“Encourage one another daily” (Hebrews 3:13).
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
"Our Hope in God"
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life" (1 Timothy 6:17-19).
Perhaps you have heard of a motto, "He who dies with the most toys, wins." It seems like I've usually seen this as a bumper sticker on huge, four-wheel drive pickups! So many live as if this were true. I saw a T-shirt that made this thoughtful statement, "He who dies with the most toys, still dies."
I entered college at the same time Bill Gates did in 1973. Thirty-two years later I've determined that he is now some 264,000 times wealthier than I am! I suppose if I chose I could be pretty depressed about this. But I consider the perspective of the daily Scripture portion.
These truths are appropriate to virtually all of our readers. Earlier in the chapter Paul writes a warning to those who "want to get rich" (v.9), and in our materialistic society we often compare ourselves with those who have so much more than we have and fail to recognize how incredibly rich we all are.
We have a video of the musical group "Selah", which has a backdrop of images of needy children in Africa, illustrating the desperate plight of the poorest of our world's people. And then there's the masses in much of the world who have very few material things but really don't know to consider themselves poor. I have heard it said that most Americans, even many we label "poor", live in the top 5-10% affluence range of the world's population. And yet we still tend to eye the affluence level of the super rich such as Bill Gates, rather than the masses who have far less than we have.
When I study Scripture I tend to memorize it, pondering on each point and there's so much in this daily portion that's meaningful to me. One thing I want to hear loud and clear and hide deeply in my heart is the phrase concerning wealth being "so uncertain."
One of the current buzzwords of our time is "financial security." Many have put their hope in wealth. And actually for a long period now we have been accustomed to financial stability and prosperity and many just can't imagine it ever ending. But just remember the lessons of history and consider your future accounting to God. Material wealth is indeed so uncertain.
Today let us put our hope in God and thankfully rejoice in all which God has richly provided for our enjoyment. May our focus be "our hope in God!"
Be encouraged today,
Stephen C. Weber
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: “I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God’s Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life’s goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity.”
© Copyright 2005 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
"Living today anchored in God’s solid foundation"