Biblical Counseling

Touching upon financial counseling, the events of recent weeks have brought a particular focus on the subject of finances. One of the points I can reiterate is that we mentioned last week and in last week's material, we have some material online, audio files that help deal with financial counseling. There was, about six years back, two sessions each week. We had one mid-week and one on the Sunday on finances and financial counseling.

Today, with the crises, and this is actually worldwide crises, this subject of finances is never more relevant. One of the things we talked about last week was some of the positive principles that scripture lays out, because obviously what the world does not have is the spiritual perspective. What the world does not have is the spiritual perspective on finances and how do we view money from a spiritual standpoint.

And we went over some of those principles. Nancy will be catching us up shortly for those of you who are short handouts. We've particularly gone through handouts on this section here. What I'm going to do is walk through the principles that we have out of the second week. In the second week, some of the key things that we point out are the myths that the world conveys about money.

And one of the reasons we call that myths is that's actually a biblical word, and Paul has a particular usage of it. It's funny, the word pops up in 1st Timothy, in 2nd Timothy, and in Titus. All three of the books written to these apostolic delegates. These are sometimes called the pastoral epistles, although these guys actually had a special, kind of a temporary assignment role of apostolic delegates. They were delegates of Paul. being sent on missions in places that he had sent them. 1 Timothy 1, 3-4 As I urged you upon my departure from Macedonia, remain on in Ephesus, so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation, rather than furthering the administration of God, which is by faith.

2 Timothy 4, 3 and 4 also speaks of these myths. In verse 4 it says, and they will turn away from their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. So there's a turning away from the truth to the myths. And then in Titus chapter 1 is the reference there in verse 14 to paying attention to Jewish myths.

The Jews certainly did have the Old Testament scriptures, and they passed them along, and we have them because they had them, but there was also among the Jewish people a collection of myths, and a number of those have survived to our day in some sort of written form. In our own culture, we also have myths, And what's the idea of a myth? What is a myth? Why do we use this word myth?

Yeah, frequently it is a common or general belief and Yeah, it often at least has the implication that it's not true. It's part of an explanation or worldview or mindset. Frequently it's centered in a story or centered in some kind of an account that basically has a false perspective. One of the reasons for us looking at this is frequently we think of myths and we think of, okay, that's for some archaic people or people less sophisticated and less knowledgeable than we are, right? Whereas in fact, what we find, by the way, did you get a handout here? Yes. Yeah, okay, right.

In fact, what we find is that our own modern culture has, and not only has, but maintains myths. And what's interesting is the myths are maintained at great expense. Great expense not only to keep them up, but great expense as we are finding now. I'll catch you in a minute. Hold on to the thought. At great expense as we're finding now at correcting things because of the myths.

The stock market losses said in the last year have been something like 8 trillion dollars. And a lot of it, again, based on these myths that have been perpetrated. Yeah, Mike? You answer, Mike. Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, just, you mean like the stock market. Yeah, the stock market and the supposed resulting of it are all just part of the expense of keeping up the myths. But it's whole foundation is false. That's right. That's right. And we want to take a look at that this morning. Let's take a look starting at page 87. It's the second page on today's handout. Myth number one. And this is something that's perpetrated in the culture and it's also carried across in advertising.

Before, well this was over 20 years ago, I went to business school. And one of the things that we covered there in business school, in the marketing curriculum, was advertising. And it was really an eye-opening class because it's all about creating dissatisfaction. One way to put it is the goal of advertising is to make you dissatisfied with where you are. If marketing is supported by advertising, then advertising is to get you to buy something. then it means that they've got to change your behavior from what it is now, and they do that by making you dissatisfied with where you are. That's the intended goal of the advertising.

So the first myth, sufficient money or the things it buys will make me adequate, loved, fulfilled, at peace, and satisfied. There's the myth. How do you see that in the TV ads that come across? Well, everybody has to have a home. Okay. Yeah. You gotta buy this thing. So, therefore, I was on the board of a homeowners association for two rounds. Uh-huh. I noticed that's past tense. Okay. Yeah. I got voted off because I said something.

And we're now finding out that sub-mortgage loans are not the sweethearts that they were intended to be. Because out in Green Valley Ranch, it's almost as bad as it was when we first moved into the place. We got a knock-off home for hardly anything, but we were not a sub-mortgage buyer. But in order to get into it later on, They had to take out variable rate and sub-mortgage. And now they can't.

You know, that is fine. But then all of a sudden that says the person says, I think maybe now we can buy that flat screen TV because we aren't paying as much for the house and we have a bigger house to keep up. We need to have that flat screen TV. It's got to be proportional. We then we need a car that has that little round thing on the front of it with a little triangle. Yeah. And we sell a piece of chrome. We saw that out there happen regularly.

Then they proceeded to trash the place. So the bank takes it back, but they took back trash. And we're trying to get them to at least turn on the water once in a while. But the neighbor can't go next door and turn on the water because the water's been turned off. So I mean it becomes, which now starts to affect me. Yeah, one of the things that is true is that banks are money managers not property managers.

That's right. This myth is perpetrated at great expense. If you buy the car, the gorgeous babe that's shown in the advertisement is implied to go with it, right? Or if you buy the car, it will attract gorgeous babes of that kind and sort. By the dozens. Yes, yes. That is exactly what you need, right? And of course she has everything desirable and needs no therapy and no dental work. So there's a great deal of mythology.

Yeah, Mike? demand on the female gender. Yeah, there's another issue which we talked about earlier. A great deal of what this world perpetrates in a lot of different realms. We talked about it in the realm of the shacking up and premarital sex. One of the things we pointed out is the females take a disproportionate hit for all the little myths that are perpetrated and this is one of them. This is an interesting thing that typically if sex sells, typically it's the female that's portrayed out there as the selling piece.

Some of the passages that come into play here, 2 Corinthians 3, 5, and 6, not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God who also made us adequate. as servants of the new covenant. Where's our adequacy? It is not in that new car. Our adequacy apparently is not in the bank either. Our adequacy is not in this world's systems. This world is in a raving panic. In a panic over getting the financial system stabilized. Why? That's where I'm adequate. We've got to get this thing because that's where I'm adequate. That's where I'm sufficient. How about feeling at peace?

Can you think of advertising that makes it such that you won't be at peace until you buy our product or you buy our service? That's another, and there's all these things, you won't be fulfilled. You won't have a sense of deep satisfaction unless you buy our trinkets. Unless you buy our Gizwich gadgets. You just won't have it. You just won't be enough.

And that even goes towards the pharmacy world in that they've got everybody on antidepressants. Because there's no peace. Because you can't deal with the issues in life. Because they're not looking at the Lord. So they're all hooked on these antidepressant drugs.

Yeah, her point is people jumping to a drug solution. There may, in fact, be situations where people have biochemical issues, but a lot of it is really the world has not got these issues figured out. Because the TV ads say you've got to have this pill. Think of the TV ads. Think of the scenario.

You've got to get all this stuff, right? And of course the only way to buy it is with Visa. Because that's priceless, right? So you've got to get it with Visa. And then when the Visa bill comes, then you're depressed. And then you've got to go put the stuff that's supposed to fix the depression on the Visa bill. Then you refinance the house.

Yes, there we go. Ah, that precious plastic. The mythology perpetuates itself. The mythology perpetuates itself. Okay, the fruit of the spirit. The fruit of the spirit, there includes, there on the list, love, joy, and peace. Well, those are exactly the sort of things that the TV says you've got to buy things to get. That girl on that shiny Buick is not going to love you unless you put her on the plastic. Because you can't afford it, right? So this mythology gets carried on.

Here is a verse, when I was going through seminary, I had already come here to candidate a little over seven years ago, and I was just trying to finish up my Greek courses. And I was translating this verse, and as soon as I got finished translating it, I couldn't see the computer screen. I just, my eyes watered up because it grabbed me so intensely. See how great a love the Father has bestowed, and that has bestowed is in the perfect tense.

What does that mean? It's a permanent. Has bestowed, and the results are continuing. Has permanently bestowed on us that we would be called children of God and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us because it did not know Him. The world's going to send us messages again and again and again that are completely ignorant of this fact. See how great a love the Father has permanently bestowed upon us. Do you know that during New Testament times, it was not a given that a father would actually really love his children. to have a father who really loved you was actually rather exceptional.

In the Roman Empire it was legal for a father to declare a son or a daughter to be killed at any age. Unless, two conditions, unless the father brought that son as a son under the law of adoption of sons. This is why Paul brings it up several times in the New Testament. Adoption of sons isn't anything second class at all. But that is an accepted son who could not be killed and rejected. like an even natural-born son could be. Or the other reason was if there was an official legal action taken to accept the son. Aside from those two things, a son could be killed. So to have this kind of a statement, here's one who loves us permanently, well that was precious. A father who really, really loves me, and accepts me, and receives me, oh man, that's just mind-boggling. That's just mind-boggling stuff. The principle at about three quarters of the way down the page there in 87.

Neither money nor things can provide the things the world says it will, and money and the things it buys are fleeting and temporal. Only belief in and fellowship with the Lord, beholding Him, can provide what modern mythology falsely offers to fulfill through money and possessions. It's a fake offering that the world offers. Daily. A fake offering.

Oh, you'll be adequate as long as you buy our item or our service. Or even in this season. If you just vote for me, then you'll be satisfied. Then you'll be at peace. Good luck. The myth number two, if I made or had more money than I do now, that would be enough. Whatever the amount is, more would be better. There's the mythology.

According to the same survey, I referenced a survey above that I didn't mention here, but according to the same survey referenced above, 33% of Christians said that it's impossible for them to get ahead in life because of the financial debt they've incurred. That's about a third, right? One in three says they can't get ahead because of the debt they've incurred. Many financial counselors have observed that no matter what level of income people seem to have, making ends meet is still a challenge. The best thing that believers can do, however, is to turn to scripture for the answers to this common and persistent problem. Philippians 4, 11-13 is quoted there at the top of page 88.

Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content with whatever circumstances I am, in whatever circumstances. I know how to get along with humble means. I also know how to live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need.

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. By the way, that verse is certainly to be taken in context. Some people have taken it as, you know, accomplishing all sorts of things. And it's specifically, I can deal with all these circumstances of need and the lack of it through Christ who strengthens me. That's the intent. So the principle is this.

Just as no amount of water will ever satisfy hunger, nor amount of money or possessions ever satisfy what only a relationship, fellowship with the Lord can fill. Okay? No amount of money will ever do what it's promised to do. Only the Lord. Only the Lord can satisfy.

But you know, that's sad, but a couple hundred bucks when it's needed is a blessing. There is a point of fulfilling of true needs. There is that. But that's different from the mythology that gets foisted upon us, where always a little bit more. If I had a little bit more, then I'd be love, peace, at peace, satisfied, adequate, etc. Myth number three. You deserve a break today. and a bigger house, and a fancier car, and new furniture, and different exercise machines to put in front of your big screen TV, and etc. You see, this world's big advertising programs frequently will come off, and it's interesting. Listen for it carefully, if you dare. Listen for it carefully for the message you deserve. And it comes with more than just fast food. Listen carefully. You'll hear it again and again and again. What's really bizarre about that is if I deserve it, why are you charging for it? That's what one particular candidate is running on. Pardon? That's what one particular candidate is running on. Yes.

Is that everybody deserves Yes, everybody deserves this and that and the other thing. And that you deserve thing, this is an entitlement, right? I'm entitled to this, I'm entitled to that. I see that in the Constitution. Yeah, where you start looking at that and this I deserve mentality, which is again, it's a part of myth. This I deserve mentality is something that certainly for the Christian is something that needs to be set aside. It also has within it a falsehood and that is they will use it as an advertising gimmick and even as a political approach. You deserve this, you deserve that. And in fact, if that's the case, just the flat-out truthful question, oh, then you're going to give it to me for free, right?

And in terms of commerce, that doesn't work. In terms of government, that doesn't work either. It's coming from somewhere. Let's look at the top of page 89. Excuse me. Yes. I'm just curious where the line is drawn because I remember watching the Katrina hurricane. Yes.

And there was the news doing interviews with some of the people and this one gal thought that it was over, that her faith had failed. Well, you know, the Christian getting down so low that But see, they're looking for a material type of blessing. Where's the line drawn, see? That's something that we're not addressing specifically here, although it's certainly something that's a biggie out there in the Christian world.

A real popular message that's hitting harder times. And that is the prosperity gospel. that, you know, if you're a Christian and you're doing all the right things, that money will just come flowing into your hand and with messages like, you know, you can't out-give the Lord and so, you know, give money to this ministry and that church and the Lord will just pay it back even more. You know, those kinds of messages. And so the prosperity gospel is running against hard times.

And an event like Katrina certainly would be devastating, but But even this financial issue that we're going through. I read of one instance where a fellow who had been a part of that kind of church was having his house foreclosed upon and having a tough time reconciling the message and reality.

The principle here on the top of page 89, real and eternal priceless value lies beyond what this world can ever offer or what we can ever earn. While scripture never denies that believers can enjoy material things, the basis of our receiving provisions for meeting needs and fulfilling desires beyond our needs is God's grace, not what we deserve. It's grace and gracious provision. Not, I deserve this and I deserve that and that mentality. What's the difference between grace and I deserve?

It's who you're looking to. Okay, it's who you're looking to. There's one. And why a difference in who you're looking to? Because if you deserve it, who's you? Yeah, who's you? Okay. What else is the difference between grace and I deserve? You don't deserve grace. That's right. Grace is exactly the opposite of I deserve this or that, right? Paul in Ephesians 2, you're saved by I deserve, right? Oh, I deserve to be saved. Well, God owes it to me, right? No. You're saved by grace, not something you earned. It has nothing to do with earned. It's His fault we've been created to be not mine. That's right. Yeah, okay. Yeah. So God's the one who's got to do something, and I deserve it. Grace has nothing to do with deserving. They're not a part of the same paradigm at all. Grace is the reigning principle for the believer, not I deserve.

This modern mythology presented above is so inculcated in our culture and the thinking of a great many Christians that American society is characterized by and sold out to the falsehood of these and other modern myths. Since the income levels of most people is in some degree limited between money or equivalent wealth accumulation and material accumulation, the vast majority have chosen to pursue material accumulation as the means for conforming to this modern American mythology. You get the point there, that at one point in time it might have been, hey that guy's got megabucks. Things have leaned more and more to the point where, who cares if he has megabucks, this guy's got more stuff. Look at the stuff I've got. Who cares what the credit card bill looks like, but look at the stuff I've got.

So the pattern that shows up in these charts, and these charts I could certainly update. In fact, after I printed this out, I did look at the updates and the trends have not changed since this was put together. This pattern has simply continued in the same direction in the years since these charts were put together. U.S. savings rate continuing to decline.

Debt as a percentage of disposable income continuing to go up. One of the things that has happened in recent weeks is we've had this bailout plan. The bailing out is for what? The bailing out is to facilitate liquidity. Liquidity is entirely being facilitated. by basically lubricating the gears of debt. That's really what it amounts to. Our bailout is making sure that I'll loan money to this other guy, or this group will loan money to this other fellow, and we'll all continue to honor each other's debt. That's what the bailout is.

And by the way, the bailout's nowhere near enough. Figure out this. They allow $700 billion. Dollars lost in the last year just in the U.S. stock market, $8 trillion. How does that balance? Is that going to fix it? The Congress is talking most recently about a $150 billion stimulus. After losing $8 trillion, how good does that work?

It's interesting even that today and over the weekend, not only our president, but now the world leaders are getting together and wringing their hands and saying, what can we do? And the answer really is so simple. And it doesn't take a rocket engineer to figure it out. The problem is simply that people, our government and even the world, have spent more than they earn. And that's the whole problem. And that's got to stop. Our dollars for oil go to the Middle East. Our dollars for products go over to China and the other countries of the Orient. We ship our dollars elsewhere and put them on plastic.

Even the stock market, it used to be about roughly 35 years ago that there was about $3 billion worth of borrowing to buy stocks. And it's called margin. And so 35 years ago, about $3 billion was the figure. The beginning of the year 2000, and this figure has fluctuated, the figure has grown to $250 billion, from $3 billion to $250 billion. Huge amounts of the stock market are supported by debt.

In other words, the stock market goes up, and you're assuming it's going to go up more by borrowing to buy the stock. And then when the stock takes a dive and you borrow against it, then you've got more money that you have to cover. Because you borrowed it, right? So the only way to make good on what you borrowed is when the stock starts going down, what are you forced to do? forced to sell. So the borrowing to buy the stock means that when the stock market declines, people are in a panic to sell so that they can pay off the borrowing that they used to buy the stock. Oh, good. This makes lots of sense, right? Yes. And a large majority of this was bought on the margins. So you have a margin call. And suddenly now, there's not enough liquidity in that investment to cover the margin fall. Yeah, what he's talking about is there's not enough liquidity. People are in a panic to cover that debt that they've incurred, right?

And so what happens is other things end up being sold. Gold, oil, things that were by themselves doing well, they end up being sold to cover the bad debt that you don't have enough money for. Yeah. A seminar where you learn to borrow money and buy real estate and you become a multi-millionaire.

You don't have any of your own money. It's all borrowed money. Yeah, no money down flipping. There are all sorts of schemes like that out there where everything is borrowed. And even the stimulus, all the stimulus that our government has out there, the stimulus is all based on debt. We're going to stimulate things by people taking on more debt. That's how things are stimulated. Anyway, let's look at another point here.

About a third of the way down that, on page 90, this is a survey of Americans who believe that moral truth is absolute. divided up there between all and then men and women, ages, three different age brackets. This was beginning of 2000, January 2000 and fall of 2001 after 9-11. That's when these surveys were taken. Notice the decline in the belief in absolutes in about a year and a half. Is truth absolute, or is it completely up for grabs and relative? Huge decline.

Why would 9-11 impact that? Here's what's interesting. 9-11 impacted our American psyche in a great degree. There was already a decline taking place, but basically the foundation of American thinking has been shaken rather radically. And people have just, you know, here I am here in the United States and, you know, we haven't had any war in our country in a long time, you know. Other than people nipping at us over in Pearl Harbor or something like that. All of a sudden they have this thing come home to roost.

Everything I believe, everything I thought was solid, it goes away. This is belief in moral truth as absolute. It took a huge hit during that time period. And I would suggest that one of the reasons is people didn't have a solid enough understanding. So that when we have, you know, here you are looking at the TV screen and here's the Twin Towers, you know, going down catastrophically. and other disasters at the same time.

I thought it was a movie. Yeah, yeah. Well, a lot of people thought, you know, this is really, really good, you know, computer graphics. But it's not. And unfortunately, too many people have their sense of, you know, what's really solid based on things here on planet Earth instead of the Lord. And that's why this disbelief took a huge hit during that time window.

So why does absolute truth matter when it comes to things like economics, personal finance? Why does it matter? Why does it make a difference? If you take absolute truth at its true value, which is absolute, then you're not going to get into a borrowing mode. You're just going to say, whatever I earn, I'm going to steward over, and that's it.

Yeah, there's just a sense of what is true, what is actually true. There's another area where it impacts us big, and that is people, once you lose the sense of absolute truth, it's not what is true that matters, it's what can I get people to think is true. Business ethics suddenly gets undermined big time. And so we've had our Enrons and our Worldcoms and even this Quest company went through its turmoils. The ability for somebody to claim something other than what's true goes away. I mean, excuse me, gets presented as, that's fine.

Whenever I get people to believe, even for a little while, And so the loss of the understanding of absolute truth is something in our culture that is undermining our economy. And that's one problem is, all right, are these mortgages that we're making, can that person actually make that payment? You can qualify him under some low rate, but when it jumps up to the real rate, is he going to be able to stay in the house? Well, the answer we found out by the thousands is no. Absolute truth is a solution. Absolute truth is what we need. That's what's missing, and that's the reason for the financial trouble that we're in. Yeah, Mike?

Well, even in that, you take a guy that can make his payments. He's got a fixed rate for a year. If he loses his job or That's the reality, that's the truth, that he still ain't going to be able to make that payment. Yes, and that's another risk factor that's completely ignored.

Did you start to have your hand up? I was just thinking that if you don't believe in absolute truth, then you make up your own. Ah, you get that? If you don't believe in absolute truth, you make up your own. It comes down to, am I going to make up my own? It comes down to, what can I get somebody else to believe? Those kinds of answers, and that's pretty shaky. That's pretty shaky. So just that one little point, and scripture teaches it. I am, Christ says, yesterday, today, forever, unchanging. Yes? Also when we lose sight of absolute truth, we lose sight of the eternal, we're only limited in the instant.

That's one of the biggest problems, people don't think They just think, okay, this is what I want now. What can I pull off for now? How long can I keep this balloon aloft? Not, is this thing going to stay up there? Not, what's permanent, what's real, what's going to last, what's really true?

And the reality is, once you start losing this sense of truth, as you see the statistics says, we're losing it fast. And by the way, let's see, This age is 18-36, 13%. Christian youth groups, of course that includes of all kinds, but Christian youth groups in the United States, that statistic is now less than 10%. Less than 10% of those in Christian youth groups believe in absolute truth.

Wow! This is not looking good. Okay. Yeah. Yeah, can I get elected while I'm telling the truth? Yeah, good point. Here we are in the middle of election season and you just believe in absolute truth as a being. If I tell the absolute truth, will I get elected? If I tell people I believe in absolute truth, are they going to look at me like I'm nuts? According to most of the populace, yeah. You tell them, hey, I believe in absolute truth. I believe in God. Truth doesn't change. I'm going to tell you the truth.

We don't want that. On one hand you have absolute truth, on the other hand you have perceived reality. Perceived reality. Perceived reality is easier to sell. The focus is, in this world, the focus is more and more to what's the perceived reality that I project. That's the point. What do I project as the reality?

Regardless of what the truth is. saying things the way they actually are is something that's often avoided. And right now, you know, people are trying to get things settled down in the realm of government. They're going out there saying, you know, everything's fine. You know, everything's going to turn out just great. And that's not the absolute truth either. Right? Because they weren't telling the absolute truth before. Yes. Well, even though people wouldn't believe in absolute truth, when normally you think of... I think when people think of absolute truth, they think of, like, the truths of the Bible and stuff.

But everyone has an absolute value system, something that they feel is always right. And fortunately for most Americans now that, like we've been talking about, economic prosperity, being a good consumer, like, so often times our government tells us we should be. You're a good American if you're spending money.

That's our absolute. So everything falls to second priority to that one, whatever people's absolute value system is. Which nowadays is, let's be a good, like you said, have a lot of stuff. That's our absolute. The urging is frequently to spend money as if there wasn't a problem. Keep on, yes. Yeah, let's keep this, keep this, I know the balloon's got a lot of holes, but ignore the holes, and let's keep this blimp aloft, right?

Jesus in John 14, 6, Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me. And to expand what the Greek says, I in contradistinction and the singular truth, the singular life, the singular way, the singular truth, the singular life, no one comes to the Father but through me. Absolutely not. John 17, 17. Sanctify them in the truth. Your word is truth. A frequent reference throughout, particularly the New Testament, to the truth and the faith. Definite article there.

2 Timothy 3.16 and 17, all scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, there's that word adequate again, equipped for every good work. Adequacy comes from where? From the Lord and what he's revealed. Principle the world the flesh and Satan offer no basis for truth only the Lord himself is the absolute truth And it's revealed truth for us in this world is word the truth in scripture is knowable This is a key point.

I've run across people even in Christian circles who will say that you can't really know what this says I talked to one fellow who was going to a local Christian University and one of the science teachers there and said, if somebody tells you that they know what the Bible says, that's heresy. No. Truth is knowable. It's intended to be known. These things are written, John wrote, that you might know. That you might know. In practical terms, what does this mean? Let's look at the three bullets there in the middle of page 91.

So we will address the subject of borrowing in more detail later, which we actually won't in this course, but we have the material available in the financial seminar that we did. The first step in approaching borrowing biblically is to reject the worldly myths about what money can do and what it's like. The force of borrowing is to satisfy the myth. Oh, I've got to be adequate, so I must borrow. I've got to be loved, so I have to borrow. Because after all, I wouldn't want to not be loved. I won't be satisfied, I won't have peace in my heart until I have this, so I apparently must borrow.

It's priceless. Just whatever it takes. However many credit cards. Up to their limits. Or beyond them. At whatever interest rate. Because the world bases its hope on earthly things and believes in and participates in the myths, the world will tend towards wild extremes in the realm of finances, standard of living, debt, prices, etc. The world will inevitably swing from one falsehood to another.

Believers would be wise to take a more level-headed and long-term approach They reference there 1 Peter 1.13, setting their hope on things above.

Colossians 3.1-14. Third bullet, technology changes with time but neither unredeemed human nature nor the truth will ever change. Absolute truth, right?

Be cautious about financial advice, recommendations and information that is not biblically founded. or is not founded in objective and unbiased fact. Be cautious as well about viewpoints and information that are founded in commercial conflict of interest.

That is, you really need to buy this, and by the way, if you do, I'll make some money. The herd mentality, everybody's doing it. Everybody's up to their eyeballs in debt. Short-term perspectives or abandonment of absolute truth. Any of those things are to be shunned and avoided. Basically, all those problems are behind the economic crisis we've got right now. People not telling the truth. Oh, that mortgage is really worth this much. Oh yeah, that mortgage is good. Oh yeah, if you buy this thing all bundled up, we do those by the thousands and those are just fine.

Everybody's doing it. This is the world's mythology. Here's another one. Stocks always go up, so keep your money in stocks. No, maybe not so much. This view is often propagated by those who have a vested interest in selling stocks. Interesting. Yeah, stocks always go up, so buy stocks because I'm like 8% every time you do. And I don't lose anything when it goes down. Even if you do.

We don't have time to cover a lot of the rest of what's in here, so I'll have to leave it to your following through on it. Let's go to the last page, page 92. There's some bolded words in there. Here's a summary of the mythology and the addressing of it.

Go ahead and borrow all you can against your house. Your house will always hold its value and you can deduct the interest. While scripture does not prohibit borrowing, neither does it encourage borrowing. This is fact. There have been eight times in American history when real estate values have generally declined in the U.S. I think you might need to add one to that. In American history, real estate values have generally declined in the U.S. and additional times when some regional real estate values have declined.

Also, while the tax impact of a decision should be considered, decisions should not be made solely on the basis of tax savings. Interest deductions can at most cover 28 cents of every dollar. An interest deduction does not make money, it doesn't even break even. But interest deductibility may influence what can be affordably put into one budget.

That's one of the reasons why we've gotten into the current crisis is Both people have been encouraged from tax law but also from the standpoint of just what the banks will allow and that kind of thing. You could borrow more money than the house is worth. And basically put the banks completely at risk and make it so that any decline in the value of the house makes it seem prudent to just walk away and give the banker the keys.

Or not. So, just as we look at this, the biblical perspective would have prevented a lot of this trouble. There would be no need for a bailout if the biblical perspective had been what people had operated on. But we can't make the world do those kinds of things. But at least we can.

Based on God's Word. Based on the things that the Lord has told us about absolute truth. About where adequacy and love and peace and satisfaction all come from. Right? We're out of time. Let's pray. Lord, we do thank you that when this world is in a panic, We just thank you that we can turn to you, that we can come to you, and there where we're seated with you, we can look upon things in this world. And we're just so thankful that we can trust you, that you are faithful, and that we don't need to be sold a false bill of goods, but instead can can rest assured rest peaceably on the truths that you've laid out because you are the truth and you reveal them to us and lord we just uh commit our time uh uh here for the remainder of uh this morning into your hands in jesus name amen