By Brian Mitchell
I wish I could
tell you otherwise, but Christians are not immune to life’s problems and
difficulties. What if, however, I told you that there was a subject that the
Bible spoke about over 2,300 times. Yet many preachers and Bible class teachers
ignore the subject for fear that their intentions for doing so might be
misinterpreted. Would this surprise you? It shouldn’t, because I have found
that not only is there a subject upon which the Bible speaks this much but that
the average Christian has little idea how much valuable wisdom the Bible shares
on this subject. What subject am I referring to: Money and Material things?
That’s right, the
Bible speaks on the subject of material or money matters over 2,300 times, as
opposed to prayer and faith which are mentioned approximately in a combined
1,000 verses. God knew that man would struggle with money matters and thus made
sure that His people would not have to be among them. Yet, how many Christians
struggle with their finances because they do not know or do not practice the
principles of biblical finances that are taught in God’s Word.
As a society in
whole and as Christians living within this society, we are in desperate need of
a restoration of the principles of financial management and behavior. These
were common in generations gone by and they are so prevalent in God’s Word
still. Like Dave Ramsey says often on his show, “It’s your grandmother’s
financial advice, only we keep our teeth in.” The fact of the matter is that
when most of our parents and grandparents wanted something they saved until
they could afford it. They did not heap debt upon debt “spending money they did
not have, to buy things they did not need, to impress people they did not
know.” What about us?
So after looking
at some introductory matters concerning the dangers of materialism, we are
going to consider what the Bible says about money. We are starting a new series
today called, Solomon’s Wisdom on Wealth. As much as Jesus has to say about the
subject of money in general, there is no one in the Bible that has more to say
on the subject than Solomon. Isn’t interesting that the person in the Bible who
failed most miserably in relation to his attitude toward material wealth is the
person that also has the most wisdom to share concerning how we might not do
the same.
It is often those
who have failed the most in certain areas that have the most wisdom to share
because they have been there and know all of the mistakes not to make. This is
why we are in such desperate need of Solomon’s wisdom on wealth today. An
interviewer once asked gold legend Gary Player what the best advice he ever
received was. His answer did not have anything to do with golf, the best advice
he ever received, he said, “was to read the book of Proverbs.” While some might
question just how relevant a book written over 3,000 years ago could be to
financial matters in our time, such in reality, is only an admission of the
fact that such people have not read the book of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.
Stan Bullington in his book “Solomon on
Wealth” identifies the following 7 Key Ideas that emerge from a detailed study
of Solomon’s writing. They are: wealth is a blessing, other blessings are more
important than wealth, wealth is a danger, work diligently, avoid debt, help
others and trust in God, not riches. If we will learn and apply Solomon’s
teachings in these areas, his teachings can serve as the foundation for our
financial lives and our attitudes toward money.
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