Seeing the attitude of rich a man, Jesus said it is terribly hard, harder than a camel to go thru the eye of a needle, for rich people to get into kingdom of heaven. At the same time, some of the greatest men in the Bible were rich. Job, Abraham, King David, Solomon, Joseph of Arimathea etc were rich and great too. So being rich or money, by itself, is neither good nor bad. Bible does not say that ‘’money is the root cause of all evil," but Bible says "the love of money is the root of all evil." (I Tim. 6:10)
It is not really whether one is rich or poor that counts, it is the means adopted, the manner in which the wealth is used and hoarded that makes wealth blessing or curse in one’s life.
In Prov 11:20,21 Solomon says “ Lord hates cunning people … and crooks will be punished’’ Isaiah 33:15,16 says those who refuse to take money by force or accept bribes, they will live in fortress high on a rocky cliff. Isaiah 5: 8, 9 warns ‘’ you are in for trouble. You take over house after house and field after field until there is no room left for anyone else…..Those large beautiful houses will be left empty…..’’ This is a stark reality today if we look at many big and beautiful houses throughout Kerala. It is not only a waste of scarce resources for benefit of none but also causing the prices of these resources to go beyond the reach of poor and less fortunate, certainly a criminal sin towards humanity.
In chap 27: 16 to 23, Job warns: The wicked may collect riches and cloths in abundance as easily as clay. But God’s people will use those cloths and divide up their riches…. In chap 29:11 to 25, Job, teaches how wealth could be a blessing and everything could be summed up in Verse 14 ‘’ kindness and justice were his coat and hat ‘’ Ecclesiastes 2:26 says those who please God, He will give them wisdom, understanding and happiness and to those who sin, He make them to struggle to earn and accumulate wealth and then give them to be owned and used by those who pleases God. Prov 28:27 says giving to the poor will keep you from poverty but if you close your eyes to their needs , everyone will curse you. Prov 19: 17 says’’ caring for the poor is lending to the Lord, and you will be well repaid’’ In Luke chap 3 :11to 14, John the Baptist also tells what should people do in making their livelihood and with their wealth.
Unless we could control wealth rather than getting enslaved by its intoxicating and intimidating sheen, it could become big spoiler of life. We should be able to keep it behind rather than we running after it. Wealth is truly a blessing if we are able make it a blessing for others in need. Abraham was blessed by becoming a blessing to generations and nations. This require a right attitude towards wealth, a realization that wealth is not the end, we have to be grown to a level of custodian and trustee of the wealth under our possession, we should take pride not in owning it but being allowed by Lord to use for His glory, to lend it to Lord by being a helping hand to the needy God has placed around us. The single most cause of most the sins like murder, theft, deception, wicked scheming, hatred, litigations, suicides etc is wealth only. If we study most wealthy business families in India, closely related family members as son, father, mother, brothers and sisters etc., some of them multi billionaires in world top list, live as enemies to each other and engaged in life long litigations, the reason is nothing but money.
Jesus said you can’t serve two masters; you can’t serve mammon (money) and God simultaneously. You will leave one to love the other more. When money is taking the predominant part of our life, then we are worshiping mammon and not God. This is not the case of ordinary people alone, spiritual leaders who are expected to lead a Spartan life and churches are no exception. Many of churches today are nothing but asset (wealth) management companies, rather than managing souls. Almost the whole or most of the time is devoted to matters related to money and associated problems and hardly they have time to the spiritual needs and other issues of the people. How can such a church claim, it is body of Christ when mammon is ruling its heart by being the center of activity. When I happen to read a news about a notice of income tax penalty of over 85 lacs rupees on a church bishop based on assessment of unaccounted sources of income for acquiring property in personal name, my thoughts went to Ecclesiastes 4:7, 8 there, Solomon laments about a man who has no one, no family, no son, no brother … but his eyes never satiate seeing wealth and raise a question, ‘’Who will get what he leave behind, what a senseless and miserable ! Bible teaches in Prov 22:22,23 ‘’don’t take advantage of poor or …… the Lord is their defender and what you do to them, He will do to u.’’ I wish it was not acquired taking advantage of distraught man who lost everything being addicted to drink etc. .. Also I hope this acquisition of wealth was not in breach of oath taken upon accepting the position as a Bishop. I must also wish that there should be some legal sources of income justifying the purchase price in crores of rupees so that a community of around a million people ( may be now only a quarter million due to the fast paced reverse growth taking place) are not put to another ignominious position. I could not also overlook the fact that such a heavy tax evasion is charged on a leader professing to follow Jesus who was prompt at even paying one coin of tax due from Him and also advised ‘’give the emperor what belongs to him’’
1Chrn 29:12 says God make people rich. Deut 8”18 God gives man the power to get wealth. Problem happens when we focus our eyes and heart on wealth and forget the source, the giver of wealth. When the church leadership set their eagle eye on getting a share of around 40,000 KD in a bank a/c, they forgot the source of money, the result was a Himalayan blunder of creating a crisis as we see today in Kuwait Marthoma parish. Just like the fickle minded and short sighted poor farmer in a story who killed the golden egg laying goose, Marthoma church leadership forgot God and people and murdered the parish intoxicated by the splash and sheen of some currency. Jesus said ‘’your heart will be where your treasure is’’
When people find refuge and security in wealth, made an object of pride, trusting on its power more than God it becomes an idol with demonic spirit in their life, a curse and burden rather blessing. Raja, Kalmadi, Kanimozhi, Dayanidhi Maran etc are some of the big fishes currently in news in whose life wealth became a curse because they could not resist its exhilarating luster. The treasures valued at billions of dollars found in a temple In kerala is now giving sleepless nights to many, it is now nothing but a burden on tax payers, we don’t require Jyothish Pundits to tell that wealth accumulated beyond limits could bring curse. A wealthy should be able to say like Job as in Chap 31:24,25 ‘’ I have never trusted the power of wealth, or taken pride in owning many possessions.’’
The gluttony for wealth can turn even the most angelic persons to gremlins. Dr Billy Graham said it right "if a person gets his attitude toward money straight, it will help straighten out almost every other area in his life." And he is a man who is still living true to his word unlike many spiritual leaders who have fallen to disgraceful end.
Sajan
sajn777@yahoo.com