|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
I want to make money. Most people do.
Have you heard someone say, “If I have a choice between being blessed and poor or being blessed and rich, I will try blessed and poor”?
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with a lot of pain and sorrow. 1 Timothy 6:10 ESV/OGV
The amount of time between now and eternity is just a snap of our fingers. Do we really want to pursue or desire what has great potential for sorrow? Maybe the author of Proverbs was correct:
Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble with it. Proverbs 15:16 ESV
Making money is a gift from the Lord. Paul writes in Romans 12:8, “He who gives with liberality…” It makes sense that to give liberally, we must earn liberally.
As a pastor for 49 years, I’ve observed many who are rich.
Some who are rich become polluted by the temptations of wealth but still continue to make money. I’ve watched some wealthy people, who were once generous with their wealth, become gradually penurious or fearful about finances.
The Bible teaches:
For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Romans 11:29 ESV
If you have the gift of making money, you will continue to make money, whether you are evil or good. The gifts of God are irrevocable!
It’s the same with music – some singing praises to God, while others promote filth – with those listening to either one admiring an amazing gift. A preacher can still preach with effectiveness while having an affair. Same principle with a businessman, a politician, or an athlete.
The gifts and calling are permanent, despite sin. If not, we would lose them as soon as they were given to us.
There is protection for walking in faithfulness with our gifts. When we walk off the narrow path though, the gift remains but not the spiritual protection.
The rich make money, and if we stay generous (the calling of making money), we will have peace. If we make money and become selfish or promote evil – walking off the narrow path of God’s will – the protection leaves.
Our lives are pierced by family dissension, lawsuits, confusion, sorrow, and fear.
I have talked to multi-millionaires who are fearful – millions invested and yet the fear of not having enough. No peace at all.
Let’s talk about us. I’ve been using “we” throughout this Interruption.
We live in America and are among the top five percent of those earning wages in our world today. To 95 percent of the world’s population, we are rich. God has given an entire nation tremendous wealth; in fact, we are living in history’s wealthiest country during the wealthiest part of that nation’s history.
God has blessed America. We are blessed!
Yet, as a nation, we are miserable. Perhaps we are self-pursuing with our wealth rather than seeking first the Kingdom of God. Having lost the protection of God’s peace, we fear.
Our calling and gifting as citizens of history’s wealthiest nation have one purpose – take the gospel to the world.
Then Jesus returns.