Historical Posts
Money Is Not The Answer!
Can money fix everything? No. Money is not the answer.
For a long time this nation has operated upon the false premise that more money can fix about anything. But, does the evidence substantiate the claim? Absolutely not! Billions and billions of dollars have been poured into programs to help the poor, but people are still living in squalor and struggling to make ends meet. Billions more have been spent on education, yet we continue to hear disparaging news about our educational system and the lack of a properly educated work force in this country.
Nearly every week some new national crisis is declared, and demands for billions to fix it may be heard. Obviously, a certain amount of money is necessary to feed the hungry, house the needy, and educate the children of this nation. But, there comes a time when more money is not the answer. All the money in the world cannot educate children who are unwilling to learn. No matter how much money we spend, we cannot lift anyone out of poverty who is unwilling to help himself.
In most cases, what is needed is not more money, but more determination, more ambition, more resolve to do better. People need a hand up more than a hand out! What is needed is more self-reliance, more hard work, more commitment to succeed. People need to help themselves! What is needed is more faith in God, more faith in God given values, more faith in the Bible. The true measure of a man is not what he owns, but what owns him. No man is truly successful who has left God out of his life!
If you think money is the answer, think again. Solomon described two kinds of men in Proverbs 13:7. First, there are those who make themselves rich, but are really impoverished. Then, there are those who make themselves poor, but in fact, have great riches. All the money in the world cannot buy good health, a good name, a single additional day of life, or our eternal salvation.
Money is not the answer. Often, it is the problem! The love of money remains “the root of all evil” (1 Timothy 6:10).
Content by Roger Rush
Visit Roger at the 6th and Washington Street Church of Christ in Marietta OH.
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Real Wealth
According to the story, Midas, King of Lydia, did a favor for the god Bacchus. Bacchus, in return, offered the king his heart’s desire. Midas wished that all he touched would turn to gold. His wish was granted, and he ran through the palace turning everything he touched to gold. To celebrate his newfound talent, he ordered a great banquet, but to his dismay, as he lifted the food and drink to his mouth it turned to gold. At last, starving and wretched, he fell at Bacchus’ feet and pleaded with him to take back the gift. Wealth is only a means to an end, and when we become obsessed with the means, we are in danger of missing the end.
Frequently, during his ministry, Jesus warned of the dangers of wealth. He once asked, “What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or, what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). He also warned those who tend to be overly concerned with the things of this world that “a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth” (Luke 12:15). He urged men to store up treasures in heaven and not here on earth (Matthew 6:19-21). However, in spite of all the warnings, he never taught that money was evil. It is the “love of money” which is the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10).
If you think that sudden wealth is the answer to all your problems, think again! “They that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition” (1 Timothy 6:9). “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content” (1 Timothy 6:6-8).
There is an Eastern legend which says that Alexander the Great, upon his death bed, commanded that when he was carried forth to the grave his hands were not to be wrapped as was the usual custom, but should be left outside the bier so that all might see and know that they held nothing. He who had been born to one empire, and was the conqueror of another, would leave this world empty-handed. He and the poorest beggar would at last be on equal terms.
Job, learning of the death of his children and the loss of his wealth, exclaimed, “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither; the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). Paul said essentially the same thing when he wrote, “We brought nothing into this world and it is certain we can carry nothing out.” We all leave this world empty-handed. There are no exceptions!
All that we have we leave behind when we die. Knowing that, John wrote: “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever” (1 John 2:15-17).
Real wealth is not measured in dollars and cents, but in faith, love and service to God and man. Those are the things the Lord will be looking at in Judgment. The man who has them is truly rich!
Content by Roger Rush
Visit Roger at the 6th and Washington Street Church of Christ in Marietta OH.
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James 01:09-11 Trials of Poverty and Wealth – audio
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Text: James 1:9-11
Introduction
1. James has already discussed how we can turn trials into triumph, dealing with trials in general – James 1:2-8
2. In James 1:9-11, he discusses specifically the trials of being poor and being rich, and the attitudes we should have
3. In this lesson, we shall concentrate our attention on verses 9-11 and passages elsewhere which deal with the subject of poverty and wealth
4. Let’s begin by noticing that both wealth and poverty can be a problem
Body
I. THE TRIALS OF POVERTY AND WEALTH (Proverbs 30:8-9)
A. IN “POVERTY”, WE MAY BE TEMPTED TO CURSE GOD
1. Like Job’s wife wanted her husband to do, when they had lost everything – Job 2:9
2. And as many do today when things don’t go well
B. IN “WEALTH”, WE MAY BE TEMPTED TO FORGET GOD
1. As God warned Israel that it might happen to them – Deuteronomy 8:10-14, 17
2. And as it did in fact happen to them – Hosea 13:5-6
II. THE REASONS FOR JOY IN POVERTY OR WEALTH (James 1:9-11)
A. IF WE ARE “POOR”, THEN WE CAN REJOICE THAT WE HAVE BEEN “EXALTED”!
1. God has chosen the “poor” to be rich in faith – James 2:5
a. It is the poor who first had the gospel preached to them – Luke 4:18
b. It is the poor slave who becomes Christ’s “freedman” – 1 Corinthians 7:21-22
2. So even if poor, we can still be “spiritually rich” and on equal par with all Christians – Revelation 2:8-9
B. IF WE ARE “RICH”, THEN WE CAN REJOICE THAT WE HAVE BEEN “HUMBLED”!
1. The rich are “humbled” by their:
a. Becoming Christ’s “slave” – 1 Corinthians 7:21-22
b. Being placed on an equal par with all Christians…in which riches mean nothing – Revelation 3:14-19
2. Why it is good that the rich be so “humbled”
a. Riches are temporary – James 1:10-11
b. Riches are unable to redeem our souls – Psalm 49:6-9, Psalm 49:13-20
c. The love of money is a quagmire and a source of self- inflicted injuries – 1 Timothy 6:9-10
3. In other words, it is good that in coming to Jesus Christ we find these things out
a. Or we might have made the same mistake many make today
b. Thinking that money provides true security (remember the rich fool? – Luke 12:13-21)
Conclusion
1. Even in the trials of poverty or wealth, there can be a cause for rejoicing!
2. For Jesus is “The Great Equalizer”
a. Exalting the poor who are rich in faith
b. Humbling the wealthy by basing their salvation not on wealth, but on that which cannot be bought: the blood of Jesus and the obedience of a humble and contrite spirit
3. Keeping these thoughts in mind will help us learn to be content in whatever financial conditions we may find ourselves; as Paul wrote:
Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me – Philippians 4:11-13
4. The important question is not “How rich are you?” but “How rich IN FAITH are you?”
Content by Donald W. Treadway
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