Not All the World's Silver and Gold

A person can be rich and famous, having lots of gold, silver, cash, diamonds, autos, boats, real estate, etc. However none of that will mean a thing after death because God isn’t interested in financial portfolios. Further more, the Bible teaches that we brought nothing into this world, and we sure won’t carry anything out of it (1 Timothy 6:7).

Jesus also warned that if a person could have all of the world’s goods and lose his soul, no amount of material gain could be used to redeem that lost soul (Mark 8:36-38). Once when Jesus was teaching a class, He was interrupted by a man who wanted Him to decide a matter in which another person owed money. Jesus chided the man for his behavior and told him that a person life is not made of what he possesses. Then Jesus made the statement sweeter by telling the story of a rich guy who lived for his money and how he constantly brought bigger and better things and looked forward to many years in which to enjoy himself and spend his money. But guess what? This man died, and I wonder who got his money and all the stuff he brought? (Luke 12:13-21). King Solomon, was a rich man. and he wrote about the vanities of riches. He talked about if the person who gets his goods would be a wise man or a fool (Ecclesiastes 2:12-23).

But having money isn’t a bad thing, as long as one doesn’t fall in love with it (1 Tim. 6:10). Also having money isn’t bad if you keep in mind that money can leave just as fast as it comes (Luke 15:14). Having money isn’t bad if it never take the place of God or what is right (Matthew 26:14-16; Acts 8:18-22). Having money isn’t bad if one is not stingy and is willing to help others in need (1 Tim. 6:17-19). Having money isn’t bad if you use it to promote the cause of Christ by giving into the treasury of the local church on the first day of the week (1 Corinthians 16:1-4).

By doing things of this nature, the rich person will leave a great legacy and many lives will be enriched by the generous actions.

~James Baker​