We can too easily be misled by what we see taking place on the surface of a culture without delving deeper to discover what is motivating the surface activity. Without a deeper Spirit-led inquiry we will expend our energy and prayers following diversions, never discovering the core motivating factor of an issue. 

There are times when interaction in finance and politics can be used as illustrations of spiritual truth. In the world of social media, such an illustration is currently playing out.

This morning, I watched a news outlet reporting on Elon Musk’s attempt to purchase Twitter. Analysts are saying his offer is reasonable for a company like Twitter in its current state. A financial poison pill is being considered by Twitter to stop the hostile takeover by Musk. The poison of the pill is being willing to take a lesser offer to thwart Elon Musk’s purchase hoping to find a buyer more in line with Twitter’s philosophy. 

The poison pill is being considered for a reason. It is being considered because of a passionate dislike for Elon Musk and his desire to dramatically alter the social media giant transforming it from a restrictive platform of worldview censorship to become a medium for the free and unrestricted flow of opinion and information.

About such issues, Paul wrote “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows” (I Timothy 6:10).

Money isn’t evil. What motivates its use can become evil. An unhealthy love of money creates a root system for all kinds of evil to grow. We must dig deeper than just the visible surface use of money to discover intent. We need to discover the underlying passion motivating the use of money. Discovering that motivating passion will help us discern what is feeding the growth of the branches. 

The word “root” in I Timothy 6:10 is defined as the “cause, origin, or source” of something. The same word was used by Paul when he spoke to the Gentiles about their ingrafting into the faith. “If the root is holy, so are the branches” (Romans 11:16). Hidden roots produce visible branches.

I no longer look at what people are buying or selling or arguing about to determine the integrity of something. It is always more profound than the surface interaction being displayed. The situation with Twitter is a prime example. 

Once the underlying passion is discovered, that is where our prayers should be directed. This is not easy to do when opinions are being expressed and tossed around as fact or prophetic revelation. We need to dig deeper into the heart of something to find its motivating passion. That is where we will discover who or what is driving the process. That is also where we will discover the spiritual forces empowering the passion. Those forces are what source an undisciplined passion and enable it to turn the use of money into something evil.