I don’t think it’s a news alert to anyone that the issue of money is on most people’s minds. To browse the internet for leading headlines in our nation (and in the world) is to find article after article on money. Unemployment is a concern because without jobs people do not have money to pay bills and buy necessities. Almost every statement by a government leader or hopeful government leader during this time is one that focuses on the issue of the economy. Personally, I got a letter from my health insurance company the other day announcing that my premiums would be increasing (again) because they need a way to offset the rising costs of health care that they’re paying.

And my guess is that each of us spends a decent amount of time thinking and talking about money in our lives. If you’re a college student, taking loans, you’re probably giving thought at least periodically to how you’ll be able to pay those back one day. If you’ve lost your job and are looking for another, you’re no doubt measuring how long the money will hold out. If neither of those situations are true, then you probably still are spending a lot of time thinking about money: wondering if you have enough to make those improvements or repairs on the house, or to buy a house, or to buy that new phone, or to pay for this ministry or that, to finance this opportunity or that one, and we could go on and on, couldn’t we?

Sometimes our thoughts about other people can even revolve around the issue of money. We think, “How do they live on such a meager income?” or “I wish I had all the money he had?” or “How did they afford that?” or several other questions.

Money is simply a huge issue in our world, and it always has been. In Matthew 6:24, Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” And I don’t think any of us reads that and says, “Huh? That’s odd. I wonder why he said you can’t serve God and money? We know why, don’t we? It’s because money is one of the strongest pulls that we have on our lives. Families will move across the country at an opportunity to make more money. We will change our jobs because of money. We will choose what school we go to because of money. We may decide how many kids we have based on how much money we make. And these things aren’t necessarily bad. Some may be good. But they reflect how so many of our decisions are directed by money – and sometimes money is the primary factor.

So, if we’re going to live a life of wisdom, we most definitely need to think about the issue of money. What does it look like to live wisely with regard to money? Well, of course, we find that the Proverbs have much to say about this topic. Therefore, what I want us to see some of the principles and lessons the Proverbs give us providing wealth. And, I think the best way to do it is just to point to proverb after proverb that addresses this topic, providing us with lessons and wisdom. So, with that said, let’s begin. And the first is that . . .

We should be responsible with our wealth

Now, I think this message is reiterated a lot in a lot of different ways. One of them is in the consistent theme that if you have wisdom you’ll have wealth. For instance, in chapter 8, when Wisdom is recounting all the blessings that come with finding her, she says in 8:18, “Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and righteousness.”

And, we’ve rightly noted that this isn’t a promise that if you walk in wisdom, you’ll be rich. A simple examination of men throughout history who have honored the Lord in the way they have lived, and thought, and acted will reveal a number who were not rich. The prosperity gospel that says that if you know the Lord, then you’re a child of the king, and will lack no riches is simply a falsehood. So, this note that if we possess divine wisdom, we’ll have riches as well is by no means a promise we can bank on.

However, there is a principle here that we need to pay attention to. And the principle seems to be that if we follow the principles of wisdom, we will not squander our wealth. Let me show you a few proverbs that seem to trumpet this theme.

First, we have a few verses that we skipped over when we were studying through the first nine chapters. In 6:1-5, we read, “My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor, have given your pledge for a stranger, if you are snared in the words of your mouth, caught in the words of your mouth, then do this, my son, and save yourself, for you have come into the hand of your neighbor: go, hasten, and plead urgently with your neighbor. Give your eyes no sleep and your eyelids no slumber; save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the hand of the fowler.”

Now, the word from Solomon to his son is that if he’s verbally agreed to put up financial security for his neighbor or a stranger, then, he’s in a bad place and should go immediately and try to get out of that deal. This, I don’t think is to be understood as a prohibition against lending money to someone. But perhaps even the mention of stranger (that is, someone you don’t even know), the idea is not to lend irresponsibly. Do not tie up your own livelihood by giving your money to one you do not know and who isn’t trustworthy. How many older ladies, for example, have thrown away their wealth by sending dollar after dollar to the guy on television asking for it just because “he seems like a nice guy”?

Yet this is a continual note throughout the Proverbs. We are told that an attempt to gain wealth hastily is foolish. So, we read in 13:11 – “Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.” Then again in 20:21 – “An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end.” Therefore, the Proverbs teach us that throwing your money at something like lottery tickets is foolish. Don’t bank on get-rich-quick schemes.

Also, chasing pleasure with our wealth – whether outright sinful pleasure or not will squander what we have. Thus, we read in 21:17 – “Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man; he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.” And again, in 29:3 – “He who loves wisdom makes his father glad, but a companion of prostitutes squanders his wealth.”

Finally, the Proverbs teach us to value what we have. Therefore, though the illustration is agricultural, the lesson is clear, as we read in 27:23-27 – “Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds, for riches do not last forever; and does a crown endure to all generations? When the grass is gone and the new growth appears and the vegetation of the mountains is gathered, the lambs will provide your clothing, and the goats the price of a field. There will be enough goats’ milk for your food, for the food of your household and the maintenance of your girls.”

So, this first principle is that there is wisdom in handling our money. If we do not value what we have, we may not have it tomorrow. If we throw our money at our addictive pleasures, it will soon dry up. If we throw our money at get-rich-quick schemes, we’ll soon find there is none left. And, if we make foolish and risky investments, we’ll be left with nothing.

What the Proverbs are teaching us is that though there can be poverty when we’ve been as responsible as one can be. Individuals have lost their jobs, their homes, and all their wealth and been as responsible (if not more so) than their rich neighbor down the street. There is legitimate poverty. At the same time, however, much of the poverty that we find in our world is due to unwise handling of what is ours. It is due to irresponsibility. So, we should consider the financial blessings the Lord has given us as that which we are called to steward responsibly.

Having said that, you might get the idea that we are simply to accumulate as much wealth as possible, holding on to every penny we can get. But that would be a mistake, which is why a thematic study through many proverbs is helpful. For a second lesson we learn concerning handling our money wisely is that . . .

We are to delight in being generous to others

This idea is no doubt implied in 3:9, where we read, “Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of your produce.” In Israel, under the Old Covenant, to give unto the Lord involved bringing a tenth of your income (in whatever form it came) to the temple, and that was used to benefit the servants of the Lord, to further the work of the Lord, etc. When you come into the New Covenant, the strict tithe (that is, a ten percent requirement) doesn’t apply. So, does this mean that we no longer have to give? Well, let me answer that question just as I asked it. Does this mean we have to give? In a sense, no. In fact, Paul tells the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 9:7 that one must not give reluctantly or under compulsion. But then he goes on to say that the Lord loves a cheerful giver, and prior he notes that the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

So, in one sense, the strict requirement of the tithe is not with us today. But on the other hand, it’s not with us because its function was something like scaffolding on a building. It was there to teach and train, but now the training wheels can come off because we have hearts that have been transformed and do not need the strict ten-percent command to dictate our giving. Rather, we can give generously, lavishly, and cheerfully to further the Lord’s work. And, part of the Lord’s work is found in caring for those who are poor or have need.

So, just listen to a string of Proverbs about being generous toward to the poor :

11:24-26 – “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered. The people curse him who holds back grain, but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it.”

14:21 – “Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor.”

19:17 – “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will repay him for his deed.”

22:9 – “Whoever has a bountiful eye will be blessed, for he shares his bread with the poor.”

28:8 – “Whoever multiplies his wealth by interest and profit gathers it for him who is generous to the poor.”

28:25, 27 – “A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the LORD will be enriched. . . . Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get a curse.”

It’s hard to miss the fact that the Lord wants his people to be generous toward those in need. And, of course, the priority here is of those who are also believers. We are told for example, on that final day that the Lord Jesus will bless the sheep as having given to him even as they gave to the least of these his brothers – which, of course, means fellow believers. And, Paul tells the Galatians in 6:10, “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

There is an emphasis on caring for poor fellow believers. But there is also the idea there of caring for others as well. Believers should be eager to do good to all men.

But let me make a brief note here and say much less than needs to be said. Helping out the poor can be easier said than done. It may not be the best use of the money the Lord has put in your hands to just start throwing dollars around. Sometimes an individual needs more guidance because the root of the problem of their poverty is not a lack of money but a lack of responsibility. So, we need places like the Care Center. Now, Nate hasn’t asked me to say this – in fact, he might discourage me from saying this if given the chance (but I’m not giving him the chance). The Care Center cares for the poor. It ministers to homeless women and children. But it does more than that. Nathan and Susan labor hard to do the complex work of doing their best to make sure the poor are really helped. So, the ladies there, for example, have to put in job applications continually until they get a job – and they get jobs (even in this economy). They have to give an account for how they’re spending their money. They have to find childcare. These things are hard, aren’t they? But Nathan and Susan want the ladies to be able to be okay not just when they’re at the Care Center but when they leave. And I could go on and on about the labors of our dear brother and sister there.

But let me simply say that this is a rich gift to the church – and to all of Jackson – that we have in a ministry like the Care Center because by giving to them, we’re being generous to the poor and being responsible with the finances that the Lord has given us to steward. So, I encourage you to give and give and give to that ministry and delight in the blessing God is giving us there. But I don’t tell you to give just for Nathan and Susan’s sake but because God expects his people to be generous.

Third, we see that . . .

Particular temptations come with being rich and with being poor

There’s an interesting prayer that the author prays in 30:7-9. He says, “Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’ or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.”

Now, do you see why he asks that he would not have poverty or riches? It’s because he knows there’s a temptation with both. Let’s take the temptation that comes with poverty first. When we do not have much, there can be a temptation to want and get what someone else has. There can even be the temptation to sinfully try to get riches from another. Yet the Proverbs remind us in 10:2 that “treasures gained by wickedness do not profit.” Again, in 16:8, “Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues with injustice.”

If you’re poor and do not have what another has, do not let that lead you down the road of sin – whether stealing or coveting or gossiping or whatever. If you are poor and yet righteous, the Lord smiles on you. But if you actually obtain riches and succumb to evil in the process, you will not have gained what you wanted but will actually invite the judgment of the Lord.

But the author also mentions a temptation that comes with riches. He notes that he might forget that he needs the Lord. With riches can come pride. This is why we read in Proverbs 28:11 – “A rich man is wise in his own eyes.”

We think that we need no one, and we may even begin to look down on our brothers who have less than us. So, we read in Proverbs 18:23 – “The poor uses entreaties, but he rich answer roughly.” Why does the rich answer roughly? It’s because he thinks he is superior. It can be easy to take on a tone that says, “You’re in need and I have plenty and feel superior to another – even willing to talk down to a brother in Christ – answering him roughly. The Lord reminds us, however, in 22:2 that he is the maker of both the rich and the poor. That is, we both answer to the same God, both serve the same Lord, and both have what we have (even the ability to get wealth) only because of the Lord’s grace. So, there is no place for pride, no place for treating our poor brother roughly. To think that those who are rich might treat roughly and not gently those who are poor is tragic, and it is dishonoring to the Lord. This happens all the time in the world, but it must not happen among believers.

And, finally, we are reminded that . . .

Having righteousness, not riches, is the only thing that will matter in the end

Again, just hear a sampling of proverbs from this book:

11:4 – “Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.”

11:28 – “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.”

23:4-5 – “Do not roil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.”

We are trained in this world to pursue riches with all our might. The man with riches appears to rule the world. But there is a real and recent example of the futility of riches in the end. Earlier this week Steve Jobs died. He was the head of Apple and, though I haven’t seen any report of his wealth, I assume he was one of the wealthiest individuals on earth. Many of us probably learned of his death on one of the devices that his company put out – whether a phone, tablet, or computer (or something else I’m unaware of). But in the end, this man who was only fifty-six years old, wasn’t helped by his wealth. In fact, the only thing that mattered on Jobs’ death bed was whether he had repented of his sins and placed his faith in the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of his sins. If he did, then though he cannot take his wealth with him, he has much more than any amount of wealth can purchase in this world – he has eternal life. And if he didn’t, though he seemed to gain the whole world, he is right now in torment – under the judgment of God.

Now, we (following from the Lord himself) take no delight in the death of the wicked. If Steve Jobs did not know the Lord, it is a tragedy, and it is a reason for great mourning. But it is also an opportunity for us to consider death ourselves and to consider what our eternity will hold. So, if you don’t know Christ, please place your faith in him – it is much more important than any riches you can have. And, if you know Christ, make sure that your focus is more on the gospel and on growing in Christ-likeness than in pursuing riches. Because the more and more we grow into the image of Christ, the more we will find ourselves walking in wisdom with regard to our wealth. So, let us come to the table and remember Christ’s death for us now. Amen.