WHEN Jesus declared that "a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth," he gave utterance to a truth which strikes at the very root of the belief as to what makes life harmonious and desirable. According to mortal man's estimate of the relative value of things, it is a fact too apparent even to be questioned, that without at least a modicum of earthly possessions life would scarcely be worth living. Contrary to the spiritual view of life as expressed in the words of the great Teacher just quoted, it is a conviction deeply rooted in the minds of mortals that the harmony of a man's life is to a very great extent dependent upon the abundance of the things he can call his own. As a logical result of this conviction the acquisition of these supposedly indispensable things is considered of paramount importance, and to this end the employment of time and talents is mainly devoted.
There is a standard of honesty in the material world of thought and activity, and it may be said that on most occasions the majority of persons try to live up to it. It is, however, universally acknowledged that the spirit of the golden rule is not so manifest in secular affairs as it should be. Mortal man's sense of justice is too often perverted by his own selfish interests, and for this reason his standard of business honesty will not always measure up to the requirements of the moral law. This will no doubt continue until a more spiritual consciousness is gained and the sense of selfish interest gives place to a broader and more generous consideration of the rights of all. Material modes and methods cannot rise above the belief that all things are limited, and that what one man possesses is largely beyond the reach of others to enjoy. The moral, or spiritual, law is based on the scientific fact that good is infinite and that no man can suffer because of another's advancement.
The belief that so much depends upon the possession of material things, and that these are necessarily limited, is the seedling which develops many of the undesirable traits of human character, such as avarice, covetousness, envy, jealousy, malice. None of these errors of belief which occasion so much discord and suffering in human experience, can have any place in the understanding that good is infinite and that no man need have less because another has more. Mortal man is envious of another only when he believes that other has something he has not, and which he thinks would add to his own sense of enjoyment and satisfaction. This only goes to show how deeply rooted is the conviction that happiness is dependent upon the possession of material things. So long as this belief dominates human activity, it will be well-nigh impossible to seek "first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness."
