Faith That Works: Riches

Being rich is relative.  Ask most Americans if we would consider ourselves rich and we automatically compare ourselves to someone else who has more than us which allows us to say, “no, I’m not rich”!  We are so immersed in a culture of affluence that we don’t even recognize the extent of our prosperity.  In fact, we’ve come to expect it and believe that we have somehow earned it.  I recently found an interactive website called www.globalrichlist.com where you can enter in your annual income, press a button that says, “show me the money” and it will tell you in what percentage of the richest people you rank in compared to the rest of the world.  I’m sure that many of us are aware that a person only has to make $48,000 per year (which may sound like a lot) and still be in the TOP 1% of the world’s richest people!  I’d say that is a majority of us in America.  We sit on the opposite end of those in the bottom 1% who make $400 per year or less.  The worldwide average annual income is $5000.  These statistics reveal one very simple fact . . . we may not think that we are rich, but compared to the rest of the world . . . we are!

READ:  James 5:1-6

James has already been writing in pretty intense words and tone (James 1:6-7, 22, 2:17, 3:1, 6, 10, 4:4, 16), but I think he hits the climax of his admonition when he addresses the issue of riches.  James gives some harsh warnings to those who are rich . . .

Riches will DETERIORATE and ultimately DESTROY us (vss 2-3a) – Money is known to “burn a hole in your pocket”.  As soon as you possess it, it disappears.  And all the things that we spend it on disappear just as quickly.  All the possessions that we accumulate have a very short life span.  All the time and energy we put into possessing things will eventually rot, be eaten by moths, and corrode (Matthew 6:19-24).  A dangerous and subtle consequence is that the money and possessions that burn a hole in our pockets burn even deeper into our soul and can easily destroy our lives with pride, arrogance, jealousy, greed, and independence from God.  We can avoid the deterioration and destruction of riches by serving God and laying up treasure in heaven.

The Lord will hold us accountable for HOARDING of riches (vs 3b-4) – “What’s mine is mine” is an American attitude that lends itself to an excessive accumulation of riches (Luke 12:13-21).  Hoarding of riches and possessions is really a symptom of a lack of trust in God and a reliance on ourselves to primarily provide for our physical needs.  We busy ourselves accumulating as much as we can in order to anxiously protect ourselves from pain, discomfort, or embarrassment (Matthew 6:25-34).  Such self-protection leaves no room for God to provide for our daily needs of food, shelter, and clothes.  The greatest sin of laying up an abundance of treasure is how it detaches us from our dependence on God. 

 

Excessive riches cause us to NEGLECT and ABUSE those in greatest need(vs 4-6) – While we live in luxury and comfort, there is an entire world that is severely lacking in some of the most basic needs of food, water, clothing, and shelter.  In a sense, by selfishly over-indulging in things BEYOND our basic needs, we are stealing from those who are barely surviving around the world.  Being rich should not be a right we selfishly abuse, but a blessing and a responsibility to care for the needs of the less fortunate around the world.

Conclusion:

READ:  1 Timothy 6:6-10, 17-19  Practical question at this season of the year . . . would you be willing to sacrifice a Christmas gift you were going to receive in order to give some of your riches to someone in need?   I would like you all to personally consider this question and pray about whether it is something you feel God leading you to do.  Continue to pray about this as Christmas approaches and commit to doing whatever God convicts you to do!