Lesson 17: Faith’s true wealth
James 5:1-6
1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.
2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten.
3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.
4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.
One of our most basic human desires is to want enough of things around us to make us feel secure in our life. Usually, this desire turns to money or health, because with enough money we can buy what we need, and with healthy bodies we can keep death away – or so we believe. But this is not true! Money cannot bring contentment, and health cannot bring deliverance from death.
Our verses today speak of the dangers of trusting in earthly wealth. Verses 1 and 2 tell us how wealth deceives us into a false sense of security. Just the presence of money does not mean misery or failure cannot touch us.
Verse 3 reminds us that money can lose its value. We see this in so many ways in our world today where people have trusted in stocks or bonds, only to watch them become worthless. People who have placed their money in banks have watched those banks fail and their wealth disappear.
Verse 4 tells us the danger money can be in honest relationships between people. Fear of losing wealth can tempt us to cheat and steal from others.
Verses 5 and 6 tell us how we even fall to the lowest sins we can imagine because we fear to lose wealth.
Faith in God, however, is not dependent on things of this world to make us feel secure. Faith in God finds all security is ours in Him alone. A friend who recently lost everything they owned in a flood has security, and even contentment, in the absolute faith in God that what was meant for evil (Satan’s attack through the storm) God will turn into good. Such contentment should never argue all the possibilities and impossibilities. It can come only from a heart which knows Jesus personally and hears Him whisper peace to us. This is a peace anchored only on Him, never on circumstances around us. Only this peace can bring us the unmeasured wealth of contentment.
Memorize: Philippians 4:11 - Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.