A Man’s Life Does Not Consists Of The Acquisition Of Wealth – Jesus Christ

A MAN’S LIFE DOES NOT CONSISTS OF THE ACQUISITION OF WEALTH – JESUS CHRIST

Text:

Luke 12:15 “And he said to them, Take care to keep yourselves free from the desire for property; for a man's life is not made up of the number of things which he has”.

1 Timothy 6:7-8. 7 “For we came into the world with nothing, and we are not able to take anything out; 8 But if we have food and a roof over us, let that be enough.”

Psalms 49:17 “For at his death, he will take nothing away; his glory will not go down after him.”

Ecclesiastes 5:15 “As he came from his mother at birth, so does he go again; he gets from his work no reward which he may take away in his hand.”

Job 1:21 “With nothing I came out of my mother's body, and with nothing I will go back there; the Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; let the Lord's name be praised.”

Proverbs 27:24 “For wealth is not for ever, and money does not go on for all generations.” (All scriptures above are taken from Bible in Basic English BBE).

Considering the various passages of the scriptures above, do you think our pastors of today who are so engrossed with acquiring wealth and fame here on earth, are ever mindful of these passages? Well, my master, Jesus Christ has instructed me in His word when He declared “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal” Matthew 6:20. (KJV).

Very often, I do imagine how people of today especially pastors stress and teach on the acquisition of wealth as the basis of being a Christian. Some have actually interpreted Christianity to mean prosperity. This is why a lot of the preachers today have deviated from soul winning pastors and now have turned into motivational and prosperity pastors.

Wealth is good. After all, it is God that give power to get wealth Deuteronomy 8:18. It should also be noted that Job was the richest man among the men of the east and yet, he was a Christian Job 1:3. Isaac, even though a Christian, the bible declared him very great (wealth measurement) Genesis 26:13. Again, the bible speaks about David who though being a Christian, was able to lay down great wealth and the architectural master plan for his son Solomon, to build the temple God disallowed him to build 1 Chronicles 28:1-21. Solomon on the other hand was the richest man of all men at his time. Imagine a man that could offer a thousand burnt offerings in one offering alone 1 Kings 3:4, and married seven hundred wives, including three hundred concubines totaling one thousand wives 1 Kings 11:3 and yet, he declared that all was vanity Ecclesiastes 1:2. Abram, though not a Christian at the time, who later became Abraham after his encounter with God was also very rich Genesis 13:2.

Considering the vigour, interest, passion, strength, love and intensive study that our pastors of today are embracing to speak about wealth acquisition in their churches, it will lay credence to the death of true spiritual messages from their pulpit these days. No pastor today are ever bordered about the damnation that awaits the unsaved souls in their congregations, they are instead interested on the amount of money you will sow into their pockets. With the absent of the Holy Spirit in all their operation, they have now turned into motivational speakers, forcefully collecting money from their members in the name of sowing and supporting their ministries. Others have simply buried the gospel truth in their churches with the miracles, signs and wonders they are performing in drawing souls away from the Lord Jesus Christ to themselves. No wonder the church today have been described as “a business venture” by the unbelievers due largely to the high rates of pastor’s abuse of their God given grace, by turning their downtrodden members into Automated Teller Machines ATM.

Today, these pastors are now experts in economics, banking and finance, foreign and local exchange dealers in the church of Jesus Christ. No message you will see them preach now without monetizing it for their own selfish gains. They are very heartless men I must confess. Meanwhile, you can hardly hear messages from the pulpits of these pastors centered on holiness, righteousness, faith, the fear of God, purity, heaven, hell fire, rapture, virtue, sin, obedience to the word of God, evangelism/soul winning, forgiveness, restitution and other true Christian teachings. They are today concerned only about their belly, hence their continuous prophetic declaration on their members, even though these members of their have no form of relationship whatsoever with God. On Sunday morning, they are in the church appearing like saints and behaving as one. However, between Monday and Saturday, they are in the beer palours, hotels, drinking joints, entertainment centers and what have you. All these are the results of not being groomed and trained in the word of God. May God deliver you today from self seeking pastors in Jesus name. Amen.

In considering the position of God in relation to riches and wealth, the bible says “But if we have food and a roof over us, let that be enough.” 1 Timothy 6:8. (BBE). This goes to show that God is both interested on we His children getting rich but, to always be content with what we have hence 1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness with contentment is great gain.” (KJV).

You must however remember that, those treasuring their wealth up here on earth are truly never pleased when they are told to give up for the sake of making heaven. A practical example is the reaction of the rich young man in Matthew 19:16-22, that Jesus told to sell his goods and take up his cross and follow Him. The bible said “But hearing these words the young man went away sorrowing: for he had much property.” Matthew 19:22. (BBE).

This then bring to the fore why those with great wealth whether as a pastor or any other person in the church will be very difficult to make heaven. Hear the words of Jesus Christ in respect of this citation. Matthew 19: 23-24. (BBE).

23 “And Jesus said to his disciples, TRULY I SAY TO YOU, IT IS HARD FOR A MAN WITH MUCH MONEY TO GO INTO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. 24 And again I say to you, It is simpler for a camel to go through a needle's eye, THAN FOR A MAN WITH MUCH MONEY TO GO INTO THE KINGDOM OF GOD.”

As much as you desire to be rich in this world, please remember that your riches is valueless and nothing important as compared to the saving of your soul. This is why Jesus Christ our LORD asked in Mark 8:36 “For what DOTH IT PROFIT A MAN, TO GAIN THE WHOLE WORLD, AND FORFEIT HIS LIFE? 37 For WHAT SHOULD A MAN GIVE IN EXCHANGE FOR HIS LIFE?” (AVS). This is in addition to the fact the bible exposed again in 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, FOR WHICH SOME HAVE STRAYED FROM THE FAITH IN THEIR GREEDINESS, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (NKJV)

Nevertheless, don’t misconstrue my position here. In 1 Timothy 6:17,the bible says “COMMAND THOSE WHO ARE RICH IN THIS PRESENT AGE NOT TO BE HAUGHTY, NOR TO TRUST IN UNCERTAIN RICHES but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.” (NKJV). What is required of you that is very rich now is never to behave yourself as if your power brought you the wealth. You should rather be appreciative and be thankful to God that give you the wealth in the first place. If you are haughty and putting your trust on your riches, it is very obvious that destruction is close by at your door Luke 12:20.

As a rich Christian, Jesus expects you to allow your wealth to be felt by those around you and never to be conceal all by you Matthew 19:21, Mark 10:21. Even Zacchaeus, a tax collector in Luke 19:8 demonstrated that, the poor around him are accommodated in his budget. So, do you consider the poor around you as a rich pastor or your wealth is just for you, your wife and your children only, even though the very poor people in your congregation today are the ones that brought you to your current position and fame.

You are now flying over their heads in private jets and yet, they can’t even afford a bicycle tire. You are now residing in porch houses and mansions but they are still being choked up in a single room with 4, 5, 6 children. Today, the gates of the university you build with their money have been locked against them, due to the fact that you have never consider them before charging your exorbitant fees they can’t afford. You are feeding sumptuously today just like the rich man in Luke 16:19 with varieties of assorted drinks and delicious food and yet, these poor members of your congregation are daily going to bed with empty stomach. You are now one of the richest and most influential people on earth and yet, your poor members that made all these things to be possible are wallowing in abject poverty. You now accommodate a wardrobe lager than these poor members’ living rooms and yet, they are dressing tattered to your churches every day. Pastor, what do you think you doing? Unless you change your ways right now, God will judge you grievously.

As a child of God, understand that your God is rich in mercy Ephesians 2:4, and He have all things in His disposal to give whosoever that ask Him Matthew 7:11. Trust him to bless you and I assure you, you will truly be blessed with His blessings that add no sorrow Proverbs 10:22. However, YOU SHOULD NEVER FORGET THAT THE DECEITFULNESS OF RICHES CAN DESTROY THE WORD OF GOD IN YOU,hence Matthew 13:22 says “He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.” (KJV). That is the more reason the bible says we should be careful for nothing but to always make our request to God through thanksgiving Philippians 4:6.

Remember, you must have a relationship with Jesus Christ, the giver of life 1 John 5:11 and also allow His word to remain in your heart daily, in order for you to have good success Joshua 1:8. Should you delight yourself in the things of the LORD today, blessed you will be called and prosperous shall ways become Psalms 1:1-3.

God bless you today.

Shalom!