What other scriptures warn against placing trust in earthly possessions? The Rich Fool’s Wake-Up Call (Luke 12:19) “Then I will say to myself, ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take it easy; eat, drink, and be merry.’ ” • Jesus exposes the folly of treating abundance as ultimate security. • Scripture repeatedly echoes this warning—riches promise rest but cannot deliver it. Old Testament Voices: Money Can’t Buy Security • Psalm 49:6-7 — “Those who trust in their wealth and boast in great riches? No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him.” • Psalm 52:7 — “Look at the man who did not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his wealth and grew strong by destroying others!” • Psalm 62:10 — “If riches increase, do not set your heart on them.” Wisdom Literature: Seeing Through the Mirage • Proverbs 11:28 — “He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like foliage.” • Proverbs 23:4-5 — “Do not wear yourself out to get rich… when you fix your eyes on it, it is gone, for it sprouts wings and flies off to the sky like an eagle.” • Ecclesiastes 5:10 — “He who loves money is never satisfied by money… This too is futile.” • Job 31:24-28 — “If I have put my trust in gold… this too would be an iniquity to be judged, for I would have denied God above.” Prophetic Warnings: Riches Cannot Rescue • Jeremiah 9:23 — “Let not the rich man boast in his riches.” • Zephaniah 1:18 — “Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them on the day of the LORD’s wrath.” Jesus on Treasure That Lasts • Matthew 6:19-21 — “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven… For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” • Matthew 13:22 — “The deceitfulness of wealth chokes the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” • Matthew 19:23-24 — “It is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven… easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.” • Luke 16:13 — “You cannot serve both God and money.” Early Church Counsel: Hold It Loosely • Acts 8:20 — “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!” • 1 Timothy 6:9-10 — “Those who want to be rich fall into temptation… For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” • 1 Timothy 6:17-19 — “Command those who are rich… not to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God.” • Hebrews 13:5 — “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have.” • James 5:1-3 — “Come now, you rich, weep and wail… Your gold and silver are corroded.” • 1 John 2:15-17 — “If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” • Revelation 3:17-18 — “You say, ‘I am rich’… but you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.” Tying It All Together • From Genesis to Revelation, riches are portrayed as a fleeting stewardship, never a safe harbor. • Trust directed toward possessions displaces trust in God and invites ruin. • The consistent biblical call is to hold wealth with open hands, invest in eternal treasure, and rest in the Lord who alone provides lasting security. |
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