Verse of the Day: 1 Samuel 25:2-3, Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel, and the man was very rich. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. 3 The name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. And she was a woman of good understanding and beautiful appearance; but the man was harsh and evil in his doings. He was of the house of Caleb.
It always amazes me that Christians continually fall for the whole “prosperity preaching” thing. This whole idea that being rich equals being right with God is nonsense and non-biblical. This is not to say that God will not bless His people. We have plenty of examples of God blessing His people with riches, such as Job, Abraham, and Solomon, just to name a few (who, by the way, were far from perfect). Here we have Nabal, whose name means “a fool”. A man blessed with riches, yet a man of poor character, describe by God’s Word as “harsh and evil in his doings”. Far too often we who are followers of Christ covet the wrong things. Psalm 37:16 tells us, “A little that a righteous man has is better than the riches of many wicked.” The sad part about this man’s testimony is that not only was he blessed with riches, but he was blessed with something that is far more valuable, a wife who was “a woman of good understanding and beautiful in appearance”. In other words, she was beautiful both inside and outside. That, my brothers and sisters, is a true blessing to be treasured even more than worldly gain and riches. Too many of God’s people get sidetracked chasing the wrong things in life. As born again believers, our goal is to live a life that glorifies the Lord. Instead, we chase money, material gain, status in society, promotions at our jobs, etc. It is not wrong to have riches or success, as long as we put them in their proper place and priority. When we begin to live a life that puts distance between us and the Lord, we cannot honestly equate it with being right with Him, no matter how much we gain. In Matthew 6:24 Jesus clearly stated, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” In Matthew 45b Jesus also said, “He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” In Matthew 6 Jesus clearly teaches that we are to focus our attention on the Kingdom of God and He will be faithful to provide all that we need. If the Lord then decides to add to that and bless us with riches, there is nothing wrong with that. The problem with gaining riches, for many, is that once we get a taste of what the world has to offer, material things become our gods. We then do whatever it takes to gain those riches and we become a Nabal. When we begin to covet the world’s offerings, we sacrifice our relationship with the Lord, our spouse, and family in general; all to gain what we cannot take with us in the end. Psalm 49:16-20 warns, “Do not be afraid when one becomes rich, when the glory of his house is increased; 17 for when he dies he shall carry nothing away; his glory shall not descend after him. 18 Though while he lives he blesses himself (for men will praise you when you do well for yourself), 19 he shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light. 20 A man who is in honor, yet does not understand, is like the beasts that perish.” 1 Timothy 6:7-10 states it this way, “Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” So I ask, “What are we coveting?” Do we seek after righteousness, and godliness, or are we sacrificing our testimony and service to the Lord for the empty riches of this world? Do we have all those things that bring us praise from the world, yet fall short in our relationship with the Lord? Has the Lord blessed us with a spouse who is of good understanding and beauty (inside and out), but we are sacrificing them on the altar of worldly gain? It is better to live a life that pleases God than one that brings us fame and popularity in this world, but labels us “a fool” before the Lord.
Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).
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