Day 14 | The Blessing of Wealth
Proverbs 10:22, “The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it.”
Biblical wealth means, “to have enough substance to meet your needs, an inheritance for your kids, and extra to help others in need.” On one hand, we may not always have this kind of wealth and for most it will take a lifetime of hard work and dedication to achieve and maintain this goal. On the other hand, King Solomon reminds us to always remember that it is the Lord’s blessing that brings us wealth.
In other words, we are not the source of our talents and abilities; our God and Creator have given these to us. Therefore, we should desire to be obedient to God’s commands in life to show Him our gratitude. When we use our God-given talents and abilities to only serve our selfish wants and desires we show ourselves prideful and greedy.
When Jesus taught his disciples about the number one competing “master” that opposes the one true Master he didn’t mention Buddha, Krishna, or Zeus. Rather Jesus said the biggest competitor for man’s heart is “money.” In Matthew 6:24 Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
Someone might respond and say, “I don’t love money. I simply work hard to provide for my family and I don’t feel I owe God or anyone else anything. It’s my money and I can use it to do whatever I wish.” What this person doesn’t understand is that their selfishness is rooted in their own pride because they feel they can make money without God. However, God is the one who actually gave them the ability to begin with. Plus, the help they give their family is also selfish because their wealth is only for “their family.” In turn, they are only motivated to help people that they love and neglect God’s command to help others.
Therefore, James reiterates what Solomon and Jesus were saying to the self-centered rich person in James 5:3, “Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.” All their money will bring them trouble on the Day of Judgment because they didn’t seek first God’s kingdom. And all the “good” they did for their family will mean nothing because if their family is not saved they will perish in hell forever as well.
In the end the lesson is simple, “God’s blessing brings wealth without trouble, whereas the greed of the ungodly will destroy them.” Therefore, choose to seek God and His blessing in all you do and you will have more than enough!
Reflection
Action
- Examine your heart and repent of any greed or selfishness you may have.
- Seek first God’s kingdom and righteousness so that His blessings will bring wealth without trouble.
- Obey God’s commands, work hard, be a giver, and have faith that one day you will achieve your financial goals.