Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, Who giveth us richly all things to enjoy. 1 Timothy 6:17
What do you mean, this verse isn’t for you? What do you mean, you’re not rich? If you own your own house, or are at least able to make the mortgage payments or rent payment with no great problem, you are rich, compared to 95 percent of the rest of the world’s population. If you had three square meals yesterday, and are wearing different clothes today from what you had on yesterday, you are rich, compared to 95 percent of the rest of the world’s population. Look about you, and see the security and peace in this land in which you live, and dare to tell me that you are not rich. Yes, we are all well-do-do compared to so much of the world, so we have to take the message of today’s text to ourselves. It is so easy to trust in what we have without considering that everything we enjoy has been richly dispensed to us from God’s good hand.
Remember also, that God has not only blessed us in material and practical ways, but He has also given us all things spiritually to enjoy. We have the Word of God on which our souls can feast at will. We have the companionship of the Lord’s people as we make our way to Glory, sharing with them in Bible study, prayer, and all manner of fellowship. We have the protection and support of the angels as we live in this evil and dangerous world. We have the unfolding of God’s word in the principles of the New Testament Assembly, living our lives in the good of those truths that are so precious and are so surely believed among us. Even among the world’s tiny population of Christians, only a handful have been so richly blessed of God to be brought into the good of the Lord’s presence among His people.
With all of the riches that God has invested us with, we need to heed Paul’s admonition, that we do not trust in what the world offers, but in what God offers.
You are rich. What riches are the most precious to you today? -Jim MacIntosh