(Prov 23:4,5 GNB) Be wise enough not to wear yourself out trying to get rich. Your money can be gone in a flash, as if it had grown wings and flown away like an eagle.
This morning we continue our series, “Unlocking the Power of Proverbs – Walking in the Wisdom of God.” This is the 8th Saying: an Admonition on Financial Ambition. The dangers of greed are well documented in Proverbs (see chapters 11 and 25 on generosity and chapters 19 and 26 on wealth). The issue is never whether or not you have money. Solomon was the richest man in the world at the time of this writing, so having money is definitely not the issue. The issue is ‘money having you,’ especially to the point where it becomes your underlying motivation in life. I personally know several people, a few in my family, who are completely motivated by the accumulation of money. Some have ruined their marriages, relationships with their children, and even their health over the pursuit of the ‘almighty dollar.’
Solomon teaches us that we should be wise enough not to wear ourselves out attempting to get rich. Here is the Pina version: “You have to be a fool to burn yourself out chasing a buck.” Why is it foolish to labor to the point of fatigue just for money? Solomon goes on to explain that they money that you sacrificed so much to get can actually be gone in a flash. Now you see it, now you don’t. You can always get more money, but things like your character, reputation, health, and relationships are more valuable than money, so we must value them accordingly and give them the respect and consideration they deserve.
The late Dr. J. Vernon McGhee said the following when commenting on this passage: “The whole thought here is this: There is nothing wrong in being rich. There is nothing wrong in working to be rich. However, don’t make that the goal in life. Wealth should not be the very object of our hearts. Some men have a lust, a thirst, a covetousness to make the almighty dollar, and the dollar becomes their god. A child of God is not to do that. A wealthy man told me, “I do not make money for the sake of money. make money for what it can do. At first I made money for what it could do for me. Now I make money for what it can do for God.” There is nothing wrong in a man becoming wealthy. The wrong comes when there is the overweening desire of the heart for money. That is covetousness; actually it is modern idolatry. In the United States we do not find people bowing down to worship idols. However, we do find people busily engaging their whole lives in the worship of the almighty dollar.”
So what does this mean to you today? Two things:
1. Keep the proper perspective: Money makes an excellent servant, but a poor master. There is nothing wrong with having money, but it should not be your #1 pursuit. Pursue God, don’t pursue things, and before you know it, things will be pursuing you (see Mat 6:33).
2. It’s not worth it: The endless pursuit of money often causes people to wind up with money, but only to realize that they have lost everything else along the way. Many lose their families, their integrity, and even their health in a tireless pursuit of money. Jesus once asked the question, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” (Mat 16:26). What good will the money be if you lose everything that matters to get it?
3. You can still be blessed: What God has to offer is bigger than money and the good news is that it does not exclude it. If you live your life God’s way you can still be strong and stable financially, but more importantly, you will also have a healthy body, a sound mind, a close-knit family and a better understanding of true success in life.
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for a healthy understanding of money. I can have money, because money does not have me. I know money makes an excellent servant, but a poor master, and I declare that money is not my master, You are! I seek You with my whole heart and I experience the success in life You desire for me to experience, so that I can make a difference everywhere You send me. I pursue You, not things, and as I do I realize that things wind up pursuing me! With the proper motivation I get to experience Your best without getting frustrated, disillusioned, or burned out! I declare this by faith! In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
