Part 13 “Honoring God With Our Wealth”
James 5:1-6
Intro – welcome back to our series in the book of James… …please open your Bibles to the beginning of chapter 5…
How many of you remember the “Galloping Gourmet”?
-a very popular TV cooking show in the early 70’s featuring Graham Kerr (picture)
-epitome of excess and self-indulgence
-glass of wine…rich, fatty foods, showcasing the eating lifestyle of the rich and famous
-after years of eating this way his wife Treena had a stroke and a heart attack and developed diabetes
-a Christian came to their door, saw Treena’s condition and offered to pray for her…had her whole church pray for her
-her condition improved to the point of no longer needing to be on medication…
-both she and Graham became followers of Jesus Christ
-they now do speaking tours and promote a ministry called “Double Benefit” where people look at what and how much they eat, determine what excess they can reduce, calculate the dollar difference in their food budget and give that money to feed hungry people in developing countries…
Graham Kerr uses the phrase “out-dulgence”…as opposed to “indulgence”…that describes the change in their life that their faith in Christ has brought about…
Graeme Kerr’s life is a good illustration of where our text in James 5 is going today…as we look at a strong warning against the self-indulgent, ungodly use of wealth…
Prayer…read…
The Problem
-the problem that James is addressing so strongly here is the misuse of wealth by a group of people we can call the “wicked wealthy”…
…not only were these people wickedly wealthy, but they were also wicked with the way they gained their wealth and used their wealth…
-James is speaking out against ungodly wealth management…
Last week, at the end of ch. 4 we saw how James spoke out against godless plan making…now in ch 5 he speaking out against those who gain and use their wealth greedily and sinfully and selfishly…against those who use their wealth with no regard for what God has to say about it and what He wants them to do with it…
Is It OK to be Wealthy?
Now for clarity’s sake, let me state this: there is nothing wrong with being wealthy. The Bible does not condemn wealth or the wealthy, but rather the misuse of wealth and the love of money. Everyone of us here possesses wealth and material goods to one degree or another…we all know that we who live in North America are “wealthy” compared to the majority in today’s world…
Moses reminded the Israelites as they prepared to enter the Promise Land…Dt 8:18 “But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth…”
Now if you’re newer to me and what I teach and what we believe here at Northgate, we are not a prosperity gospel church…teaching that God wants you rich and healthy as a sign of His blessing…that’s not what the Bible teaches…
Phil 4:12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
-our true riches / identity / value are found in Jesus Christ…gospel of grace…so wealthy or poor, you’re welcome here…we love and accept you…so does God…
Point I am making is that wealth in itself is not evil. What is evil is to misuse one’s wealth for selfish or evil purposes. What is evil is to love money. “The love of money” Paul says in 1 Tim. 6:10 “is a root of all kinds of evil…”
How Wealth Becomes Wicked
James points out what is wrong with wicked wealth… He gives four reasons how wealth can become wicked:
Wealth becomes wicked when it is:
1. greedily hoarded vv.2-3
-people hoard things for different reasons…many because of believing some kind of lie, eg that they won’t have enough…that they’ll need that item some day…that these things give them security…that God can’t or won’t provide…or they’re just plain greedy…
-I grew up in a welfare home…where we just managed to make ends meet…rented a run down house…so even I have to watch out for a “scarcity mentality”…fear that there isn’t going to be enough…maybe you can relate to this…
Jesus had some strong words to say about greedily hoarding our wealth…
Mt 6:19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.”
eg. first year Bible college hamburger event…
2. unjustly gained v.4
-this wicked wealth that James is addressing was gained by withholding the wages of day laborers…which is expressly prohibited in the OT law…(Lev. 19:13, Dt 24:14-15)
-God isn’t going to stand by and watch rich employers take advantage of their poor workers by not paying them fairly and justly…God will judge people for that…that’s why James says “the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty”.
3. selfishly spent v.5 read…
-can’t get more clear than that…
Everyone of us knows of people who are filthy rich and completely unhappy and unsatisfied…eg Howard Hughes
4. murderously destructive v.6
-these wicked wealthy in James’ day didn’t care about the pain and destruction they caused poor, innocent people…James says their callous attitude is tantamount to condemning and murdering them…
Now you know why James is speaking out so forcefully against the wicked use of wealth…
Honoring God With Our Wealth
So, turning this right around, what does the proper use of wealth look like? According to the Bible, how can we honor God with our wealth? How can wealth be used in a godly way?
1 Tim. 6:17-19
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.
Five Ways to Honor God with our Wealth
1. repent of pride and embrace humble gratitude v.17
-a proud, entitled attitude says “I’ve worked hard for my money so it’s mine to do what I want with it”…so opposite to what the Bible teaches…
-there’s nothing better than being genuinely grateful for what you have, whether it’s a little or a lot…believing that God owes us nothing…nor does life…everything we have is a gift from God on temporary loan to us to use for His glory…
We are called to simply be good managers/stewards of what He has given us.
Randy Alcorn has said, “we should be thinking like investment managers, always looking for the best place to invest the Owners money…”
2. keep your hope (security, treasure, love) in God and not in wealth v.17
Mt. 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
-you’ve heard the saying, “Show me your cheque book…bank statement, and I’ll show you where your heart is, what you really treasure…what you love…”
-that’s why we stay close to God…keep from drifting…
3. believe in God’s ability to faithfully provide v.17
Phil 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
-believe it enough to act on it…instead of fear, or looking to other sources to provide, be your security, hope, future, etc.
4. serve others with your wealth v.18
“…command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share…”
-giving is the best antidote to materialism…
Someone has said, “God prospers me not to raise my standard of living, but to raise my standard of giving.”
5. invest in our heavenly future v.19
-have a heavenly perspective on wealth, things…
Mt. 6:20 “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
Again Randy Alcorn says, “if your treasure is only on earth, then heaven isn’t all that promising because each day brings you closer to losing your treasure.
But, the money God entrusts to us here on earth is eternal investment capital. Every day is an opportunity to buy up more shares in His kingdom.”
A Challenging Question
Would you be willing to ask God an honest question? how am I doing in my financial life? as a steward of the resources You have given me? what am I doing financially that honors You? what needs to change?
-if married, have a discussion with your spouse, family
…together ask the Lord what He wants you to do with the wealth He has provided you… pray about this as a married couple? family?
Conclusion
-best way to be delivered from the ungodly use of money is…to take a fresh look at Jesus Christ again…to keep your eyes and heart and mind focused on Jesus…
2 Cor 8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.
…Christ has made us spiritually rich…loved, forgiven, bought us with the price of His own blood…we now belong to Him, adopted into His family…bound for heaven…all because of His love and grace…
Jesus did all that for us by His death on the cross…
And as we take a fresh look at what Jesus did…then we develop “out-dulgence” instead of “indulgence”…
…we start to loosen the white knuckle grip some of us have on money…start to loose our fear…start to believe that a God like this is really able to take care of us and provide for us…and that will change the way we think about money and what we do with it…
Let’s spend some time at the cross of Jesus Christ…
Prayer…Worship…