“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” ~ Matthew 6:21
If you’re laying up treasure for yourself on earth, then you are impoverished toward God. The only way to become “rich toward God” is to use your personal resources for good works that advance the Kingdom of Christ:
Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” ~ Luke 12:16-21
Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; that they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life. ~ 1 Tim. 6:17–19
If you’re going to be rich, then be “rich in good works,” which means being “ready to distribute,” and being “willing to communicate.” In other words, to devote your life to enhancing the lives of others. It needn’t only be money either. There is so much we can do to invest in someone else, and if we need a motive, then nothing is greater than “laying up in store… a good foundation against the time to come.”
It is not a sin to be wealthy, but is a sin to squander and hoard, one’s wealth for his or herself. To do so is a blatant disregard of God’s mission to help people which means we are not living with eternity in our hearts.
Be rich toward God!
