Their Day Is Coming

James 5:1-6 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.

There is nothing new under the sun. Today, as in the past, the desire to be rich has corrupted many and led many astray. Sadly, even Christians have forsaken their walk with Jesus in order to gain more of the worlds rotting treasures. In a quest to enjoy the comforts that the world offers, we have forfeited the eternal for the the gain of that which will perish. The rich continue to oppress the poor. The business man abuses those that labor to make them rich, paying them wages that they can barely live on, and in many cases are forced to work more than one or two jobs just to survive; while the business owner continues to line their own pockets and bank accounts at the expense of the laborer. People in authority and high ranking positions, in society, continually enact rules and laws that keep the majority of people broke and wondering if they can survive the day to day responsibility of taking care of themselves and their families. James warns them in these verses of the coming judgment; for a day is coming when all these earthly riches that they have gained through deception, and corruption, will be their judge. Note verse 6 where James points out that those who are being hurt, abused, and murdered, by the wealthy, do not resist. Why is that? Well, the poor and the oppressed usually do not have any other recourse other than to submit to the tyranny of the rich. Secondly, for those of us who know the Lord, we are secure in the fact that He will take care of our every need, and we know that the day of judgment is coming for these corrupt men. This is not to say that everyone who is rich is corrupt; but the sad truth is that the majority are corrupt and have gained their wealth by less than honorable means. Their wealth is covered with the filth of this world, and the truth of the matter is that many Christians have been drawn in and have become just as corrupt as the world in their pursuit to gain some of the world's riches. As we look around us and see the rich getting richer using corrupt and immoral means to obtain it, let us not lose hope. We serve a God who is neither blind nor incapable of taking care of His children under such circumstances. Let us be satisfied in whatever state we are in, be good stewards of what God allows us to have; and trust that He is true to His Word when He promises that He will take vengeance on those who mistreat and cheat others for the sake of gaining more wealth. Their day is coming soon.

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 His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).