“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)
Back in 2015 the news was all abuzz with reports of a flyby asteroid composed of 90 tons of platinum. The big rock was valued at five trillion dollars. Such “S-Type” asteroids (which contain precious metals) are actually quite abundant in our solar system. However, mining their riches presents a formidable challenge to any foreseeable technology. More thrilling to scientists was the discovery of a white dwarf star whose core is crystalized carbon. That’s right. Its core is a giant diamond 2,500 miles in diameter. Unfortunately, this star is 50 lightyears from earth. The fact is that there are fabulous riches in the universe. Sadly, they’re all beyond our reach.
A similar dilemma faces the Christian believer who yearns for material wealth. He or she reads of their eternal home, where gold is so abundant that it’s used to pave roads and precious stones so common they are used to build walls. In fact, there are pearls in heaven so large that just one can be used to make a large city gate (Revelation 21:18-21). Yes, the stuff over which people kill each other on earth is commonplace in heaven. But such wealth is beyond the Christian believer’s reach in this life. Only when we are in legitimate need will God share those riches in glory with us (Philippians 4:19). So we should never fear poverty. For God will always meet our needs.
However, in this life Christ calls us to lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven, rather than on earth (Matthew 6:19-21). We are called to seek and set our affection on the things above where Christ is seated at God’s right hand (Colossians 3:1-4). This present life is not intended for our pleasure and enjoyment, but for the development of our faith and Christ-like character (Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4). And poverty, rather than material wealth, does a far better job of strengthening our faith in God (James 2:5).
Actually, Christ does make us wealthy in this life. But, as Paul explains in Ephesians 1:3, He blesses us with every spiritual blessing. While we walk upon this planet, the norm for the Christian believer is to partake of all the spiritual blessings that equip us to serve God and live righteously (2 Peter 1:2-9). Receiving material wealth in this life is the exception for the Christian believer. And with that wealth comes the responsibility to share it with those in need (Luke 3:11; 6:30-31-35, 38; 16:19-31; 1 John 3:17-18). If God wished for us all to be materially wealthy in this life, He would not have made such wealth so scarce on earth yet so abundant in worlds beyond our reach. So be content with what you have and pursue godliness. This is the greatest gain (1 Timothy 6:6).
REFLECTION
- With what kind of blessings has Christ blessed us in this life (Ephesians 1:3)?
- Can we, then, count on God to supply our needs in this life (Philippians 4:19)?
- Let’s seek the true riches that will endure for all eternity – Christ and eternal life.
