Now, there was a rich man, and he
habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in
splendor every day. Luke 16:19
This is not going to be a rant against
the rich. I can't tell you how many people do rant against the rich,
but it is just about everyone. Not because they are upset that that
person is rich, but more because they envy the rich. They wish THEY
were rich, and because they are not, they mumble. These same people
admire tv celebrities and sports figures. It seems that if they know
where the money is coming from an approve of it, it is ok if THOSE
people are rich...so you catch my drift.
And Jesus was not putting down every
rich person. Solomon was rich, Abraham, David, and multiple others
had far more than they needed. It said that the Lord blessed them,
and if the Lord chooses to bless someone, who are we to envy,
slander, or look down on them?
You only have to look up a few verses
on the page...Now the Pharisees, who were LOVERS OF MONEY, were
listening to all these things are scoffing at Him. vs. 14. This is on
the heals of, “You cannot love God and wealth.” vs 13. These are
the people who flaunt their wealth, who take it at the cost of
others, and want people to admire them for it. Can you say “tv
preachers” and “politicians”? Now I am not talking about the
David Jeremiah's of the world...they work hard, stick to the Word,
and don't live for the noteriety of the job, but to actually spread
the gospel. We all know the fakes when we see them...or do we? These
guys wouldn't still be out there if people weren't supporting their
false ministries. Discernment is a lost art. And it is not that the
true ministers are sinless. But we can usually tell when someone is
on an ego trip. They change. They morph into something they didn't
used to be. The messages soften so as not to offend the givers. They
become people's cheerleaders for people's comforts and successes
instead of their purifiers and true encouragers to fight the fight of
faith. They have come to love the joyous life of wealth, and forget
that the fame and fortune they have come into was supposed to go
toward ministries and not toward their own personal gain.
The biggest clue here was that the
Pharisees could no longer discern good from evil, truth from error.
Here stands Jesus, and they scoff at Him and His teachings. They look
at this itinerate preacher from Nazareth who owns nothing, dresses in
common clothes, and preaches against pride, and they swell with more
pride. They are better than this guy. They know the law, and see how
God has benefitted them! They deserve the respect of the people for
their position! But Jesus tells them that He and God both see their
hearts, and that all the trappings that they are wearing are a cover
for the ugliness that is inside. Maybe that is why they are called
trappings...they trap us into thinking we are better than we really
are. They trap other people's minds into thinking they should treat
these well-dressed people differently just because they are
well-dressed. They even had this problem addressed in the early
church. We tend to think and act differently around people of wealth
and reputation. Somehow we feel like they should be treated with more
respect, with more care of what they think, than the other people in
town. “Don't you know who that is? You can't talk to them like
that!” There is fear that we will not get from people like that.
The point is, they probably aren't there to give to you, but to get
from you...so why do you care? There are wonderful exemptions to this
rule. There are the rich who are the givers...and give freely, not
just to get their name on a building or something. It is almost
hilarious the way people in the town I live in treat and talk about
the people in town with money. The expectations, the attitudes, the
hopes and fears that go along with a relationship with these folks is
a spectacle to watch. Some of them feed these fears, and some just
mind their own business and get on with their lives, being stewards
as God has called them to be.
There is also being Lazarus, having
nothing, and receiving nothing from him who had so much. When the
rich are so busy living the good life that they fail to see the
people at their own gate, that is when God calls them into judgment.
God placed Lazarus before this man's eyes, and he refused to see. The
Pharisees did the same thing. When Jesus healed right in front of
their very noses, instead of rejoicing with the healed person, they
resented Jesus taking their limelight. They couldn't heal these
people, but they could have fed them or given them a place to sleep
at night. They could have hired them to wash these rich robes and
make a living. It is the ignoring of the mission God gave them that
angered God so.
What kind of heart do you have, rich
woman? Do you see the needs God has placed under your nose, or are
you so busy living the good life that you forget to praise God and
use His gifts for His glory? Let us have a proper attitude toward
money and earthly wealth, knowing that our faith should never be in
it. We must love God, use wealth to honor Him, and keep an eye out
for the ministries He gave it to us to participate in. Reading this
chapter will give you God's counsel on what you have, how you got it,
and how to use it. He is good to tell us His mind, and to give us His
mind, as well.
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