Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth eaten.
Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.
Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.
Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.
Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
James 5:1-6
Here James voices loudly about the misuse of wealth! He warns his people not to be fooled into thinking that money is everything! We have heard it over and over again “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21)
If we choose to live just to acquire material possessions, we will end up empty, lonely, and bitter because that which we are chasing gives us nothing in return. When we chase wealth, we end up robbing ourselves of the greater riches that God has to give us. And when it really comes down to it, a lot of the things we chase will soon rot, so why do we place our trust in it?
In saying this, wealth in itself is not wrong here, In fact there were many great believers in the Bible who were “wealthy”. Wealth can be a blessing from God if we use it as He intended and not allowing ourselves to pour our whole devotion to it! – (Proverbs 10:22)
But God makes it very clear that HE is in fact OPPOSED to the misuse and abuse of wealth. He wants us to use our wealth wisely – no matter how much or how little we have. Many would say these scriptures were solely written to the rich, and you may not consider yourself to be very “rich”. But if you live America, my friend, you are rich! I don’t say this to make us feel guilty but it is important that we understand that God has blessed us immensely. There are places in this world where people will walk half a day just to get dirty contaminated water. I think we, as Americans focus so much on what we don’t have that we lose sight of the things we do have! Something I would like for you to think about…If the only thing you had to show for your life, your love and devotion to God was your checkbook what would it look like? Would we see Christ?
Here I’ve listed a few ways we need to avoid in WRONG USES OF WEALTH:
1. THE ACCUMULATION OF WEALTH: DON’T HOARD IT!
Money is not to be stockpiled. God gives you wealth to circulate it, meaning using it wisely for His kingdom and to further His cause. (Luke 12:16) when you accumulate just to get, you forget why God has given it to you.
2. THE APPROPRIATION OF WEALTH: DON’T STEAL IT!
God is concerned with how you got what you have! There are a lot of ways to make money dishonestly, one way is to not pay your debts like James describes in verse 4. We should work hard for our wealth not try to cheat the system to get it. The Bible “a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches – Proverbs 22:1
3. THE ALLOCATION OF WEALTH: DON’T WASTE IT!
One of the greatest temptations we must avoid with our wealth (regardless of the dollar amount) is to spend our money selfishly. We live in a day and age that reality TV is addictive due to the fact that we find a strange pleasure out of watching those people waste money! Be careful in throwing away your wealth on things that do not add to His kingdom and remember just because you can afford it- doesn’t mean you should have it!
4. THE APPLICATION OF WEALTH: DON’T ABUSE IT!
The sad truth is many people today use their wealth to manipulate others and to get their way. When we receive wealth it offers a sense of influence, power, and authority. Why is it that we pay more attention to a rich person that speaks than a poor person? It is because our world is fallen and we associate influence with wealth. Someday we all will stand before God and explain how we used our influence, power, and authority; how we spent our wealth that God blessed us with.
In understanding those things we should avoid God also guides us into practicing the RIGHT USES OF WEALTH:
RIGHT ACCUMULATION: SAVE IT FAITHFULLY!
PROVERBS 20:2 – So many times people live for just today, a wise person invests.
RIGHT APPROPRIATION: MAKE IT HONESTLY!
One of the things we struggle with in America is being honest. Earn your wealth honestly as long as it does not hurt your own health or your family.
RIGHT ALLOCATION: SPEND IT WISELY! – “How much better is it to get wisdom than gold and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver” – Proverbs 16:16
RIGHT APPLICATION: GIVE IT GENEROUSLY
In Matthew 6 it talks about laying out our treasures in heaven. God specifically calls us to give on the first day of the week (1 Corinthians 16:2) and to not give grudgingly God “loveth a cheerful giver.” (2 Corithinans 9:7)
If you’re struggling with managing money wisely it is usually an insight of a deeper problem, and it may be that you are trying to live without God’s guidance and putting other things before the spiritual things in your life. Let God manage your life, in every way and give it solely over to Him. You can’t out give God. The solution to tough financial situations is not to stop giving but to put Him first and He will honor that. Jesus wants you to live an abundant life! -Matthew 6:21-34
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21) When you look at your treasures is your heart where you thought it was? where is your time, talent, and treasure going? Where would you like it to be?
