Guard Against I

‘This was the last thing the official expected to hear. He was very rich and became terribly sad. He was holding on tight to a lot of things and not about to let them go’ Luke 18:23 [MSG]

From the story of the rich man it is clear to see that being rich comes with certain problems we must be aware of and guard against. When you are rich, it is harder for you to depend on God and that’s the truth. If you don’t believe me or you are saying that is not possible, it is because you’ve not tasted real money. But you will not only taste, you will own real money. And this is why I am cautioning you in advance. I was praying for a particular group of people who had sown towards one of our special services. I was asking God to bless them. And God says to me very clearly, “These people, when the doors open, will they still serve Me?” God was more concerned about the people backsliding than the blessing that was coming. And I was negotiating with God, “I trust them, they can never backslide, bless them”. But when I thought about it afterwards, I wondered if I had done the right thing because it is better to have Jesus than to have silver and gold. You are going to be rich and you are going to overcome these problems in Jesus Name.

Being rich makes it harder to depend on God. We become prideful when we should be grateful. Even in the place of worship the rich man has his mind on what is in his account and how people are treating him instead of on God – Pride! ‘Teach those who are rich in this world not to be…’ 1Tim.6:17. Riches entice you to be proud. The person earning fifty thousand is richer than five billion people. Which means at social engagements five billion people will be looking up to that person right? Is that not a recipe for pride? Riches make it challenging/harder; that is when people begin to come up with philosophies and theories. Theories they didn’t come up with when they were praying and begging God for a breakthrough. Now that the breakthrough has come through they have changed. How can God really say that? Who is God anyway? May you not have to eat gravel before you come back to your senses. The Bible says the fool has said in his heart that there is no God [Ps.14:1]. You had no issues obeying God’s instructions before but now you are analyzing it. Talking to people about Jesus was your delight, but now you don’t consider it as civil or respectful. May people not go to hell on your account.

Prayer: Father, may I never become a fool because of riches, in Jesus Name.