The Perspective of the Rich and Poor

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Well, I'd like for us to continue our study in James, of course, and I'd like to pick up where we left off last
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Lord's Day in the book of James, chapter 1. So, please turn with me there to James, chapter 1. We're going to look at three verses, verses 9 through 11, and see what the
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Word of God has to say about the perspective of rich and poor. The perspective, and I like to go a little step further on that, the biblical perspective of the rich and poor.
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You know, there's a lot of different perspectives today when it comes to how people see the rich and the poor, but what does
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God have to say through the Apostle James here? What is the eternal perspective? How about that?
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The eternal perspective, the biblical perspective, is far more important than what the world says or how the world views it.
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And these three verses of Scripture today, we would be looking at and comparing other verses later on of what
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James is saying in the text before us. So, I'm reading from the New King James Translation.
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The New King James Translation, beginning at verse 9. Verse 9, hear the words of the living
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God. Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, but the rich in his humiliation, because as a flower of the field he will pass away.
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For no sooner has the sun risen with a burning heat than it withers the grass, its flower falls, and its beautiful appearance perishes.
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So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits. May God bless the reading of His Word to our hearts and our ears this morning.
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Let's seek His face and His help as we go to Him in prayer.
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Our Father in heaven, we do thank You for Your holy Word this morning. It's come to us in English, but it's been preserved down through the ages.
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And it's come to us in a sea of blood. Lord, heaven and earth will pass away, but Your Word endures forever.
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We ask now by Your Holy Spirit, Lord, give us ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.
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We are the church. Give us eyes to see and a heart to perceive its great truths this morning.
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But help us to apply it to our lives, Lord, more than anything else. We may obey
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You from a heart of love. As James says in this wonderful book,
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Lord, that You've given to us, be doers of Your Word and not just hearers.
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May we never forget, Lord, that to obey is better than sacrifice and to heed than the fat of rams.
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So, Father, may we take heed to the wisdom from Your Word this morning and in our lives so that we will live them out and not waste the opportunities given to us.
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Make our lives count. May we not waste it, Lord, on our own selves, but may we live it for Your glory and Your honor.
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And we would ask this in the name of Jesus, Your beloved Son in whom You're well pleased in.
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Amen and amen. Well, I'm going to pick up where I left off, but I was challenged last week.
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Brother Keith pointed some things out to me, so I had to really dig in, Brother Keith. Now, there are different interpreted challenges to this, so I'm not going to say my interpretation is the only way.
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And also, in a way of introduction, we all need to be good Bereans.
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And I'm not talking about Berean by name or where we just came from, or where God just whisked us off from here to there.
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But I mean that in the biblical sense of studying the Scriptures and going to the Scriptures and really applying ourselves to what the text says.
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And I really mean this because there are so many interpretations to the text.
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That's why we all need to study the Scriptures and see what does the text say and pray.
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There are tough interpretations. And what James is saying about the rich here was not an easy interpretation to come to.
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So I'm going to throw this out to you, and you're welcome to check me.
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That's what I'm saying. I'm accountable. And I think I was sharing this with Brother Keith yesterday when
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I was at one of the Bible seminaries years ago in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, by the way.
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Jimmy Sawyer Bible College. It was a wonderful professor that taught dispensational truths. He taught the book of Daniel.
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It was wonderful. Even though he was a dispensationalist. And I don't want to go into detail what dispensationalism is and those things.
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I don't want to go there. But he taught dispensational truths in the book of Daniel and the book of Revelation.
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But there's one thing I gleaned and I took home with me was he was a man, a professor of wonderful wisdom, very practical wisdom.
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He was very calm. And he wasn't one of these Pentecostals that was out there, you know, shouting his head off and stuff.
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You think that of all Pentecostals. But not all of them were like that. He was very mild -mannered. But I'll tell you this.
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This man was very bold for the Lord. His name was John G. Hall. He's probably with the Lord now because that was back when
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I was 19, 20 years old. And he was up in age, you know. So I don't know where, you know, more than likely he's with the
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Lord. But he always said this, anything that you preachers preach, you better back it up with chapter and verse.
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And he said, you better rightly divide the word of truth. And anytime he signed, he had books he wrote.
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He would sign, I believe, what is it, a study to show yourself approved unto
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God to rightly divide the word of truth. A workman needs not to be ashamed. So that was his verse.
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And he lived it out too. He also, there was times preachers would come, and they would step out of line on interpretation.
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He'd go up there with his Bible, and I saw him. He was pointing in Scripture. Chapter and verse, chapter and verse.
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So that's what's important. So check me. That's why I'm saying this. Check me to make sure what
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I'm saying is just based upon one verse of Scripture. You've got to run it through. Then you've got something stable and strong and secure.
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Run it through the verses. So you could do that as we look at this text today, because it has some interpretive challenges to it.
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And way of introduction also in verses 2 through 8, what is James saying? James is speaking to us how believers can profit from trials, right?
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That's what we've been looking for. That's what we've been looking at and for, yes, in our own lives.
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How can we profit from the trial? So all the way from verses 2 through 8, James is speaking, this is how we can profit from our trials.
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And he offers two examples here in the text before us and how the text speaks of the rich and the poor, or I should
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I say poverty and riches in those two comparisons.
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Now when James says the brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position, but the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, in verse 9 he presents to us a riddle, right?
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It's a riddle, isn't it? Notice what he says. James calls the poor man a brother. Now there's no question about that.
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We know that this poor man is a brother in the Lord. He's a believer in the Lord. There's no doubt about that.
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But the second man is simply one who is rich. He doesn't necessarily say brother, but there is some implications that he is a brother, and I'm going to give you some reasons.
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Does James intend to distinguish between the poor believer whom God blesses and the rich unbeliever whom
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God judges so that he will fade away with his riches?
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You see what I'm saying? So if the rich man is an unbeliever, then in verses 10 through 11, sarcastically, listen closely, sarcastically declares that the proud rich man can look forward to just one thing, and what is it?
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Fading away. And judgment. On the last day, he's got not much to look forward to, does he?
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But to stand before God and be judged. But we all know that we're going to all be judged one day, right?
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And we'll look at that at the judgment seat of Christ. But this is unlikely for two reasons, and I'm going to give two reasons, and you can look, this is what
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I came to the conclusion of, okay? It's not necessarily right according to, but as I studied it on some words,
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I'm going to give you two reasons I believe this is unlikely. Let me give them.
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You're welcome, like I said, to always search the scriptures yourself, whether those things be so. It is a good Berean.
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First of all is while James, one of the reasons is James does use irony on such occasions, such as chapter 2, verse 19.
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You can look at that 2, verse 19. There's some irony here. Notice what he says. You believe that there's one
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God, you do well, even the demons believe and tremble. That's irony for you, okay?
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He does not use harsh sarcasm. The second reason is, which
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I believe is a more important reason and more emphatic than the first, is the words translated pass away and fade away never refer to the final judgment of sinners elsewhere in the
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New Testament. You can look that up because the term pass away does occasionally mean to die, which you can find in Matthew 24, 31 and Luke 21, 32.
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That's the references. Or come to an end. That means coming to an end in 2
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Peter 3, 10 and Revelation 21, 1. And the words fade away.
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These are important words he uses in the text. Fade away appears in conjunction with the last day, the final day of judgment mentioned in Mark 13, 25.
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But it does not describe the judgment of mankind to the context.
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So in other words, the other verbs in James 1, 10, verses 10 through 11, the word fall can refer to death and the word perish can refer to judgment.
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You see how important it is to do your word study? Because to get the right interpretation to the text, you've got to see how does that word apply.
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And that's why sometimes it's very challenging to get the right interpretation. So we've got to get the closest and best interpretation to the verses.
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So Luke 4, that is based on what I just mentioned. The word perish and also can refer judgment is based upon Luke 4, 34 and Romans 14, 15.
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Now I had to do a little studying to get all that, folks. So you can check me out. Now but it's basically buried in the sense, this is a saying, in the flower of metaphors.
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Metaphors. So more likely James regards the rich man as a believer here.
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Even though there are many, many verses that do support the truth that it is hard for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God, right?
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It's hard. There are some that made it in. Look at Job. Job was very rich. Abraham was very rich.
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But Job lost all his riches, but you knew his heart was in his riches and possessions because he was tested.
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God allowed it to be. God took it away. And what did he do? He passed the test. He worshipped
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God. Abraham, you know that man was rich and he was known as the father of the faithful.
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More of the saints were poor in this world, but there were a few that were rich.
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Hey, look at Joseph of Arimathea. He was, I believe, a disciple of the Lord. And you know, he was the one, him and Nicodemus was the two there in the religious sect.
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And you know, Joseph of Arimathea basically gave Jesus a temporary grave. He didn't need it for...
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Jesus didn't need it for long because he rose again. But he borrowed it and he gave it.
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Isn't that wonderful? That grave, that tomb is empty today, beloved. Amen. Come on.
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Yes. The resurrection. I want you to think of this. The low position, the low position of the rich believer is the same low position of many
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Christian shares. It's the same as the... So there's no difference there whether he's poor or rich.
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We all bow to the request mercy and request forgiveness of our sin.
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The rich believer knows the ground, his level is at the foot of the cross. If this is right, then riches and poverty are indeed trials.
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And I personally believe that's what he has in mind here. Is that what James has in mind in our text?
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So the poor man is little noted in this age, but he knows God. That's what we looked at last week.
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And he is an heir of the kingdom of God. He possesses eternal life. But he can learn to take proper pride in that in the right context.
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You know, God hates pride. But in the sense that what he's saying into the context here. The rich believer, however, he knows he must take no pride in his social position.
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Okay. He is in his worldly status. He may fade away as James says.
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And that is to die in the midst of the business that he makes himself prominent. He knows he is no greater than any other man.
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And I should say, should know. He is a sinner saved by the grace alone.
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He boasts in God, not in his wealth. And that's the way the rich believer should look at it.
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I looked this up. And I always like to go to the Puritan commentators.
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So I went to one that's very well named. And you know, Matthew Henry is one of the best, I think.
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Outside of scripture interpreting scripture. But Matthew Henry is a good one to read. And I wrote this from Matthew Henry. This is what
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Matthew Henry says we can observe from the text. Quote, he says, observe one, those of low degree are to be looked upon as brother.
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We got that. Let the brother of low degree. Poverty does not destroy the relation among Christians.
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And Henry goes on to say this. Two, good Christians may be rich in the world.
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Verse 10, grace and wealth are not wholly inconsistent. And he says this,
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Abraham, the father of our faithful was rich in silver and gold. Third, both these are allowed to rejoice.
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I like what he says here. No condition of life puts us out of capacity of rejoicing in God.
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If we do not rejoice in him always, it's our own fault. Those of a low degree may rejoice if they are exalted to the rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom of God.
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And the rich may rejoice in humbling providences as they provide,
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I'm sorry, as they produce a lowly and humble disposition in mind, which is highly valuable in the sight of God.
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Matthew Henry continues, where any are made poor for righteousness sake, their very poverty is their exaltation.
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That's good. It is a honor to be dishonored for the sake of Christ.
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Philippians 129, he quotes, to you, he says, to you it is given to suffer.
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What an honor. Henry goes on to say this. I love his Puritan commentator. All who are brought low are made lowly by grace, may rejoice in the prospect of their exaltation at last in heaven.
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Fourth, he says, observe what reason the rich people leave, notwithstanding their riches to be humble and low of their own eyes, because both they and their riches are passing away.
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They are fading away. They're not going to last forever. And he goes on to say this.
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And he and his wealth with him pass away, end quote.
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Now, there you have it. That's the commentator, Matthew Henry. And I think he's pretty wise. He is very, very wise in the way he studied
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Scripture. And he always brought Scripture with Scripture, which is the greatest interpretation, by the way. Verse 11, notice what he says.
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And we're going to focus a lot on this verse here. For no sooner has the sun risen with a burning heat, than it withers the grass, its flower falls.
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Listen closely now. He's giving us a beautiful picture. It is beautiful appearance perishes.
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So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits. That is packed, beloved.
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Let's look at it. At the remainder of our time, let us continue as we compare.
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And also, let me bring out one other thing as we look at the verse. We're going to also look at the world's view of riches against and compare to the word's view of riches.
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And I believe we can profit much by looking at that in the text and looking at the comparison, right?
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What does the world say? And what does the word say? And we're going to look at that. And then we'll give conclusion.
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Well, in the context in which the text is speaking of, this is how we can get the right interpretation.
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James is presenting the other side of the important principle here. That is, he's using some wisdom and he gives an illustration.
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And he gives, just as a materially poor believer should rejoice in spiritual riches, the materially rich man should glory in his humiliation.
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That's what James is saying. Let me give you one more quote. I know I'm bad about this, but I really, when
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I study this and I get commentators and then I try to look and read all these commentators and I apply it to myself and I put my own words in here.
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But also, I like John MacArthur, what he says here on his commentary on James.
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This is what he says to this text. The idea is that a believer who is materially well off, healthy and otherwise physically blessed should rejoice when trials come.
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For they teach him, I love that, they teach him the transitory nature of those material things and their inability to give inner and lasting satisfaction or help, especially spiritual help.
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Both he and his possessions are like flowering grass and will pass away.
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And he goes on to say this. And that is exactly what
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James is driving at, end quote. So, the Puritan, there's another
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Puritan, you notice I like to quote Puritans, so forgive me. Richard Baxter says, worldly wealth is a withering thing.
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Riches are too uncertain, too inconsiderably things to make any great or just alterations in our minds.
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And let me quote, let me stop right there with my quotations and now I won't preach to you. Both Isaiah, the prophet, and that's where James goes.
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Peter quotes Isaiah. Isaiah is quoted by James and go with me very quickly here to Isaiah 40, chapter 40.
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We got to look at this. And now, by the way, have your Bibles handy. We're going to go to a lot of verses this morning. So, yes, verse 8, this is where James' mind is going.
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The Holy Spirit, most of the times when the apostles were writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they would always go to another inspired word.
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They would go to the prophets. And here in verse 8, notice what he says.
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The grass withers, the flower fades. Well, let me back up. Look at verse 6.
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The boy said, cry out, and he said, what shall I cry? What shall
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I cry out? All flesh is grass and all of its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
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It doesn't last forever here on this earth. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the
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Lord blows upon it. Verse 8, the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our
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God stands forever. Okay, the apostle Peter quotes from Isaiah in 1
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Peter 1 .24. He says, all flesh is like grass and its glory like the flower of the grass.
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The grass withers, the flower falls off and fades away. Pretty much the same thing.
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That's what he's doing. Peter quotes him. James quotes him. And by the way, you can read 1
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Peter and James. They are very parallel books, aren't they? They're very much alike in the context, because Peter is writing his book to those that are in suffering and through trials.
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And he's encouraging them. And James is writing to the Jewish dispersed that's discouraged and going through trials.
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So both of them is speaking to somewhat a very similar audience. Because men, including believers, have a natural tendency, beloved, like you and I and everybody else, to trust in material things.
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We do not need to put our trust in things that will pass away. We are considered rich in America compared to those in third world countries.
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So they would look at us and say, wow, you're very wealthy, even in a very lowly home.
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But it depends on the comparison. But at the same time, James gives special attention to the dangers of wealth.
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And we're going to look at that today. And he expands on things that are temporary, dangerous of trusting in these riches.
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So we do not need to trust, as the scripture says, uncertain riches. We always need to keep that in mind.
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Though God can bless us with these things materially, our heart does not to be in trusting in them because they fade away.
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Don't make an idol out of it. Don't let these things, whether they be houses and cars and jets or whatever it may be, we don't need to put our trust in these things.
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He says this, for the sun rises with a scorching wind. It withers the grass.
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Its flower falls off. The beauty of its appearance is destroyed. So too, the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away.
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So he's not saying the rich man here is going to die and go to hell, right? Even though it is hard for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven.
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Jesus said that. It's very impossible unless God really gets a hold of them.
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Why? Because they trust uncertain riches. That becomes their idol. And it's much easier for a poor person to see and rely on God because he's not trusting in uncertain riches.
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So this is the nature that we're speaking of, the picture he's given. This is the picture of the flowers and the grasses of Israel which flourish in February, dry up by May.
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That's what he's referring to. In ancient Israel, there were grasses that sprouted out of the ground in the morning time.
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And by the afternoon, it would wither away under the intense heat of the summer sun.
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And James compares the instability of wealth to the type of the grass in which
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Jesus speaks of. And I believe that's where James is thinking of. He goes, his mind is going back to the
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Sermon on the Mount. What did Jesus say in chapter 6 verse 30? Jesus was talking about, don't worry about these things and don't trust in them.
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You trust God. That's what he's saying. He says, now if God so closed the grass of the field which today is and tomorrow is what?
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Thrown into the oven, burned up. Would he not much more close you?
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Oh, you have little faith. Isn't that wonderful? Now, you know, I love the much more.
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Jesus always put an emphasis, much more. He says, you see these things, it's going to fade away.
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He said, put your... Jesus is basically saying you trust God. So now, let's look at the comparison.
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Here's a few comparisons. What does the world have to say about riches? Well, I'm going to be bringing out some things that you have heard and it's no old thing you haven't heard from the world.
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The world's view of riches and then we're going to look at the application later on in personal, our lives.
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But first, let's look at this. What does the world have to say? Number one, here's my first one. They say this, money brings freedom.
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Haven't you heard that? The more money you get, the more freedom you get. Well, you and I know that's a lie because money does not bring freedom.
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Against what the Word of God actually, it brings bondage. You become a slave to it.
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Let's look at what the chapter and verses have to say about this. Turn with me very quickly to Timothy, 1
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Timothy chapter 6. Now, he's speaking to believers in 1
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Timothy chapter 6 and I'd like to read verses 3 through 10.
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Basically, what he's given is the desire for money can be enslaving and it leads to destruction and only
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Jesus Christ brings true freedom. Look at this. Let's start with verse 3.
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If anyone teaches otherwise, and notice where he goes. This is Paul, does not consent to the wholesome words, even the words of our
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Lord Jesus Christ. That's the foundation right there, the words of Christ. You got to remember that all the epistles and the letters was commentary on Jesus' teachings.
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And to the doctrine, which is according to godliness. Now, notice what he says.
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He is proud knowing nothing, wow, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words from which come envy, strife, revilings, evil suspicions, useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds, destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.
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There you go. There's some people, false teachers in the prosperity gospel. They believe, in other words, that the more you gain is somehow something related to godliness.
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And then Paul sets this straight. From such, withdraw yourself. Beloved, I stood on this verse when
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I pulled out of the charismatic movement right here. Because of the dangers of the prosperity gospel in which they taught and they tried to justify it in the name of God.
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And I took this literally. I withdrew myself. Then he says this. Now, godliness with contentment is great gain.
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Now, he's getting it right. So, let me stop right there before we go to the rest of these verses.
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What is he saying about this? About the key word here to look at is contentment.
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Godliness with contentment is great gain. That's a verse we ought to memorize.
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The Greek word of contentment means self -sufficiency. In other words, it was used by the
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Stoic philosophers to describe a person who was unflappable and unmovable by external circumstances.
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Now, Christians are to be satisfied according to the scriptures and sufficient and not to seek for more than what
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God had already given them. So, God himself is the very source of contentment.
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You know, if you go on and look at it and he says this. For we brought nothing into this world and is certain we can carry nothing out.
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Why doesn't he get down to just Christianity 101 here? Verse 8. And having food and clothing, food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
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But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and prediction.
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And then he says this. Money is not the root of all evil, folks. It's the love of it. You see, it's where a person's heart is.
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And Jesus taught about this very much. He says where your heart is, your treasure be also. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil for which some have strayed from the faith and their greediness.
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This can pull a person away from the faith, beloved. And it's greediness and pierce themselves through with many sorrows.
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Oh my. Well, that right there is a sermon in and of itself. What does other scripture say about it?
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Exodus 20, verse 17. This is the 10th commandment. God spoke this and wrote it with his own finger on Mount Sinai.
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It is perpetual. It is everlasting. Verse 17 of chapter 20,
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Exodus. This is the law. You shall not covet your neighbor's house. Notice what he says.
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You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey.
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And in case he missed anything, he says, nor anything that is your neighbor's. Wow. So we're not to keep up with the
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Joneses, right? We're not to covet. And if Jones over here, Mr. Jones has got a super nice Cadillac, it doesn't mean
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I want a Cadillac too. We should be content if God gives us a Volkswagen. Well, that's a small illustration, but I don't know if it holds any water.
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But the thoughts here, and also think of this. He's not only talking about the externalism, he's talking about the thoughts and the desires of the heart, beloved, do not escape attention.
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And that's where he wants us to go. A strong longing to have another what has is wrong and sinful.
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And keep in mind here that the 10th commandment suggests that none of these previous nine commandments are only external acts of relation to internal thoughts.
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What do I mean by that? Look at what Jesus says in Matthew 15 verse 19. You don't have to go there, but this is a good verse.
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Jesus says, for out of the heart proceeds evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.
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Notice that. Out of the heart. Man's heart is not good. Man's heart is evil.
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His thoughts are evil continually. His righteousness is as filthy rags.
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There's nothing good about the heart of man. He is depraved in every way. And that's why we need to hear what the law of God says about it, right?
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So we can know what to do about it. Turn quickly to Romans chapter 7. Now, some of you know where I'm going with this.
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Why do we need God's law to tell us this? You notice that's the way the world is today?
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The world says, well, I'm a good person. Who tells me that I'm bad?
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That person over there is really good. And they're looking at the morality, supposedly, externally, but internally we know better, don't we?
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Because man's nature is corrupt. His heart is evil continually.
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It is desperately wicked, as the prophet says. What does Paul say about this?
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Notice in verse, I like to read a few verses here. Verse 7. Starting with verse 7. What shall we say then?
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Is the law sin? God forbid. Certainly not. On the contrary, he says.
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I would not have known sin except through the law. You see?
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The law exposes our sin. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said you shall not covet.
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Then he says this, and I love this. But sin, taken opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire.
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For apart from the law, sin was dead. And see, that's why he says later on.
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I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.
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In other words, what he's saying is, this is the way that God convicted me of my sin of coveting.
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When God says thou shalt not covet, God is the one that has the ultimate word and the authority over the subject.
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Because God knows the heart of man. Okay? And then when the law comes and says thou shalt not,
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I don't know about you, you read the Ten Commandments and I get convicted every time because I know I've broken all of them.
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And if some people dare say I haven't broken them, they're a liar. We've broken them somewhere. Yes, sir.
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Everybody has. Well, that's what Paul says. You know, see, the sin taken opportunity by the commandment.
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Well, back to 1 Timothy chapter 6. Let's go back there real quick. I got a few more verses to point out, and then we're going to head on.
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Look at verse 8. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. Let me jump a little bit.
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Notice here he points out the negative. Well, before I get there, let's look at the food and clothing that have content.
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The basic necessities. The basic necessities. Ben's not in here, but we like to call it the bare necessities.
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We love that song from the Jungle Book, the bare necessities. So the bare necessities of life will come to you.
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Pretty much, I'll have to make what the Christian should be content for, food and clothing. Paul does not condemn having possessions, does he?
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He doesn't. No, he doesn't, as long as God graciously provides it. He does, however, condemn a what?
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Self -indulgent heart and desire for money, which results in discontentment.
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And that's what he condemns. Matthew 6 .33, Jesus said it. Seek first.
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Get a hold of this. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
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All these other things will be added unto you. What are the other things? He's talking about food and clothing, the needs. God knows you need these things, and He'll take care of you.
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So Paul then gives young Timothy good advice here, doesn't he? He says, first of all, you've got to flee from what is negative.
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You flee from it. Verse 11, look. But you, old man of God. Who's the man of God? Timothy.
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This is like, I see that he's mentoring young Timothy. He says, I love this,
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Brother Michael. He says, you old man of God, you flee from these things. You run from it.
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Run fast from it. And then he says, and then he gives the positive. He just doesn't leave it with a negative.
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He gives something positive. Then you run after it. You pursue righteousness, and you pursue godliness, and you pursue faith, love, and patience, and gentleness.
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And then he says, fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold of eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed a good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
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Well, what's another lie that the world gives? Here's a big one. Money brings not only freedom. That's a lie.
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Don't we know this? But it also brings security. How many of you have heard financial security?
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Get a big pile in your bank. What about what God says to that fool that puts everything up in the barn?
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God calls him a fool, doesn't he? What if your soul is required of you this very night? Then it's over with.
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And what good is those riches going to be? Jesus referred to this quite often, didn't he? Financial security.
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Okay, let's look at the contrast. The world says, get financial security.
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The word of God says, wealth is very insecure. In other words, you can't rely on it.
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It's going to pass away, and you can't rely on it. As James says, it will quickly pass away.
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Real security is only found in knowing and trusting in God. Let me give you a wonderful verse. What I just said.
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You notice what I just said? Real security is only found in knowing and trusting
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God. Back it up with chapter and verse. I got it, brothers and sisters.
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Go with me. Jeremiah chapter 9. Don't you love chapter and verse?
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Jeremiah chapter 9. This is a good verse to memorize, or two verses to memorize.
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I love this verse. Chapter 9, verse 23 and 24. 23, 24.
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Thus says the Lord. Now, right there is good enough for me, beloved. When God says it, the argument's over with, like Sproul says.
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Thus says the Lord. Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom. Let not the mighty man glory in his might.
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Nor let the rich man glory in his riches. Oh, I love this. But let him who glories glory in this.
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That he understands and knows me. That I am the
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Lord. Exercise in loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
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And listen to what he says. For in these I delight, says the Lord. Well, there you go. There's a great verse that backs up that the only security we have is knowing and trusting in God and God alone.
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Because everything else is going to pass away, beloved. Well, what's the third lie? Here's another lie from the world.
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Oh, money matters, Pastor David. Oh, it does? Really? It's going to pass away?
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It really matters, doesn't it? I almost want to say, when people say something like that to me, what about in Luke chapter 16 about that rich man that died?
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And he found himself in hell. And you know, there was a poor man.
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Now, I read a sermon by Tozer on this. The rich man did not go to hell because he was rich.
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And the poor man did not go into Abraham's bosom because he was poor. It was a condition of the heart.
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You see what I'm saying? But at the same time, Jesus uses a parable here.
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It's known as a parable. Some people believe it could have been based on the true story. But what is he saying?
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A rich man found himself in hell. And in hell, he lived. In other words, a lot of rich people go to hell.
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You know why? Because they trust in certain riches. Why are there so many warnings in Scripture about not to trust in these things?
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How about a person with a Lamborghini? Well, the person with that Lamborghini and old pickup trucks going to both go to the same grave.
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You see what I'm saying? It's all going to pass away. In comparison to eternity, what is the
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Word of God saying? Only Christ in the kingdom of God is what really matters. Matthew 6 .33,
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I've already quoted. Go with me to Philippians chapter 3. Philippians chapter 3,
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Paul talks about this too. Philippians 3, look at verses 7 through 10.
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What things were gained to me, these I've counted loss for Christ. He's talking about gaining and losing here, folks.
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Indeed, also I count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my
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Lord, for whom I've suffered the loss of all things. And count them as rubbish that I may gain
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Christ. Now, look, he's talking about losing and gaining. What matters? And notice what he says in verse 9.
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And be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.
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And then here's his longing, his passion, his heart's desire, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being conformed to his death.
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And listen, he goes on to say this. For by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead, not that I've already attained.
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In other words, I haven't arrived. Well, I've already been perfected. But I press on that I may lay hold of that which
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Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. I love that. And then he says this.
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Brethren, I do not count myself that I have apprehended. But one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
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I press toward the goal of the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. And then he goes, if he goes on to say, therefore let us, let us, he includes himself.
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As many as are mature having this mind, and if anything you think otherwise,
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God will reveal even this to you. Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule.
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Let us of the same mind, be of the same mind. Now, that's pretty much what Paul says.
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So money doesn't matter, right? Knowing Christ matters. How about this one here? You hear this one all the time.
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And I want to kind of keep this in a little shorter because my time is clicking by here. Money is power.
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Oh, really? Money is power. I've heard that a lot. Well, in comparison to the word of God, I'd rather have the power of the
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Holy Spirit upon me. And have all the money in the world. Jesus said, you shall receive power after that when the
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Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you shall be witnesses unto me, he said, in Jerusalem and all
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Judea and Asmarion to the uttermost parts of the earth. I'll leave it at that. How about the fifth line?
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The world says money establishes not only your net worth, but your worth as a person.
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Really? Really? Well, that's not what the word of God says.
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God says, actually, it's diametrically opposed to what the world says. The word of God says your worth is based on God, what
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God says, not what the world says and what your bank account says. Right. I love what
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Ephesians chapter 1 says. Go there. Ephesians 1. How about this?
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Blessed be the God and Father, verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father.
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You're talking about your position, not your bank account. Your God and Father, our
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Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing. We're in the heavenly places in Christ.
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Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.
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And then you can go on and on of all the blessings that were blessed in Jesus Christ. That's your position in Christ.
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It doesn't depend on my bank account. The world tells lies. And they take it from the prince and the power of the air because of the father of lies.
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We know better. What about another lie here? Here's the sixth one. The world says money makes you successful.
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The money makes you successful. That's not what the word of God says. I know Brother Keith right now is studying in Joshua.
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I love the way Joshua starts off his book. And verse 8 is a wonderful promise, beloved.
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Notice what he says. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate it in day and night, that you may observe, in other words, be obedient, to do according to all that is written there in it, for then, then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
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That's the word of God. Well, moving right along. Here's another one. I jotted down.
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Another lie. The world says money gives you options. Options.
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Well, the word of God says different. God is the one who ultimately gives you options because he's sovereign.
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Ephesians 3 .20. Now to him who's able to do exceedingly abundantly above all what you ask or think, according to the power that works in us.
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How about another lie? I don't like all these lies, do you?
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But I'm telling you, that's what the world says, and you've heard it. But I'll tell you what I do like. I like the truth.
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The world says money brings happiness. Now there's a big one. Really.
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Who can think of some people that was extremely happy that was filthy rich?
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I think of the late Howard Hughes. There you go. Look at his life. That was a miserable old man.
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And he was one of the richest men in the whole world in his day. And he died like an old hermit.
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Really miserable. What about Steve Jobs? The man that was behind the making of Apple.
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Look at his biography sometime. He was a tyrant and a dictator and a miserable man. And he went into eternity without God.
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Here's another one. Who's ever heard of J. Paul Getty? At one time.
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If you ever look at the biography of J. Paul Getty, all the Gettys were some of the richest people in the whole world.
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And I was watching a biography of him years ago when they had that show out.
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And even their family, and they confessed themselves and said, money has not been a blessing, it has been a curse to us.
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You see? And these were some of the richest people in the world. Does it bring real happiness? No, it doesn't.
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Word of God is the only source of eternal joy. Jesus Christ is the only one that can bring true happiness and joy into the heart.
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Happiness that money brings, happiness is only short -lived.
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And in the long run, money can actually produce many sorrows. Many sorrows. And that's what
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James actually says in chapter 5. And we'll read that later on. Let me go to a couple more lies, and then
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I'd like to bring out some application. Number nine, money is your reward.
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Well, we know that's a lie, don't we? Save it, spend it on yourself, get all you can get, get all the gusto you can get.
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That's a lie. But according to the Word of God, as a believer, the more you give, the more you're blessed.
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Press down, shaken. Jesus promised it. And notice what
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Jesus said in Matthew chapter 6. Go to chapter 6. Chapter 6 of Matthew.
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Don't you love the Sermon on the Mount? There is so much. You just study chapter 5, 6, and 7.
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It'll take you a long, long way of how to live as a Christian. Look at verses 19 through 24.
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19 through 24 of chapter 6. Don't you love this?
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Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
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This is Jesus. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, where thieves do not break through and steal.
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In other words, it's secure there. No one's going to get it. It's in a good bank account. And then
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Jesus said in verse 21, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. I could stop right there, beloved, and preach a whole sermon from that one text.
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What do you love most? What do you love most? What is your real treasure?
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Is it things, or is it God? Give me Jesus. You could take this world, but give me
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Jesus. And he goes on to preach and teach about the things that really matter, the
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Lord Jesus Christ. Now, I've got to stop there, and I'll go a little bit further. One more. By the way, if you're writing this down, 2
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Corinthians 9, chapter 9, verses 6 through 11 is another great verse of Scripture about giving cheerfully, and how
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God blesses those that give, and give, and give. You cannot out -give. You love to give because love is giving.
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The 10th is the world says money is your possession, spend it on whatever you want to. Well, God says in His Word, in Psalm 24, 1, that's not the way it happens.
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The earth is the Lord's and all is fullness. It's not really mine, right? It's not really yours. It's on loan to us.
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The world and all those who dwell in it. So, all that we have is
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God's and belongs to Him. And to do as He pleases, we merely are stewards of what we have.
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Ultimately, 2 Corinthians 5, 9 through 10, the Word of God says this, we're stewards and we're going to give an account one day into how we handled it.
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This makes me tremble, beloved, but I want to tell you the truth. Every single one of us in this little room and everyone that has lived on this earth,
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God's people and not God's, the righteous and the unrighteous, will give an account before the judgment. Especially us.
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And some people say, well, there's no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus. True, there is no condemnation, but we still, according to the
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Word of God, are going to be judged according to our works in Jesus Christ.
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Some people try to play hopscotch on these verses, but you can't hopscotch it.
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Therefore, he says, we make it our aim, listen to what Paul says, whether present or absent, to be well -pleasing to Him.
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First of all, be well -pleasing to Him. That's why we're to be wise. Verse 10, for we, notice what
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Paul says, we, including himself, must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
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Then he says this, and this is what really should shake us and wake us, knowing therefore the terror of the
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Lord, we persuade men. That should motivate us because there is going to be a judgment one day.
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You see, Paul doesn't skip that. And what he's saying, we're going to all give an account, the way we lived, right?
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What we've done with it. What did we do with our time? What did we do with our gifts?
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What did we do with our talents? Did we bury it? Or did we do something? Did we live it unto God? Because all is the
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Lord's. And that's the way a Christian looks at it, right? He said, God has given this to me and has blessed me with it.
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And I need to spend it wisely. Well, let me try to, excuse me, bring this to a closure.
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Proverbs 27, 24 says this, love the
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Proverbs. Hey man, I know brother Keith does. Proverbs are great. He's got a great devotional book too.
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I'm going to have to get ahold of that one day. So it's the Proverbs 27, 24, not steal it brother.
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I wouldn't do that to you. I'd like to get it on loan one day.
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But Proverbs 27, 24 says this, and I want to bring a conclusion to this. For riches are not forever.
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You hear that? This is the wisest man who ever lived. And he was the richest man that ever lived.
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And he said to us, riches are not forever, nor does a crown endure to all generations.
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Now, if Jesus can say, if God so close the grass of the field, which is today is, and tomorrow stones it up, and will not much more clothe you,
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O ye of little faith, shall not the blasting of God's judgment and hate and wind of his fury of death and the judgment of God will burn everything to a crisp one day?
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Yes, he will. And James says, so the rich man should rejoice, listen to this, should rejoice in his troubles because his troubles divorced him from a dependency on his resources and all of his resources will perish away.
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That's what James is saying. You see, back to the text. We've come a full circle.
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So James is saying that the rich man in the text, now in conclusion, what about us?
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What about you? What about me now? How does all this apply to me? Well, first we learn from the scriptures and hear before us what kind of attitude that we should have when we all face our trials, beloved, whether we be poor or rich.
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First is always with joy, always with joy, and to have a humble spirit that does not trust in possessions, but in God and his provisions.
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That's what James is saying. Clearly, what does trials teach us? Trials and life are here profitable for us that while we need wisdom from God not to waste our opportunity, like I said last week, that God gives us in his providence that they are to work out everything for our good, right?
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Romans 8, 28. So therefore we need to persevere in trials and the mark of a true
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Christian believer is that the mark of a believer in Jesus so as we are going through trials, the
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Lord is stripping us away. He's weaning us from away from the things of the world.
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That we would depend on God. That's what he wants. I'm telling you, very early in my stage, right before I came to Jesus Christ, I adorned, you used that word this morning, that's a wonderful,
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I adorned in my heart and loved in my heart a muscle car. Until the day
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I was 16, I was showing off and I flipped it on a narrow road, which I was an idiot doing this, 130 miles per hour and guess what?
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It was totaled and it was gone. I could have lost my life, but God spared me.
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And if you saw the car, you think, wow, it was God that brought you out of it and it was God. And you know something?
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I thank God that God took that muscle car away from me. Even though I kind of like to steal muscle cars, but I don't love them.
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But it's like God says, that was your idol and I'm going to strip you. Brother Keith was sharing his testimony yesterday and Keith knows and Michael, you know and everybody in this room knows, you know
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Jesus, God knows how to strip those idols away from you. He knows how to tear it away from you. Well, trials are for two purposes.
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We may be better acquainted with our wickedness and our hearts. That's one and that we may be better acquainted with our savior.
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I think it has those two purposes to it. So right there, it's so true. It sums up the purposes of trials.
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There was a Cardinal Richelay, I think that's how you pronounce his name, who died in 1642.
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He once said this, I quote him, a virtuous and well -disposed person is like good metal.
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The more he is fired, the more he is refined and the more he's opposed, the more he's approved.
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Wrongs may be well, try him and touch him but they cannot imprint on him any false stamp.
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That is good. Another godly saint by the name in the 17th century by the name of Joseph Church said this,
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Sufferings are but a little chips off the cross of Christ. I love that.
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They are little chips off the cross of Christ. Thomas A Kempis said you carry the cross and in the end the cross will carry you.
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The Puritan Thomas Watson, you know Watson, he can nail it. Whatever trouble in this life you face, the child of God meet with him.
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It is all the hell he shall ever have. Now I like to see it like that because it's just for a period in the season.
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We can have all the troubles in this world. It's nothing compared to one day in hell, beloved. Whatever the difficulty we have in this life is all the hell we will ever know, beloved.
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For we are promised a glorious heaven with Jesus Christ sealed with the precious blood and guaranteed.
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Another old Puritan writer expressed an attitude in the midst of trials and so desirably for the child of God and I'll share with this in closing right here.
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And this is what he said, quote, Here is a notable difference between the godly and the wicked.
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It comes in the sufferings of the trials. The wicked are more the
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Lord that lays his hand on them the more they murmur and rebel against God.
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The faithful though, when they feel themselves overwhelmed with sin and turmoil with the conflicts of Satan and when they feel the anger of God offended with them, they fling themselves into the arms of God's mercy and they catch hold of the hand of God that is buffeting them and they kiss it.
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That's the difference. That's the difference. May we be like godly
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Job. When we're attested that we will bless God. Job lost all his riches.
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He lost all his property. He lost all of his children. He lost all of his health.
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He lost his wealth. He lost everything. And what did Job do? You know the story.
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He shaved his head. He fell to the ground and he kissed the hand that took everything from him.
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Don't you love that? And what did he say? Naked I came into this from my mother's womb and naked shall
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I return to thee. Fearless. The Lord gave and the
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Lord has taken away. And then he said this. Blessed, blessed.
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He's worshipping. Be the name of the Lord. Blessed be the name of the
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Lord. He passed the test. So when the time comes, may we look unto Jesus.
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And since we're surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses like Job and all the rest of them, let us lay aside every weight and sin which so easily ensnares us and run with endurance the race that is set before us looking unto
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Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Let's pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank you for this time that you've given unto us.
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Even though there's times that your hand could be very heavy upon us and you allow these trials in our lives and we don't understand.
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Father, I would pray as the old Puritans say, may we have the attitude and kiss that very hand like Job did to the one who gave it and the one who can take it away.
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Our true love and our true desire should be the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone and no one else. Lord, help this be.
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Tear away every idol from our heart, possessions. Lord, help these things not be our true treasure.
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May Jesus be our true treasure, the pearl of great price as Brother Keith prayed this morning.
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These trials humble us. They wean us from the world. They call us to eternal hope. Show us,
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O Lord, that we're truly, how we were truly loved to the end. Teach us,
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O Lord, to trust you and you alone and build character in us. Lord, again, may we ask for wisdom in trials that we would not waste no opportunities.
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Teach us the number of days that we may apply our hearts to wisdom. For we ask this in Jesus' name.