You Are Rich!
Have you ever wondered why many unbelievers of Christ seem to have so much success? Do you sometimes question why people in this world who do not follow God appear to have it all – wealth, power and happiness? You know that many Christians have success and wealth also, but you question why do these that don’t follow Him enjoy life on earth with so much money and fame?
Today you are going to learn another reason to give God thanks in your life, something you may not have considered before. I pray that by the close of this lesson you will have a heavenly perspective of riches and power. Read this study to get a spiritual view of this world and its things. You will not believe what you have possessed since you became a Christian. It is so much more than you know.
When people without God in their life (we will call them non-believers) seem to have it all with fame, money and love, we sometimes ask why. Why are they so blessed? Why are they so wealthy and famous? Why are they so favored in this world? Why do they receive the fame and recognition when they do not even seek God?
You may be at a place of lack in your life right now. You may lack money needed for your bills, a job to support your family, funds for college, extra money for vacations or any number of things that make you feel in need of money. You may lack popularity among your peers or recognition in your work. Do you look at non-believers with lots of wealth and power and just don’t get it? We see famous people on television constantly that have millions and millions of dollars who are probably not Christians based on their lifestyles and conversation. Why do they get to live in such a lavish way, spending money on extravagant things?
Tell me this. Can you see a person’s spirit? Can you know their spiritual life? Unless you are very close to that person, you cannot know from the outside what lives on the inside of a person. Even if you have a strong relationship with another person, you still don’t see their spiritual life in front of you. You may know how they live and what they believe, but you cannot physically see their spirit. When you see this very successful, wealthy unbeliever on earth, you only see their physicality. Your earthly eyes see their earthly physical self. What you do not see is their spiritual self. You can see their smile, hear their laughter and see what seems to be a happy life, but you cannot see their spiritual life. You are seeing their physical life only, and many times only a portion of it (that part they reveal to the world.) Don’t so quickly look at the rich and famous unbelievers as living the good life.
Can you live the good life on earth without the Spirit of God? Can you live a truly successful life without the Spirit of your very Creator in you? You answer that question. Those unbelievers may have a lot of things in our physical world, but they lack in their spiritual world. What you of God have far surpasses what these rich unbelievers possess. Never even consider jealousy, instead consider compassion, for these people lack the most important part of life and creation. They do not know their Creator. They do not know Jesus their Savior. They do not have God, Jesus and eternal life. They do not have the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, guiding them through life. These unbelievers lack! They lack! We don’t lack the biggest reason for life on earth, they do.
Read the following things that the unbelievers wealthy and poor, famous and neglected – all of them - will not have.
• They will not join you in the peace and joy of God on earth.
• They will not join you in calling on their Creator and share conversation with their God.
• They will not join you in fulfilling God’s purpose on earth.
• They will not join you in eternal life.
• They will not join you in entering heaven.
• They will not join you to be caught up in the air to join the Lord at his second coming.
• They will not join you to be with God forever.
The unbelievers we see in the physical world as having so very much, with their abundant wealth and earthly success, lack. They lack. We do not lack what is most important, most valuable. We do not lack a reason for our creation. We do not lack eternal life with our Creator. They lack.
I hope that your earthly perspective of riches has taken a step back to allow your heavenly perspective to move in. You are rich! You do not lack, for you have God! I pray that this lesson will heighten your compassion for the unbeliever, both the poor and the rich. I especially pray that God will open your eyes to see your abundant spiritual blessings, and that it will give you reason to rejoice. I want you to give God thanks in it. Let us give thanks in everything. Let us give God thanks for our heavenly riches. Let us also have a heart for those who do not know their Creator yet. God give us spiritual eyes to see their spiritual lack despite their earthly things, so that we may lead them to Him.
Let me tell you a short story of a very rich and powerful king who appeared to have everything you could want on earth, yet he found it meaningless without God. His name is King Solomon, king of Israel after his father King David. In the beginning of his reign Solomon asked God for a discerning heart to rule the people of Israel, and God gave it to him. God also gave him riches and honor like no other kings in his time. Solomon had abundant wealth, unmatched wisdom, extreme power, and enormous fame. He had it all you could say (in earthly terms.) In the beginning of his reign as king he also followed God as his father David had done. He built the first temple of the Lord and he prayed beautiful prayers to God. Read 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles 1-9 to learn more about Solomon. This king lived in splendor! Solomon was upright in the eyes of the Lord until he chose to intermarry with foreign women and worship other gods. 1 Kings 11: 4 says, “As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.” God did raise adversaries against him because he turned against him. However Solomon lived a lavish lifestyle with riches, power and fame.
In the book of Ecclesiastes King Solomon, late in his years, reflects on his life. In the very first chapter of the book, he begins by saying, ““Meaningless! Meaningless!” as he refers to one’s life. In Ecclesiastes 2:4-11 Solomon looks back at his many earthly accomplishments and his wisdom to conclude that is was meaningless, “a chasing after the wind.” The book of Ecclesiastes is only 12 chapters. You should read it to hear the heart of Solomon as he looks at life and seeking earthly things. This was one of the richest men of all time. Ecclesiastes gives us a lot of insight from this wise king, especially if you consider the writer’s heart at the time. Take a look at King Solomon’s conclusion in the last words of the book.
Ecclesiastes 12: 13-14
Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
Solomon determines that the purpose of man is to fear God and obey his commands. He says our lives should revere God and obey him. If you read all of Ecclesiastes you will discover that Solomon looks at the toil and work man does on earth and its rewards. He finds that it is not worth anything without honoring God. This king lived abundantly both when walking with God and when he turned away from God. Solomon does not express any problem with wealth, the problem arises when you do not honor and obey God. King Solomon was rich and famous. It appeared that he lived a great life with all his wealth and power. However if you read his words at the end of his life, he did not find these earthly possessions valuable without God. When you look at the rich and famous without God in this world today, remember Solomon’s words “Meaningless!” The rich, powerful unbelievers today will also find those words spring up in their lifetime, as long as they do not know their Creator and God. You have God. You have spiritual riches. They lack! They lack God! Pray for their salvation.
This week give thanks for your spiritual riches and make a list of them. Spiritual riches are not physical in nature, they are from God. Begin to look at what you have that is not of this earth. Feel free to begin with the riches mentioned earlier in the bullets. Write them down. Each day meditate or think about the spiritual riches you possess because you accept Jesus Christ. By the end of the week you should have a list of your riches that can surely cause you to give thanks to God!
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