No servant can serve two masters. Jesus challenges us to hve a singular focus. Is love going to motivate us or will “mammon,” defined to mean money, material wealth, or any entity that promises wealth, and is associated with the greedy pursuit of gain. The sin of Adam in the book of Genesis is grasping after that apple. Even though God had planted him in a garden which took care of all his needs, he wanted something he did not have. Jesus, by contrast, did not grasp even after something he possessed, divinity, out of love for humanity. The prophetic tradition as personified by Amos, warns the people of God how seductive is the lure of possessions. Pope Francis warned us that the pursuit of possessions has negatively impacted our planet. Despite of this, a recent survey found 44% of Generation Z and 46% of millennials say they are “obsessed with the idea of being rich.” The message of Jesus does not seem to be very popular. Human beings are incomplete, made for more. The problem is that the more we are made for is not satisfied by anything less than God. When we make all of our decisions based on God’s love, then our restless hearts find peace.
