By F. D. Adkins
I know that I am not the only one frustrated by rising prices. Groceries, gas, … you name it, … and the price is going up. According to Trading Economics, the inflation rate rose to 7.9 percent in February of this year, the highest it has been in forty years. It is expensive to live in today’s world. This is something that both of my children are starting to realize now that they are teens and have experienced reals jobs. My daughter recently had an economics project where she had to plan her finances as an adult. She determined that she did not know how she was going to be able to afford to be an adult. And since the recent gas price surge, my son has decided that he “really enjoys going places with his mother.”
Of course, money is required to pay for basic needs, and if I am honest, how much money do I spend on things that are not a need? For instance, my phone makes my life easier. It tells me how to get from place to place. I can compare prices when I am in the middle of a store. I can check product reviews. I can see where my children are. But my phone is not a necessity.
No matter what we buy with it, our world revolves around money. Everyone wants financial security.
But does an abundance of money really make a person happy?
- “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity….the sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.” Ecclesiastes 5: 10, 12 KJV
King Solomon reveals in Ecclesiastes that those that desire money will never have enough.
In 1 Timothy, the Bible warns about the love or desire for money.
- “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” 1 Timothy 6:9-10 KJV
What is real treasure?
The Bible tells us in Matthew that we should focus on our treasure in Heaven. In the end, the worldly riches we accumulate will be destroyed. After all, our time on this earth is only temporary. We have so many financial plans available to help us prepare for retirement. But we should be investing in our eternal home.
- “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
Finally, look at Revelation 3:18-20 for instructions on how to be rich.
- “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:18-20 KJV.
Notice in the first part of the verse. The gold tried in the fire will make us rich. And where do we get this gold tried in the fire? He says that we get it from HIM. 1 Peter 1:7 reveals that faith if gold tried in the fire. So, faith in Jesus makes us rich… rich beyond measure.
This morning as I assessed riches and read the scriptures about money, I opened my father-in-law’s Bible to see if he had written any references to a specific verse. But, as I looked through his Bible at his pages and pages of notes, I realized what a great treasure that he had left to my family. He had given us his knowledge on the Word of God, all that he had learned and studied, summarized in his notes. Although he is in Heaven now enjoying his Heavenly treasures, the words that he wrote in that Bible are still here to share the good news about Jesus.
Sources:
The Holy Bible, King James Version
“United States Inflation Rate.” Trading Economics, 2022 Feb., https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/inflationcpi#:~:text=US%20Inflation%20Rate%20Accelerates%20to,coupled%20with%20strong%20demand%20weigh.
Bible Verse For This Week:
