Most of us are familiar with the Bible's teaching that "the love of money is the root of all evil" (I Timothy 6:10). We know the evil that is done to gain money and what it buys.

But have you ever considered that the way we use and spend our money is a measure, gauge, or barometer of our spirituality.

That is, in part, what the Apostle Paul seems to be teaching in Galatians 6:6-10. Listen to what he wrote: "Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches. Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith."

The often-ignored context of this passage, is the use of our earthly resources, which would include, particularly, our money.

Paul begins by showing that "those who are taught" should share with those who teach them. This sharing, or partnership, often referred to in scripture as "fellowship," involves Christians who are taught spiritual things sharing their physical blessings with the teacher. Several other New Testament passages teach the same thing regarding support for both elders and preachers.

Then the apostle sets forth a proverb, or truism: God won't be mocked or treated contemptuously in this regard. What a man sows, he will reap. The context still is in regard to the use of our resources, as they relate to the kingdom and teaching. Paul says if we "sow to the flesh," we will reap corruption, but if we "sow to the Spirit," we will reap everlasting life.

You can't sow one kind of life and reap another. You can't make all your investments in the material, worldly, and earthly and then expect to reap a spiritual life. Jesus made the same point, with the same context, when he said, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)

You can't use your money and resources to simply accumulate earthly treasures and then expect to reap any more than those earthly treasures and pleasures. You reap what you sow! The point, I suppose, is this: To get the most for your dollar-invest in the spiritual.

Paul supported this view in two other passages. He wrote, "Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life." (1Timothy 6:17-19)

And then in 2 Corinthians 9:6,7, "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver."

Notice again and again, the relationship between how you use or invest money and the results or rewards you receive. Observe also that the verses do not refer just to sinful uses, versus righteous uses, but to how we use, or do not use, our physical blessings for spiritual ends.

The bottom line is this. Don't think you can outwit God and reap spiritual blessings when you've only sown to obtain physical blessings. "Sowing to the flesh" regards using our money for things that give fleshly joy and gratification. That fleshly joy is what we reap, and it is temporary and corruptible-not everlasting.

This fleshly approach was the one the Lord exemplified in His account of the rich man in Luke 12:16-21. "Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: 'The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?' So he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry. ' But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?' So is he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God."

"Sowing to the Spirit," on the other hand, refers to doing things to assist the Holy Spirit and benefit man' s spirit. Paul previously gave an example of doing this in the section we read in Galatians. When one shares in the propagation of the gospel by financially assisting those who teach, he sows to the Spirit. But this certainly isn't the only way to sow to the Spirit. Relieving the suffering of brethren and helping the poor of this world both manifest God' s love and glorify God and the work of the Spirit. These uses of our resources reap for us "everlasting life."

The Galatian text urges us to do good to all men, especially those of the household of faith. The context is not what the church is authorized to do from the treasury but, rather, what an individual is to do.

In this regard, two errors are often made. Liberal brethren, who don't want to be bound by the directives and examples of scripture, seek to open the church's purse to fund campaigns to feed and clothe the entire world. But, sometimes, brethren, who think they are being conservative and limited by the word, err by not personally and individually doing anything to assist non-Christians.

Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan teaches us to do good to our neighbor and shows who is our neighbor. (Luke 10:30-37)

In the Galatians passage, the Apostle does not define just how much of our money or resources we are to spend on "sowing to the Spirit." Elsewhere, we saw, he said "not sparingly." It is logical to conclude that our investment should mirror what we hope to reap.

Paul does urge us not to "grow weary" in doing good. We should not become sporadic, negligent, or quit because we don't see an immediate harvest. We should continue faithfully spending and being spent in the kingdom--trusting that God will give the everlasting life He promised.

As financial advisors today might say, it's "short-term investment" versus "long-term investment." Spiritually, short-term investments produce only temporal and temporary rewards. The long-term is the eternal.

Money, like time, is really just a "measure" of our lives. Money, in itself, is nothing. It merely establishes a value for the time we expend in our lives and becomes a means of exchanging the efforts of our lives for things we need, want, and value.

Time and money are also alike, in that how we use either one determines, to a large degree, our future. And this seems to be one of Paul's points in Galatians 6:6-10.

If we use most of our money and time for self-gratification, that gratification is our reward. If we use our time and money for the Spirit's work, and for the spiritual in general, the harvest is everlasting spiritual life with God.

Paul just wants to be sure we don't fool ourselves or think God can be fooled. You can't spend most of your time and money on fleshly, earthly matters and then harvest a spiritual crop.

So, if you want to analyze your personal spirituality, look at your checkbook. Examine your spending habits. See where your priorities lie. It may shock you to learn how you've been using your life, but it certainly will tell you what sort of return on your equity you can expect.