A Choice of Biblical Proportions

I was studying a recent Bible Lesson and I came across this verse, from Romans:

"Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience to righteousness?" (Romans 6:16)

Thinking of this immediately brought forth two other "decisions" that have stood out to me in my Bible study, contained in the same verse:

"No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other.  Ye cannot serve God and mammon." (Luke 16:13)




In some of the more recent, contemporary versions of the Bible, this has been continually quoted as "You cannot serve God and wealth," like as a justification for the #Occupy demonstrations going on all over the country. But in my study of this verse and the one from Romans above, there is a deeper meaning that is being missed.

The choice comes down to God vs. matter or material things. Where does your thought rest?

God is spiritual and infinite. "Mammon" is matter, materiality, and is finite. They are opposites in character. And as Romans suggests, which will you choose to serve? If you choose finite matter, you are choosing the side that leads to sin, sickness, disease and DEATH. In other words, do you see yourself in this light - as a mortal, material, sinful, "fallen" being? If you choose God, infinite Spirit, you are choosing the side that defines purity, health, goodness, and eternal LIFE. In other words, do you see yourself in this light - as an immortal, spiritual, perfect, obedient being? You can't be both - it's impossible to be sinful and pure, sick and healthy, spiritual and mortal, alive and dead.

This choice is one one we can make every moment of our day. We can always decide where our thought will go - will it go to God and listening to how to express Him, or will it go to the material? Will we focus on God's demand for us - "Thy will," as in the Lord's Prayer - or will we focus on our own human will?

We ARE spiritual beings, made in the "image and likeness" of the infinite spiritual being, God (see Gen. 1:26-27). Therefore the decision should be automatic. But that talking serpent, the first lie, can be very subtle in tricking us to think otherwise. Let's be awake to the attempted hypnosis and recognize our divine nature, so when it comes to knowing who our Father and Mother is and thus who we should obey, let us know the answer every moment. God is our creator - we were not created from matter.

We all have the choice - life or death, good or evil, love or hate, sin or goodness, sickness or health, freedom or slavery (limitations).

We truly cannot serve two masters. Who will YOU serve?