the heart to hear the Spirit and respond without needing recognition or control over the outcome. Generosity changes the recipient, but it also does something deep in the giver.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [32:46] - A Higher Way of Living
• [34:46] - Character Before Conduct
• [35:33] - Faith Is Personal, Not Private
• [39:14] - The Gospel of America vs Jesus
• [42:19] - Invest Wisely
• [47:33] - Focus Intentionally
• [53:43] - Eliminate Worry
• [61:11] - Put First Things First
• [63:30] - Tithes, Offerings, and Alms
• [70:35] - Creating a Heart of Generosity
• [73:06] - Respond to What God Is Asking

Bible Reading

Matthew 6:19–21

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.” [42:28]

“But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” [42:38]

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” [42:46]

Matthew 6:24

“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.” [48:15]

Matthew 6:25–34

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” [54:44]

“Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” [55:15]

“And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” [55:35]

“And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,” [55:41]

“Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” [55:44]

“But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” [55:53]

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’” [56:16]

“For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” [56:23]

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” [01:01:18]

“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” [01:01:31]

1 Timothy 6:8

“But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.” [41:26]

Observation questions

1. What are the two kinds of treasure Jesus contrasts in Matthew 6:19–21, and what does He say can happen to earthly treasure?
2. In Matthew 6:24, what two masters does Jesus name, and what words describe the divided loyalty of trying to serve both?
3. What examples from nature does Jesus use in Matthew 6:25–34 to show the Father’s care, and what needs does He specifically mention? [55:15]
4. What connection is made between contentment, margin, and generosity? [41:44]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus says that a person’s heart follows his or her treasure. What does that suggest about the way regular spending, saving, and giving can shape a believer’s loves over time? [43:05]
2. What does it mean in practical terms for wealth, riches, or profit to become a master rather than a useful tool? [48:53]
3. Jesus tells His followers not to worry, while responsible stewardship still includes budgeting, meeting obligations, and generosity. How can a believer tell the difference between faithful preparation and fearful worry? [57:56]
4. In this passage, seeking God’s kingdom first includes finances, focus, and trust. What might it look like for a household to put the kingdom ahead of every other financial priority? [01:01:47]

Application questions

1. If your recent bank statement honestly showed where your treasure has been going, what would it reveal about what has had first place in your heart? Is there anything you need to rearrange so your spending better matches what you say you love? [46:10]
2. Where has the “get more to be happier” message affected your decisions—shopping, debt, comparison, upgrades, or lifestyle expectations? What would contentment with God’s provision look like in that area this week? [39:21]
3. What “glitz and glamour” most easily distracts you from wise financial focus? What specific boundary could help you practice greater self-control rather than treating every desire like a need? [50:16]
4. Is there a financial concern that has caused you to live in imagined worst-case scenarios? After doing what you can responsibly do, what would it look like to place the outcome back in the Father’s hands? [56:51]
5. Do you have a budget or another clear plan that creates margin? If not, what is one simple next step you could take this week to understand where your money is going and make room for generosity? [01:15:39]
6. How could you set aside “blessing money” or make room to respond when the Holy Spirit prompts you to help someone? What might generosity do in your own heart, even when no one else sees it? [01:10:21]