Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Nov/88

Contributor - Cornelius Verbeek

Title - Materialism

Topic - Materialism

Materialism. What is it? Webster's Dictionary defines it as follows:

1. In philosophy (a) the doctrine that matter is the only reality and that everything is the world, including thought, will and feeling, can be explained only in the terms of matter: opposed to idealism; (b) the doctrine that comfort, pleasure and wealth are the only highest goals or values.

2. the tendency to be more concerned with material than with spiritual goals or values.

3. matter; material substances in the aggregate.

The philosophy of materialism has existed for many years - even before Jesus Christ was born. One of the more notable philosophers of materialism was a man by the name of Democritus (460 - 370 BC). Very briefly, Democritus' philosophy was that atoms are the only reality and the only forces in the world and that thought and sensation were appearances only. In his opinion, thought itself was really the movement of atoms in the body.

When studying this topic, I was interested to learn that there are two types of materialism: reductive and non-reductive. Reductive materialism states that all qualities of experience can be reduced to changes of matter and that life is "nothing but" organized matter. On the other hand, nonreductive materialism holds that the careers of all events are a consequence of material conditions. All experiences are dependent upon the existence of appropriately organized bodies. This type of materialism does not maintain that a logical equation can be established between mind and matter, but only a relation of casual dependence established by science (see number l(a) of the definition above).

What this means is that materialism is more than what we have. Materialism also has to do with our thinking, . our will and our feelings. If we are not careful, materialism can capture the whole of our being. And it is for this reason that we, as Christians, must be very careful not to let ourselves become too involved with the materialistic thinking of this world.

I hope you are beginning to realize how dangerous materialism is for the Christian. Materialism denies the existence of God! Because you cannot see and touch God, He is not real and therefore cannot exist.

The Bible is very clear and direct about materialism (read Luke 12:13 Romans 12; and Colossians 3). God says NO to materialism!

Is having material things wrong? Is being wealthy wrong? Should we feel guilty about what we have? After all, think about the poor in the world. No, it is not wrong, nor should we feel guilty. But what is wrong is when we begin to place all of our time, energy and importance in material things. When they begin to take priority in our lives, over and above God, then it becomes a trap and a delusion.

Today it is very easy for the Christian to get caught up in our materialistic world. The world teaches that in order to be happy and to have happiness, you must have material things. Nothing can be further from the truth! If you want true happiness, then learn and sing the words to the song, "Happiness is The Lord". God wants you and me all to Himself. He promises that He will love us, provide for us and be there whenever we need Him. In my book, no amount of material things can ever top that!

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