08/18/2025
Are any of us sad today? I am referring to the sadness that occurs when we realize that Jesus is asking us to let go of something that we believe we are unable to abandon, something that seems impossible for us to live without. Perhaps it is our monetary wealth, but maybe it is a form of poverty that we are being asked to let go of. Wealth can be something different for each of us. Let’s look at this today.
“But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, "How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”
Luke 18:23-24 ESV
Money is something that the world looks on as a symbol of wealth; it is the first thing we think of when we hear that someone is wealthy, but there are many things that can be considered wealth. The definition of wealth is "an abundance of valuable material, possessions, or resources" it is a profusion of something that we personally hold as valuable. Maybe it is money, but it can also be the lack of it. Have we ever considered the fact that someone might have become so entrenched in a life without money that it has become a badge of honor that they wear, and a barrier to their faith? I know a man who begs on street corners with his dog but has turned down jobs, a car, and a safe home, to continue this life as a street person. He would rather sleep under a pile of cardboard than in a fine bed. He had a very different perspective on what wealth was.
Let’s call this the "wealth of poverty"... this statement is an oxymoron, an expression in which seemingly contradictory things are joined together to show us the truth. Jesus asked the rich young ruler to give up his money and belongings... what if He were to ask us to give up some form of poverty that we have been holding onto? Would this request bring us fear, uncertainty, reluctance, and finally sadness in our unwillingness to change? Would moving back into mainstream society be just as hard for us to do as giving up one’s money would be to a wealthy man? Could we leave either of one of these forms of wealth behind and follow Jesus?
Sometimes we wrongly associate a certain poverty with humility. We look at a dearth of self-assuredness as being humble... but it isn't. Being frozen in our faith by a wealth of self-doubt is not the same thing as humility. What if Jesus gave us a word today, and that word was to gird up our loins and engage in something that frightens us because it is so contrary to who we are and we doubt our ability to do this. Would we do it out of our love for Him... or walk away sad?
Sometimes we turn a wealth of money into our god, but at other times it is some other possession or resource. Quite often we use great poverty as an excuse for the low quality of life and faith we have. We argue our case in this manner... "but Jesus, I don't have the means and ability to do that" yet in so doing aren’t we arguing not out of humility, but from a place of self-doubt and little faith in God. We may have no money, we may be too short, too weak, too dumb, have too little talent, or we may be too _______... well, just fill in the blank. Has Jesus asked us to give all our wealth away to follow Him and place God first in our lives? Has He asked us to give up our god of poverty, the enemy of your faithfulness? If so, let’s pray for more faith and gird up our loins so that we can leave behind our chosen god, our comfortable form of wealth, and follow Him!
“Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord! I have fled to you for refuge. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!”
Psalms 143:9-10 ESV
If you grasp the greatness of God and leave behind the enemy of your faith (whether great riches, or devastating poverty) He will provide all that you need...
“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19 ESV
God will lift us up because He asks nothing of us that is too great for us to accomplish. He might ask us to sell all we own, or He might just as easily tell us to let go of our poverty and rise above it as our faith increases in Him... whatever the ask, it is not beyond our ability to do if we will trust and have faith in Him.
“But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."”
Matthew 19:26 ESV
So, we shouldn’t act smug or sheltered from challenge because we feel like our poverty exempts us... we may well be asked to give up that "wealth of poverty" we have been comfortably leaning on, and which is keeping our faith from reaching the heights that Jesus desires for us. Remember the words of Jesus about the wealthy and realize that He was speaking to us too when He said, "How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”
“Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.”
Hebrews 10:35-36 ESV
Friends, whether we are living the lavish lifestyle of the rich and famous, or in a homeless encampment where we feel comfortably sheltered from all the world’s expectations… Jesus might ask us to give this all up and follow Him so that we can obtain eternal life. Will we be able to do that? Is our idea of heaven a mansion, or a cardboard box beneath a bridge? God really doesn’t care so long as we believe, and love Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
John 3:16-17 ESV
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for leading me to great faith through the challenges in my life. I thank you for asking me to give up certain financial wealth, and I thank you for asking me to give up the various forms of poverty and inadequacy that I have sought safe harbor in. Help me, Holy Father as I remove every excuse or roadblock that keeps me from serving you. Jesus, search my life and call out those things I must abandon. Call out the gods I have latched onto; those that create obstacles and nurture my inability to reach the pinnacle of faith in you that you expect of me. How can I follow you Lord when I am chained to so many encumbrances? Help me Jesus to free myself of my bindings; whether you ask me to leave possessions behind or pick others up... give me the strength and confidence to faithfully do as you ask. Take away the sadness that follows me each day that I delay in heeding your call and give me the confidence and strength in you that will allow me to joyfully do your bidding in my life. Father you are greater than all I own; your gold and silver pave the streets, and you claim no inability to defend or provide for me. Lift me up Merciful Father and conquer every obstruction presented by my false wealth... the wealth of plenty, and the wealth of poverty alike. I Know that in either the ghetto or a gated community, you are there with me, and for that I will praise you, and will rejoice and be glad in you… giving you all the glory for my righteousness and for the victory you have won in me.
Amen
“And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Mark 12:41-44 ESV
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.”
John 10:27-28 ESV
Rich Forbes