What do we make of wealth?
We live in a society of work, money and materialism. We all work hard to make ends meet, providing for ourselves and perhaps our families too. We then seek to enjoy the benefits of wealth that come from our work. Some’s time may be more valuable than others, but all have the right to enjoy reaping what they sow. However, as it so often does, the Bible rebukes our culture’s attitudes towards how we gain wealth, what we ask of wealth, and the value we assign to wealth in our day to day lives.
Key to our culture’s attitude towards wealth is a strong undertone of entitlement. We work hard (or at least look up to those who do), we earn a wage, and because we’ve worked hard to earn a wage we think we can spend it any way we chose. It is our money after all. But a look at the first three chapters of Genesis very quickly shows the conflict between this way of thinking and the Christian worldview. We see in Genesis 1 that God creates the whole earth; sea, land, night, day, man and animals. All the earth is fundamentally His. We also see in verses 28-30 that God also gives us our work and our stewardship of the earth, as well as providing for us all manner of food. We even see that in post-fall Genesis (3:21) God graciously provides clothing for Adam and Eve as they’re expelled from the Garden.
The picture built by Genesis 1-3 is one in which everything belongs to God, everything is provided by God, and God provides for us when we clearly don’t deserve it. The early chapters of Genesis offer a strong rebuke to our culture’s entitled attitude towards wealth. Our wealth, and even the jobs we have to earn our wealth, are all provided to us by God, in a world that is fundamentally His. As Christians we need to come to see our wealth as something that God has graciously given us, even if we are working to earn it. And if it's a gift from God, and not just the product of our labour, then we should consider carefully how God might want us to use it.
Of course, this is not the end with our culture’s problems with wealth. No only do we feel entitled to our wealth, neglecting God’s provision, but we ask far too much of it. Although we’re quick to say ‘money can’t buy you happiness’, we’re very happy to live our lives suggesting otherwise. Our culture’s love of the luxurious celebrity figure, our ‘latest gadget’ driven tech market, and the rise of ‘wanderlust’ and of the overseas travel experience are all symptomatic of what we, as a society, are asking our wealth to do. We want our wealth to fulfill us, or at the very least provide us with experiences or possessions that will fulfill us. Ecclesiastes 5 provides us, as Christians, with a well rounded approach to how we might navigate this tension between enjoyment and fulfillment. The end of Ecclesiastes 5 says:
“Here is what I have seen to be good: it is appropriate to eat, drink, and experience good in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of his life God has given him, because that is his reward.”[1]
There is a reality to the Christian life that wealth is a gift from God, and is to be enjoyed with thankfulness. We can sometimes be tempted to overlook this and opt for an unbiblical asceticism, removing all enjoyment or pleasure from our lives. However, Ecclesiastes 5 balances this enjoyment of God’s provision of wealth with a helpful reminder.
“The one who loves money is never satisfied with money, and whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with income. This too is futile.”[2]
As much as we’re to enjoy our wealth with thankfulness, we’ll never find our satisfaction in it. I would suggest that this, as opposed to the asceticism mentioned earlier, is probably the message our culture needs to hear most clearly. We need to make sure we’re not asking our wealth to satisfy us. Ecclesiastes 5 places a burden on us as Christians because it ask us to hold these two ideas of enjoyment and fulfilment in tension. It’s our responsibility as Christians, in light of scripture, to figure out what this balance might look like for us.
An incredibly important thread of biblical teaching when it comes to wealth are the many warnings the Bible provides us about idolising wealth. Deuteronomy 8 and Luke 18 are both excellent examples of this teaching. Deuteronomy 8 is written as a warning to the Israelites to, in their wealth, security, success and comfort, not forget the God who delivered them out of Egypt. It makes it clear that wealth can make us proud and forgetful of the God who has saved us. Luke 18 is the story of the Rich Young Ruler, and shows us again how wealth can prevent us from knowing and loving God. It contains the famous lines:
“How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
Whilst it is good to remember that wealth is a gift from God, we do need to take heed of what both of these passages are warning us. Wealth can make us proud and forgetful, and can very easily take the place of God. This again adds to the tension. Wealth is a gift to be enjoyed, but will not satisfy us, and can lead us away from God.
Lastly, the Bible instructs us on how we should think about wealth by telling us which things are more important. 1 Timothy 6 provides us with an extended reflection on wealth and what we, as Christians, are to seek. It tells us that expecting wealth as a consequence of godliness is wrong, and that we instead should seek godliness with great contentment.[3] It reminds us with Genesis that we have nothing of our own, and warns us with Luke and Deuteronomy of the dangers of wealth.[4] In light of these teachings, Paul instructs us to “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness” and to “fight the good fight for the faith; take hold of eternal life that you were called to.”[5] Then, he specifically instructs “those who are rich in the present age” to “be rich in good works, to be generous, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good reserve for the age to come.”[6]
Across these instructions we see Paul clearly prioritising those things of the age to come, the things that will be useful in light of our eternal life with Christ. We see Jesus teaching a similar message in Matthew 6:33: “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things (clothing and food) will be provided for you.”[7] The Bible calls us to pursue righteous living, good works and God’s kingdom, holding our wealth loosely, and focusing on the treasures of the age to come.
So then, as Christians, what do we make of wealth? Well, the Bible teaches that it’s part of God’s gracious and undeserved provision that we’re to enjoy and be thankful for. It also teaches us that wealth will never satisfy us, and can become an idol leading us away from God. And finally, it shows us that as Christians we have more important priorities than wealth, such as godly living and God’s kingdom work. We’re to spend our lives, time, effort and energy seeking that which has eternal value. This is a much needed reminder for us as Christians in our materialistic age.