BIBILICAL TRUTH ABOUT WEALTH AND WISDOM
One of the ways a wise man can be
identified is by the way he handles money. Wisdom is not discerned by the
amount of money one possesses, but by one’s attitude toward money, by the way
it is acquired, and by the way it is used. This message will explore the
attitude of the wise toward wealth. The next will probe the ways in which money
should be obtained and used.
The fact that I am beginning to
explore the character of the wise with a study on money should not be
understood to suggest that I believe money is the most important subject we
could study--it is not. In Luke
16:10 Jesus referred to money as a “very little thing.”
There are several reasons, however, why such a
little thing as money should be of importance to us. First of all, little as it
may be, it is a major problem in most American homes, Christian or
non-Christian. We, like our government, have become accustomed to operating on
a deficit budget system, living more on credit than on cash.
The result has been the need for one or both
spouses to work more than is wise. Christian giving is also apparently
declining. When something which is a “little thing” becomes “big” in our lives,
it is a problem of priorities. Furthermore, Jesus taught that if we are not
faithful in this “little thing” of money, we will not be faithful in those
matters of greater import (cf. Luke 16:10).
Let us seek to be wise in the way we use
money. Let us seek the wisdom of God in this area as we look once more into the
Book of Proverbs.
What
is Better Than Wealth?
Some seem to think that nothing is
better than riches, but according to Proverbs there are many things more
important than money. Let us briefly consider some of these better things.
1. HONESTY AND KINDNESS ARE BETTER
THAN PROSPERITY. In Proverbs we are told that it is more important to be
truthful than to be rich.
What is desirable in a man is his
kindness, And it is better to be a poor man than a liar (Prov. 19:22).
The rich do not necessarily find it
essential to speak gently to others. According to Proverbs 18:23 the rich man “answers roughly.”
The Ebenezer Scrooges of life do not deal kindly with others, but Proverbs
implies that kindness is more important than riches. Very specifically, we are
told in 19:22 that it is better to be an honest man than a wealthy one, if one
must choose between the two.
2. A GOOD REPUTATION IS BETTER THAN
WEALTH.
A good name is to be more desired
than great riches, AAFavor is better than silver and gold (22:1).
3. GODLY CHARACTER IS MORE IMPORTANT
THAN MONEY.
It is more important to be righteous than to be rich. A man’s
integrity is more important than his affluence.
Better is a poor man who walks in
his integrity Than he who is perverse in speech and is a fool (19:1).
Better is a little with
righteousness Than great income with injustice (16:8).
4. A PEACEFUL HOME, FILLED WITH
LOVE, IS BETTER THAN A BANK ACCOUNT FILLED WITH MONEY.
Countless homes are
sacrificed to the attempt to earn money, often on the pretext of providing for
the family. Proverbs instructs us that it is much more important to have a home
filled with love and harmony than one that has only money.
Better is a dish of vegetables where
love is, Than a fattened ox and hatred with it (15:17).
Better is a dry morsel and quietness
with it Than a house full of feasting with strife (17:1).
In negative terms, one who seeks to
gain wealth in an unrighteous manner brings destruction to his home.
He who profits illicitly troubles
his own house, But Ahe who hates bribes will live (15:27).
5. WISDOM IS BETTER THAN WEALTH.
Perhaps no theme is so frequently repeated in the early chapters of Proverbs.
“Take my instruction, and not
silver, And knowledge rather than choicest gold. For wisdom is better than
jewels; And all desirable things cannot compare with her” (8:10-11).
How much better it is to get wisdom
than gold, And to get understanding is to be chosen above silver (16:16).
If so many things are better than
wealth, we must admit that money is not nearly as important as some suppose it
to be. Further study in Proverbs confirms this; let us next consider what money
cannot do.
What
Money Cannot Do For Us
“Money isn’t everything,” someone
has been quoted as saying “but it’s a long way ahead of whatever is in second
place.” Proverbs informs us that not only is money not in first place, it is
not even in the running for second place. One reason is that money simply
cannot purchase those things in life which are most important.
1. MONEY CANNOT PROVIDE US WITH
SECURITY.
There are two primary reasons why
money fails to make a man secure. The first is that money simply cannot
purchase security, for security cannot be bought. There are those who deceive
themselves by thinking that wealth offers them security, but this is only
imaginary.
A rich man’s wealth is his strong
city, And like a high wall in his own imagination (18:11).
The second reason money cannot offer
us security is that wealth itself is often only temporary. Not only does our
wealth fail to make us secure, our wealth itself is insecure.
Do not weary yourself to gain
wealth, Cease from your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it
is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings, Like an eagle that flies
toward the heavens (23:4-5).
I recall hearing about a man who
made hundreds of millions of dollars on a single transaction. Only a few months
later the newspapers reported his loss of even more than what he had previously
made. Someone commented, “He may not have lost his shirt, but it sure did
loosen his tie.” Security can never be gained through money.
2. MONEY CANNOT BUY WISDOM.
Why is there a price in the hand of
a fool to buy wisdom, When he has no sense? (17:16)
3. MONEY CANNOT PROVIDE US WITH
LIFE’S MOST PRECIOUS GIFT.
We know that money cannot buy true
friends, because bought “friends” will forsake us when our time of need
arrives.
All the brothers of a poor man hate
him; How much more do his friends go far from him!
What Money Will Do For You
Anyone who has gone from poverty to prosperity can
testify that money will produce results. Unfortunately, many of these
are not very beneficial. Let us consider some of the effects which
wealth may produce in our lives, a further evidence that money is not
all it is purported to be.
1. YOU CAN BE ASSURED THAT MONEY WILL ATTRACT “FRIENDS.”
Proverbs teaches us that money adds friends, while poverty removes them.
Wealth adds many friends, But a poor man is separated from his friend (19:4).
Many will entreat the favor of a generous man, And every man is a friend to him who gives gifts (19:6).
When I was a young lad my parents moved to a rustic
but delightful home on a lake. That is where I spent most of my
growing-up years.
After a number of years of observation, I concluded
that while we had many wonderful friends, there was a particular type of
“friend” that only visited us in the summer, when the fishing was good,
or when the weather was hot--just right for swimming. Wealth adds many
of these “friends,” but difficult times will always cause these folks to
seek friendship elsewhere.
2. MONEY TENDS TO GIVE THE RICH A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY.
In a passage which we have already noted, we are told that the rich tend to find a false sense of well-being in their wealth.
A rich man’s wealth is his strong city, And like a high wall in his own imagination (18:11).
3. MONEY CAN PRODUCE PRIDE, AND APATHY TOWARD SPIRITUAL THINGS.
The reality of life is that the poor man who wonders
where his next meal is coming from is more attuned to spiritual things
than is the rich, who seemingly has no worry about such things.
The rich man is wise in his own eyes, But the poor who has understanding sees through him (28:11).
Agur, the godly man of chapter 30, refused to ask
God to make him rich, fearing that it might cause his heart to turn from
the Lord. He dared not request to become rich, lest, in his words, I be
full and deny Thee and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’” (30:9).
Conclusions
There are a number of principles in the Book of
Proverbs which should shape our attitude toward money. Some of these
principles are:
1. NEITHER THE POSSESSION OF MONEY NOR THE LACK OF IT ARE PROOF OF ONE’S SPIRITUAL STATE.
The Judaism of Jesus’ day tended toward the error
that prosperity was proof of piety. The rich, they supposed, were
wealthy because they were more worthy. Spirituality could be quickly
determined by looking at a man’s bank account, at the kind of clothes he
wore, by the trappings of affluence. The asceticism of other religious
groups caused them to conclude just the opposite. They believed that the
godly must shun all material possessions, so that poverty became proof
of piety.
Both of these views are wrong for several reasons.
First, one may be rich for the wrong reasons. Crime, for example, may be
the means by which a man prospers. Furthermore, one may be poor for
reasons other than sinfulness or slothfulness. Some are poor due to
injustice, not a lack of initiative (13:23).
If it is better to be poor
than to be a liar (19:22), one may have chosen poverty in order to
remain honest and pure in heart. Most importantly, the Bible teaches
that we should never judge others on the basis of outward appearances.
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his
appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him;
for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart” (I Sam. 16:7).
In the Sermon on the Mount our Lord warned of the danger of externalism (of. Matt. 6:1-18),
the performance of outward acts in order to appear to be righteous, yet
without actually serving God from the heart. We dare not judge the
spirituality of others by any standard which considers only outward
appearances, rather than the attitude of the heart.
Perhaps this proverb sums it up as well as it can be said:
There is one who pretends to be rich, but has nothing; Another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth (13:7).
True riches cannot be measured in terms of money.
2. GOD HAS NOT PROMISED TO MAKE EVERY GODLY CHRISTIAN RICH.
The question which must first be asked is, “Did God
promise to financially prosper the Israelites, to whom and for whom
Proverbs was written?” Frankly I think the answer is “Yes.” God had
promised to bless Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3),
a commitment reiterated to his offspring, Isaac (26:24), Jacob
(35:9-12); and the sons of Jacob (cf. 49:3-27).
In the Book of
Deuteronomy prosperity and security are promised all who will live in
accordance with the laws which God has laid down in the Mosaic covenant.
The blessings of obedience and the consequences of disobedience are
summarized in chapter 28. If the people of Israel disregard the law of
God, they are warned that they will be driven from the land and taken
into captivity (vv. 64-68).In the light of the promises of God to
Israel, take note of this passage in Proverbs:
For the upright will live in the land, And the
blameless will remain in it; But the wicked will be cut off from the
land, And the treacherous will be uprooted from it (2:21-22).
The blessings on the righteous of which the Book of
Proverbs speaks are those promised Israel by God, if they would obey His
laws. I believe that prosperity was the standard, the ideal, and that
the goal for Israel was to have no poor among the people of God. I
understand this to be the point of Deuteronomy 15:4-5.
However, there shall be no poor among you, since the
Lord will surely bless you in the land which the Lord your God is
giving you as an inheritance to possess, if only you listen obediently
to the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all this
commandment which I am commanding you today.
While prosperity was the ideal, it was never viewed
as something which would take place, for in the next verses of the same
chapter in Deuteronomy, God instructs the Israelites about their
obligation to minister to the poor in their midst.
If there is a poor man with you, one of your
brothers, in any of your towns in your land which the Lord your God is
giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from
your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and shall
generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks (Deut. 15:7-8).
The most striking statement, one which our Lord repeats (cf. Matt. 26:11), is that found in Deuteronomy 15:11:”For the poor will never cease to be in your land.” Even in Israel it was never assumed that everyone would be rich.
One of the contributions which dispensationalism has
made to the study of the Scriptures is to differentiate between
promises made to the Jews and those made to New Testament saints.
If we
were to conclude that Proverbs promises that all who are godly will be
rich, we should be entirely consistent and say that we will dwell in the
land of Israel (Prov. 2:21).I
do not find any promise in the New Testament that godliness will be
rewarded with great wealth. Even our Lord laid aside His wealth and
became poor for our sake (2 Cor. 8:9).
3. PROVERBS NEVER ENCOURAGES US TO DESIRE TO BE WEALTHY, BUT TO MAKE EVERY SACRIFICE TO BE WISE.
Proverbs does not encourage materialism; it forbids it.
Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, Cease from
your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For
wealth certainly makes itself wings, Like an eagle that flies toward the
heavens (23:4-5).
A man with an evil eye hastens after wealth, And does not know that want will come upon him (28:22).
The greatest treasure in life is wisdom, which
begins with the fear of the Lord and is a life-long search for divine
insight into life. Just as we are not taught to seek after happiness,
but holiness, so we are encouraged to search for wisdom, not wealth. If
wealth is to come, it should come like happiness, as a fringe benefit,
not a goal itself.
This was the desire of Agur, who realized that both
poverty and prosperity had their dangers. The earnest petition which
Agur made was that he be righteous, not rich. Let his petition serve as a
model for us as well:
Two things I asked of Thee, Do not refuse me before I
die: Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor
riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, Lest I be full and
deny Thee and say, “Who is the Lord?” Or lest I be in want and steal,
And profane the name of my God (30:7-9).
Oh that you and I might hunger more for wisdom than
wealth, and that we would be willing to discipline our lives to obtain
it. May we not make prosperity the priority of our life, and yet may we
also not falsely condemn wealth as though it were a sin. The real issue
is our attitude toward money.
Many who are poor are more materialistic
than the rich because they value wealth too highly. The way we look at
wealth, and the way we use it, is what matters to God. In our next
lesson we will consider the acquisition and use of money.
One final word is in order here: it is possible that
you have not yet come to know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. You
are a debtor to God and no amount of money will ever be able to repay
it. The debt is that of sin.
The Bible teaches us that the consequence
of sin is death (Romans 6:23).There
is no way that you will ever be able to repay this debt. In His mercy,
God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross of Calvary. He bore
the penalty of your sins.
He alone can offer you the forgiveness of your
sins and the assurance of spending eternity in heaven. The price was
beyond measure--the shed blood of the sinless Son of God. You may be
freed of your debt and become an heir of God’s riches only by a personal
relationship to Jesus Christ. I urge you to confess your sins and to
trust in Him for eternal life.
29 I see no contradiction between Proverbs 17:16
and 23:23, which says, “By truth and do not sell it.” In 17:16 the
reference is to the fool. He could not acquire wisdom at any price. In
23:23 the wise man is exhorted to seek truth.
Truth cannot be bought,
but this is a figure of speech which teaches us that, like the pearl of
great price (Matt. 13:46), truth is worth great sacrifice in order to obtain it.
