05/20/2023
It is good to routinely ask ourselves challenging questions. My question today is "Am I seeking those things which are truly important in life?" I am contemplating what I actually hold as highest in my life by asking myself if those things are really as valuable as I believe them to be. Am I placing value on fleeting things at the expense of the eternal treasures of faith?
There is a saying that we all know, and many of us use it from time to time, "You can't take it with you." There are times we use this phrase as justification for spending or squandering those things we have worked for and been blessed with while seeking immediate pleasure, but are these things such as money, jewels, businesses, homes, certain earthly relationships, and all the pleasure they represent to us, really what is important in our lives? Perhaps we think so in the moment because they can bring us worldly happiness, comfort, or gratification. Yet all of this is fleeting and without consequence once our days here are at end.
In the parable of the rich fool Jesus warns us about spending all of our energy accumulating things in this physical world. He speaks of the folly in gathering fruit that will rot instead of seeking eternal treasure. Let's listen to His words once more:
“And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry."' But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God."”
Luke 12:19-21 ESV
I look at my own life and the wealth that I have accumulated. Are these things I possess and take such great pride in really important, or is that value I am placing on them an illusion, and my pride in them a stumbling block to my righteousness and salvation?
What if tonight I go to sleep and wake no more... what will be important then? What do I carry with me into the presence of God? Will He take out my old ledger book and praise me for what I accumulated on earth? Funny, but I can't think of a single one of His commandments that said "gather all you can and horde it so that I can praise you in judgement."
No... And, there is another saying I have heard people repeat, and even seen printed on T-shirts; it goes like this..."He who dies with the most toys wins!" This is balderdash and pure nonsense. If this has been your approach to life then you had best reconsider, and do so with quickly, and with urgency.
God does place value on earthly wealth, but in a much different way. He uses that excess to build character in us by telling us to do certain things with it. He doesn't say please yourself, or enrich your pastor, or buy prominence. What He tells us to do converts earthly wealth into heavenly treasure in ways such as this... feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, heal the sick, visit the prisoner. In each of these ways our earthly prosperity is converted into heavenly blessings, righteousness, and eternal life.
“For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."”
Matthew 25:42-46 ESV
Yet, most certainly it is good to provide for your family, and to leave them taken care of at the end of your days, but do so responsibly. Make certain that the things you leave behind are properly divided between your children, church, and the poor. Reduce strife and provide for their wellbeing by planning for this eventuality as God would have you do.
So it isn't about accumulating the most toys, it isn't about prominence, pride, or pleasure... it is about such things as loving your neighbor as yourself, and placing no other god before you. If what you do with your excess wealth isn't bringing you to a place where you can sit with Jesus and tell Him, without embarrassment or shame, about how you managed God's blessings and learned the lessons of righteousness... then it's time to reconsider your priorities.
“By your endurance you will gain your lives.”
Luke 21:19 ESV
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the blessings you bestow on me each day, and I pray that I never confuse the source of my wealth, and achievements. Holy Father I have nothing that you have not provided... from my intelligence that you saw fit to give me at birth, to the wealth I am able to accumulate by your providence. Lord, guide me in how you wish me to employ the treasures of this earth that I manage for you. Show me the hungry you wish fed, and the thirsty I should give drink to. Allow me, through your word, to obtain righteousness by obeying your will, both in this world, and in heaven. Most Holy Father, guide me through life and teach me of those truly important possessions that come by serving you and by providing for the least of your children. Let your hand teach me kindness, humility, and generosity... and in all of these things let love be my motivation. Teach me the holy language of heaven Father, and help me choose not to remember the coarse accent of the world. Bind my soul with the eternal treasure that you have lovingly prepared for me, and remove all remembrance of the sin into which I was once born.
Rich Forbes