Serving Mammon
No one can serve two masters, for either they will hate one and love the other, or else they will attach themselves to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and [Mammon].
Matthew 6:24 (OEB)
I'm sure many know this verse by heart. Well, maybe not by heart, but at least by memory.
Typically, 'Mammon' is obfuscated away and translated as 'money'. Even here, in my favorite, Open English Bible they used 'money' and I have had to make the change myself.
Translating 'Mammon' as 'money' is a fine rendering, and all the same allusions can be made. However, I feel leaving 'Mammon' as 'Mammon' to be a much better fit.
When we read, "you cannot serve God and money," we think, "got it, gotta pick between God and money, easy, I pick God obviously," without stopping to think what serving 'money' really means.
When we read, "you cannot serve God and Mammon," we can become confused and gloss over it, but if we are genuinely looking to put what we read into action, we are forced to stop and think, "Mammon? Who is Mammon? What does it mean to serve them? Have I accidentally served them? I hope not. I want to serve God and not this Mammon person."
Using the more obscure word, I feel, causes us to actually have to stop and think about what we're reading.
So what does 'mammon' mean?
It means 'money' or 'wealth'.
"What? If it just means 'money' or 'wealth', just leave it as 'money' or 'wealth'!"
What's the fun in that?
"Is this a context thing where you show the context, and it actually means something else?"
You know me so well, but nope. The context is Jesus actually talking about pursuing money/wealth.
"Well then what's your point!?"
My point is capitalization.
'mammon' means money or wealth.
'Mammon' is the personification of money or wealth.
In personifying wealth, we create a new creature that has many ways it can be served.
Serving money and wealth in and of themselves are fairly simply and easy to avoid.
Serving the personification of wealth and money, as it is opposed to God, is much broader.
Wealth is simply wealth. It looks like hording a lot of money for the sake of earthly security. There's something simple and easy about choosing God over money as a means of earthly security.
Mammon is different.
Choosing God over Mammon isn't just about choosing God over money.
Choosing God over Mammon is about choosing God over earthly security.
Mammon isn't wealth itself. Mammon is the point of wealth. Wealth is pursued for the sake of earthly security, therefore, the point of wealth is earthly security.
No one can serve two masters, for either they will hate one and love the other, or else they will attach themselves to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and [earthly security].
That's the whole point.
When we do anything that prioritizes the things of this world over the Kingdom of God, we are choosing to love Mammon and hate God.
The list of things we can serve for the sake of earthly security instead of God is vast.
The one that stands out at the moment is politics.
Is your relationship with politics such that you are serving Mammon?
No one can serve two masters, for either they will hate one and love the other, or else they will attach themselves to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and [a political candidate].