“Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.”
Another translation puts it this way: “Riches won’t help on the day of judgment, but right living can save you from death.” For all the power that money seems to bring someone in life, it is totally impotent in death. Many people spend their entire lives trying to accumulate wealth. They live with the attitude that they just need one more dollar. The pursuit of wealth can be blinding, and often it is. Living rightly—or, more accurately, living in the righteousness of our Savior—can’t be bought for a nickel because it is absolutely free. Yet it brings a power over death that we cannot fully comprehend until that moment comes. Solomon understood this. He possessed unimaginable wealth for his day—and even by today’s standards. Yet he wrote this proverb so that those around him, and those who would come after him, would hear from someone who knew firsthand that wealth brought no lasting happiness to his life. Only an understanding of who God is, who we are, why we’re here, and where we’re going can bring the kind of joy that so many people mistakenly think money can buy. Scripture doesn’t condemn having money, nor does it condemn having power. As we’ve heard so many times, it is the love of money that leads to all kinds of evil. Likewise, believing that we are powerful apart from God is not just a fantasy—it is also a form of pride and evil. Today, learn to be comfortable and confident with what you have, and recognize that whatever it is, it is a gift from God. #BeTheEdge
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” — 1 Timothy 6:10 (NIV)
