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“No one can serve two masters.” With these words, Jesus confronts the deepest allegiance of the human heart. This is not advice. It is a spiritual law.
Let us look at what the Word of God says:
> “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other,
> or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.
> You cannot serve both God and money.”
> — Matthew 6:24
And again:
> “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world,
> love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—
> the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—
> comes not from the Father but from the world.”
> — 1 John 2:15–16
These two passages together expose one of the most decisive issues in the Christian life: whom do you really serve, and what do you really love?
The lyrics you provided simply echo and reinforce this unchanging truth:
At the heart of this message is a divine demand: You must choose your master. Neutrality is impossible. Indecision is itself a decision. The human heart is not designed to remain divided; it will ultimately be captured by one master or the other.
This teaching is about allegiance, worship, ownership, and spiritual conflict. It is about the invisible warfare for your heart’s devotion.
### Matthew 6:24 – In the Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 6:24 occurs in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7), where Jesus lays out the lifestyle of the kingdom of heaven. He is speaking primarily to His disciples, with the crowds listening in.
In Matthew 6, Jesus addresses three main areas of practical righteousness:
1. Giving (6:1–4)
2. Prayer (6:5–15)
3. Fasting (6:16–18)
Then He shifts to the subject of treasure and trust:
So, the context is clear: Jesus is dealing with the issue of treasure, focus, and loyalty. He knows that the visible material realm—what we call “money” or “mammon”—competes directly with God for the allegiance of His people.
When He says, “You cannot serve both God and money,” He is not speaking to pagans only. He is warning His disciples. That means the danger is real for believers. A person may be a churchgoer, a worshipper, and still be serving another master in the area of money.
### 1 John 2:15–16 – The Aging Apostle’s Warning
The first epistle of John is written by the apostle John, likely toward the end of his life. He writes as a spiritual father to believers. His central themes are:
In 1 John 2, he addresses:
John has walked with Jesus. He has seen the love of God manifested. He speaks with apostolic clarity: love for the world and love for the Father are mutually exclusive.
He is not speaking about the physical planet, but the system in rebellion against God: its values, priorities, desires, and pride. He breaks this system down into three categories:
1. The lust of the flesh
2. The lust of the eyes
3. The pride of life
These are the same three areas in which humanity fell in the garden (Genesis 3:6), and the same three in which Jesus was tempted in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1–11 / Luke 4:1–13).
In other words, both Jesus and John are speaking into the same battlefield: the conflict between the living God and the world-system ruled by mammon and self.
To understand this issue deeply, we must examine some key terms.
### 1. “Serve” – δουλεύω (douleuō)
In Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters,” the Greek word is δουλεύω (*douleuō*).
Jesus is not saying:
He is saying:
This indicates:
Therefore, when Jesus says, “You cannot serve both God and money,” He means:
You cannot be owned by God and at the same time owned by mammon. Your ultimate obedience cannot be divided.
### 2. “Money” – μαμωνᾶς (mamōnas) – Mammon
In Matthew 6:24, the word translated “money” or “wealth” is μαμωνᾶς (*mamōnas*).
Jesus does not present mammon as a neutral thing. He sets it in direct opposition to God as a rival master.
So, mammon is not just “money.” Mammon is the spirit that seeks to control money and control people through money. It is the system that says:
Now see how this sharpens the meaning of the lyrics:
“You cannot serve both God and money.” In the original context:
### 3. “World” – κόσμος (kosmos)
In 1 John 2:15, “Do not love the world,” the word is κόσμος (*kosmos*).
Kosmos has several meanings:
In 1 John 2:15–16, the meaning is clearly the third: the world-system under the sway of the evil one (see 1 John 5:19: “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one”).
So John is not saying:
He is saying:
Now combine these insights:
Thus, the call of the song—“Choose this day whom you will serve”—is a call to renounce mammon and the world-system and to give undivided allegiance to God.
Let us now move through the main themes of the lyrics and connect them to the broader testimony of Scripture.
### A. “No one can serve two masters…”
This line is repeated throughout. Repetition in Scripture signifies emphasis. Jesus Himself repeated this truth:
> “No one can serve two masters.” (Matthew 6:24)
The negative is absolute: no one. Not even the most disciplined believer can successfully serve two ultimate authorities.
Joshua voiced the same principle in Old Testament form:
> “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
> — Joshua 24:15
Elijah likewise:
> “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”
> — 1 Kings 18:21
Indecision is a form of spiritual double-mindedness. James warns:
> “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
> — James 1:8 (KJV)
So spiritually, attempting to serve two masters results in:
The human heart cannot permanently sustain divided loyalty. One master will prevail.
### B. “Either you will hate the one and love the other…”
Jesus reveals a law of affection:
You cannot maintain equal love for rival masters. One will increasingly attract your affection; the other will increasingly repel you.
“Hate” and “love” here are covenant terms. To “love” means to choose, to cleave to, to be loyal to. To “hate,” in this context, means to reject, to turn from, to refuse allegiance.
As allegiance to one master deepens:
This is why a believer who begins to love the world will find his heart cooling toward God. The two movements are inseparable.
John states it explicitly:
> “If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.”
> — 1 John 2:15
He does not say:
He says:
Why? Because two conflicting loves cannot occupy the throne of the heart. One displaces the other.
### C. “Devoted to the one and despise the other…”
“Devoted” speaks of worship, commitment, loyalty.
“Despise” means to treat as insignificant, to regard lightly.
There is a progression:
1. You begin by giving slightly more attention to one master.
2. Over time, that attention becomes devotion.
3. As devotion grows, the other master becomes less significant.
4. Eventually you despise, ignore, or even oppose the other.
This is why compromise is so dangerous. It seems small and harmless at first. But in spiritual terms, every decision is either strengthening your devotion to God or strengthening your devotion to mammon and the world.
Jesus summarizes it without qualification:
“You cannot serve God and mammon.”
### D. “Choose this day whom you will serve—the Lord your God alone.”
The lyrics echo Joshua 24:15. Choice is central. God demands decision. He will not accept divided allegiance. He will not share His lordship with mammon.
Jesus says:
> “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
> — Matthew 16:24
The cross is a place of death. It is the end of rival claims on your life. The cross does not allow for partial surrender. To follow Jesus as Lord means:
### E. “Do not love the world or anything in the world…”
John issues a clear prohibition: Do not love the world.
This is a matter of love, not geography. You may live physically in the world but must not love the world-system that opposes God.
He then defines the components of that system:
1. The lust of the flesh
2. The lust of the eyes
3. The pride of life
John says all these “come not from the Father but from the world.” They have a distinct origin: the rebellious system, not the heart of God.
The lyrics, by repeating 1 John 2:15–16, call believers to recognize and renounce these three categories of temptation.
### F. The Spiritual Warfare Behind Money and the World
We must see that the issue is not merely moral; it is spiritual warfare.
How does this warfare manifest?
1. Fear of lack – Anxiety about provision drives people to trust money rather than God.
2. Greed and accumulation – People begin to measure their worth by what they own.
3. Compromise – To gain, keep, or increase wealth, believers compromise truth, integrity, or obedience.
4. Distraction – Preoccupation with material goals chokes the Word.
Jesus warns:
> “The worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.”
> — Mark 4:19
Notice:
So, the battle for mastery is in the heart and mind:
The lyrics call for a decisive break: “Choose God over money—you cannot serve both.”
The Word of God is not given for theory but for transformation. How do we respond?
### 1. First, we must acknowledge and renounce double allegiance.
Begin with honesty before God. Ask the Holy Spirit to search you.
Confess specific compromises:
Then renounce double allegiance:
### 2. Second, we must realign our treasure with our master.
Jesus said:
> “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
> — Matthew 6:21
Our money follows our master. If God is truly our master:
Practical steps:
Your bank statement is a spiritual document. It reveals where your heart truly is.
### 3. Third, we must renew our love for the Father and withdraw our love from the world.
Love is not only an emotion; it is a direction of the will. John says, “Do not love the world.” That means stop giving it your affection.
Take specific action:
The more we behold the Lord, the less attractive the world’s system becomes.
> “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”
> — Colossians 3:2
### 4. Fourth, we must make spoken proclamations that establish God’s lordship.
Derek Prince often emphasized the power of proclaiming Scripture. Your tongue is an instrument of spiritual alignment. You overcome by:
Use your mouth to:
Proclamations are not empty words; they are agreement with God’s Word, spoken aloud to align your inner man and resist the enemy.
### Proclamation
Speak this out loud, thoughtfully, and with faith:
“I declare that Jesus Christ is my only Lord and Master.
I refuse to serve two masters.
I renounce mammon and every trust I have placed in money, wealth, or possessions.
I break agreement with the love of the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
They do not come from my Father, and I refuse to love them.
My treasure is in heaven, and my heart follows my treasure.
I choose this day to serve the Lord my God alone.
My finances, my desires, my ambitions, and my future belong to Him.
By the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit,
I will love the Father, not the world,
and I will serve God, not mammon.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.”
### Prayer
“Father, in the name of Jesus, I come before You and submit myself afresh to Your lordship. I acknowledge that no one can serve two masters, and I confess any way in which I have tried to serve both You and mammon. Forgive me, Lord, for loving the world, for trusting in riches, for pursuing the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
Lord Jesus, I proclaim that You bought me with Your blood. I do not belong to myself; I belong to You. I ask You to break every hold of mammon over my life. Purify my motives, cleanse my desires, and reorder my priorities.
Holy Spirit, fill me and empower me to walk in undivided devotion. Teach me to handle money as a servant of God, not a slave of mammon. Direct my giving, my spending, and my saving so that all reflects Jesus as Lord.
Father, incline my heart away from the world and deeply toward You. Let love for You grow strong in me, and let every competing love lose its power. I choose this day to serve the Lord my God alone. Establish this choice in me, and guard it by Your grace. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
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