For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.

Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.” We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.

These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

The sins identified in this passage are the following:

1. Lust
2. Idolatry
3. Fornication
4. Tempting Christ
5. Murmuring

If you need to understand what these sins are, please consider buying Dr. Cole’s book and read it. It will probably be enlightening for you to learn what these sins really mean especially lust (desire to get) versus love (desire to give), and idolatry (which can be as obvious as worshipping other gods or as subtle as creating a fantasy in your mind to satisfy yourself). If you have committed any of these sins, repent and follow the formula in 1 John 1:9 to remove it from your life:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Thus, whether money is good or evil is dependent upon who holds it or controls it, and their motive for doing so. There is definitely a dark side to money, which is called greed.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. – 1 Timothy 6:10

Greed (or the LOVE of money) is what happens when money controls the person rather than the person controlling the money. Money is my servant not my master. Making money your master is a form of idolatry. By using money to do God’s work instead of letting money use you, you are giving the proper direction to the power of money.

If, as Christians, we relinquish control of money to evildoers, then, we are assured that the world will continue to get darker. On the other hand, if we shake off the strong cultural norm that Christians should not be wealthy, we can change the overall nature of our society and reach more people for Christ.

Obviously, we must ALWAYS examine our motives. James 4 states,

“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”

It’s OK to have gold, as long as gold doesn’t have you. Jesus came to give us life more abundantly (John 10:10) and, believe it or not, that includes finances. Our prosperity is our witness that we are different from the world and a sign that God does bless His covenant children in ALL ways.