Customer Reviews

Money, Possessions, and Eternity

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Simply the best book on the subject. Be ready for a good spiritual punch in the gut. I buy numerous copies of these and constantly give them away to those I am close to. Chock full of scripture and and wisdom. It's intention is not to instruct you on how to get out of debt or balance your check-book. Seek out Ron Blue or Larry Burkett's excellent resorces for this. Alcorn lays out a view of the eternal promises of God (specifically related to the subject matter), challenges us to believe them and dramatically alter the way most American Christians live our lives. If you want the "Cliff's notes" version pick up Alcorn's "The Treasure Principle." If you want to go deep work your way through this gem.

This book will challenge you, irritate you and, in the process, help transform you. This book is for the serious Christian disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ.

First, this book is *not* only about money. It is more about how money either supports your commitment to the Lord Jesus or obstructs it.

Second, money must be viewed in the long-term context of eternity. If you believe that the gospel applies to your soul, then eternity should be the lens through which Christ's disciples should apply the gospel to their use of money. Money is GOD's resource; HE has given me some of it now but will call me to account for this when I die.

This is why Jesus is central. It is why this book is only for the serious Christian; others may read it, but to put these principles into practice you will need courage, humility, obedience and trust in God: it may be a painful process.

Allow yourself a lot of time with this book. Alcorn's questions are searching and penetrating. Underlining and commenting on these pages has helped me immensely.

Is this book a "great" or "entertaining" read? No. This is a book that will convict and even read the reader!

Basically all I can say is that this book has changed my life. I have completely re-evaluated every possession I have and every dollar I spend and even the direction my life will take. It is quite deep and a tough read- it took me 8 months to work my way through it, but it was well worth it. This is a must read for anyone who wants to get serious about living the way God intends.

The premise of this book is simple: Where your focus is, there your heart will be also. It's based upon Jesus' promise to reward us for faithful stewardship. Since we own nothing, and everything we "think" we "own" is really God's (The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof), what we do with God's stewardship reflects where our focus is. If we focus on the here and now, then we'll look to maximize that. If we focus on the next 100 million years, and keep in perspective what He's taught us about His ownership of everything entrusted to us, then we'll behave differently, with an eye on the day that He will judge how we handled His people, His time, and His money. With that view of eternity in mind, we will get joy and liberation from giving rather than hoarding. We will first learn to tithe, then to give above and beyond. With an eternal focus, we'll be more insulated from the ad pitches and resultant buying desires beamed to us constantly. Randy Alcorn challenges us to set a top to our spending, and trust God for more income to GIVE rather than CONSUME. Why is America so blessed with wealth??? It's because He wants to use us a channels to other places He wants to work in. However, it depends on our obedience, which is somewhat dependent on our focus - either here and now, or forever. Take a walk around a cemetary - here and now doesn't last too long. Eternity is a long time. If you truly want to maximize your investments, choose the long term, not the short term.

Randy Alcorn has written a masterpiece. I cannot say enough about how much this insightful book has influenced my understanding of how Christians ought to think about and handle their material resources. This book addresses so many Biblical principles with such clarity of thought and focus that it's difficult to pick out the best highlights. I began dog-earing pages for future reference (something I almost NEVER do), and I ended up turning down the corner of nearly every other page! Alcorn is as insightful as Burkett, as practical as Blue or Ramsey, and as clear as Hendricks or Swindoll. Since everyone will answer to God in eternity, I believe this book ought to be required reading for every Christian. Alcorn is especially adept at examining the concept of "materialism" -- exactly what it is and what it means. Without a doubt in my mind, the finest book ever on this much-neglected subject. In addition, Alcorn's book had a major influence on co-author Jim Burgess and me (Jeff Berg) when we wrote "The Debt-Free Church" for Moody Press. Thanks, Randy, and I pray that "Money, Possessions, and Eternity" will stay in print for many years to come.

I'm currently in the middle of reading, "Money, Possessions, and Eternity" by Randy Alcorn. If you decide to read it, be sure to get the updated and revised edition.

This is a most fantastic book in what it shares about a biblical approach to money and Christian financial management. I wish I had read this book years ago.

I'm 59 pages into the nearly 500 page book. I have already had so many ah-ha moments that I've lost track of all of the insights I've gleaned from this book so far.

I don't agree 100% with everything Alcorn says, and I don't worry about that. I never do completely agree with any writer.

Alcorn says in the forward to his book, "There is something in this book to offend everyone. Some of it offends me--and I wrote it. Please understand that it is not my intention to insult or irritate anyone. Any offenses are simply the by-product of trying to be faithful to the principles of Scripture--which have an annoying tendency to take issue with the way we prefer to think and live. I have undoubtedly erred in some of my conclusions. I invite you to examine carefully the hundreds of passages cited, searching the Scripture like the Bereans, to see whether these words are true. . . To the degree that my words do not match up to Scripture, they are worthless. To the degree that they stand up under the scrutiny of God's Word, they should be taken seriously."

When I read these words, I knew I was in for an exciting read about what the Bible has to say about how we handle our money and material possessions.

Many of us have struggled deeply with our finances. I think this is a "must read" book for all of us who want to use our money more wisely to impact this kingdom and the next.

By the way, all of the royalties from Alcorn's books are given to Christian charities, ministries, and missions. He keeps none of it for himself. So far he has donated over $500,000 to the Lord's work. In this book, he shares how this came about.

Randy Alcorn's book is the best on the subject of money that I've come across for Christians who want to cultivate a heart that will lead to good stewardship of worldly possessions in this life. His biblical scholarship is top rate and his arguments are very timely and superbly articulated. I am amazed by the wisdom and discernment shown in this book and plan to read it over and over. I can't recommend this book more enthusiastically.

Randy Alcorn has done the best job of anyone in truly uncovering what the New Testament teaches about the place of money and possessions in the life of a Christian. He does a great job interpreting Jesus' many teachings on wealth and prosperity. The fallacy of the materialistic "God wants you rich" theology is made obvious. God gives wealth and wealth is good but it is not to be hoarded and stored up on this earth. It is to be shared with the poor, the needy, and the martyrs in Christ. Christians will be judged based on what they do with the wealth God gives them.

This complete guide offers both practical financial advice for everyone and also guidelines for Christians. It is comprehensive and covers debt, investing, budgeting, giving, insurance, inheritance, etc... There were so many points that made me ponder the choices that we make every day. I plan to give this book as gifts to all of my family and friends. Their lives will be much happier if they read and apply the principles taught in this wonderful book.

I loved this book and how it helped me understand the principles of stewardship. My wife loved the book also and feels that we should re-read portions of it every year. Great chapters on materialism, saving and giving. Bottom-line, this book has the potential to change your life both on earth and in heaven.