If you were in love with a woman because she had the good fortune of being wealthy, would you really be in love with her? Or would you (at least partially) be in love with the money? Even if you fell in love with her at first for her character, and were only later made aware of the reward you would receive if married, would you be able to say that you were marrying her solely for who she was?

It would be a difficult assertion to make. For most of us (myself included,) the money would have to be at least a marginal factor in the equation. Money has the power to compel people to do pretty awful things – it’s influence is indeed great upon us. We pursue careers and promotions for money. I’m pursuing entrepreneurship partially because of the unlimited earning potential. For most of us, the money would at least be a factor, would most likely provide an added incentive to pursue a long-term relationship.

If we were in love with a woman, and were guaranteed a tremendous lifestyle if married – a reward of sorts – it would be hard to say that the reward wouldn’t interfere with our love. We would run the very real, very likely risk that our love for the woman would not remain pure in and of itself. Our love would be divided – we’d continue to love her for her, but also love the reward that we’d be blessed with.

The woman might similarly love the man, but her danger might be loving the power that the money would afford her. The knowledge that she was able to make him rich might compel her to believe that he had an obligation to her – a reasonable assertion. But would her love continue to be pure? Would her love for him become tainted by the love of the obligation – that is, the love her power over him might afford? If he were not there for her in every way she desired, when she desired it, is it not possible that she might feel betrayed? Might she feel as though he owed her for the reward she had given?

It would seem as though the wise thing to do would be to come together and give the money away to something good. The reward would then no longer be theirs to keep, but simply something given back to the people, some of whom might have even played a role in making her wealthy in the first place. The couple would then be free to love each other without reservation. The influence and the power that the money would present is no longer an issue. The man could give his whole heart to her without even thinking about the reward.

The Bible says our Earthly rewards belong to God, and we’re meant to be good stewards of those rewards. That means we’re not to think of our money or possessions as ours, but rather as tools that can be used to advance God’s kingdom according to his will. But how many of us do that? I’m still struggling with the idea of giving a tenth of my income to God. The money represents a barrier in my life. The wise (some might say foolish) thing to do would be to simply give any earthly award away, freeing me from the bondage of money and allowing me to love him purely.

But even if I do that, I’m not sure if I would be loving God purely. I don’t know if I can. James writes about double-mindedness, and about how Christians should only will what the Lord wills. Kierkegaard wrote at length about how willing only one thing, God’s will, was the way to a pure heart, and that anything that gets in the way of that represents double-mindedness.

There are obvious barriers to willing one thing – money, pride, determination to live for oneself, pain caused by the world, unbelief, etc. But one that doesn’t initially come to mind might be the reward that is associated with belief.

If we believe in God, and live our lives according to his will, because of the reward associated with it – that is, eternal life – are we being double-minded? Are we simply continuing the process of doing things for what we can gain out of it? Does our love for God represent eros love and not the selfless agape love we’re supposed to possess? Does loving the Lord because of his mercy towards us and because of his gift of salvation – the reward – represent pure love? Is it yet another barrier to willing only God’s will, without regard to the reward we’d receive?

Is it even possible to will God’s will without the reward we receive? Is that why we live our lives according to God’s will? Is it pure love? If we were never informed of God’s gift, would we be able to live according to his will? Could it be done without the reward even entering into our minds?

Sorry, I’m not about to suggest an answer this time. I don’t have a clue.