The Wealth Snare

Deuteronomy 8:17,18 Don’t ever say to yourself, ‘I got all this wealth by my own power and ability.’ Remember the LORD your God is the one who gives you power to do these things.

Is it reasonable or unreasonable for a professing Christian to save up a tidy nest-egg for their retirement while there are still people around the world starving and others closer to home living on the street?

That’s something of a perplexing question, because the socio-economic circumstances of people around the world – people watching, listening to, or reading today’s Fresh devotion – vary so dramatically.

I remember one of my lecturers way back in Bible college saying that if it doesn’t work for both rich and poor, black and white … then it ain’t the Gospel. I couldn’t agree more. So what should those who are wealthy do with their wealth?

Jesus on the one hand taught us not to store up treasures for ourselves on this earth where rust and moth can destroy and thieves can steal, but rather (through our good works) to store up treasures in heaven where they can’t be lost.

On the other hand, it seems a responsible thing to do to have some savings to meet our needs, particularly as we get older. The Bible talks about hard work and saving too. But however you’re placed financially:

Deuteronomy 8:17,18 Don’t ever say to yourself, ‘I got all this wealth by my own power and ability.’ Remember the LORD your God is the one who gives you power to do these things.

Pride is the ever-present snare of wealth. Whatever you have, it comes from the Lord. And one of the ways to avoid that snare and store up treasure for yourself in heaven is to give not just out of your surplus, but radically, generously.

Don’t ever say to yourself, ‘I got all this wealth by my own power and ability.’

That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.