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“Jesus heard these things, and said to him, ‘You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come and follow me.'” But when he heard it, he was very sad, because he was very rich\u201d (Luke 18:22,23).<\/p>\n
We must remember the difference between temporal wealth and spiritual wealth. It is possible to have one without the other. Consider that there are four categories or states of “prosperity” in which we can find ourselves.<\/p>\n
(1) Poor, both materially and spiritually.<\/em> A person who has no treasure of any kind, either in this world or in heaven, is destitute in the worst way. This person is poor inside and out.<\/p>\n (2) Prosperous in both worldly and spiritual terms.<\/em> This happens sometimes, as in the case of Abraham (Genesis 13:2), but it is extremely rare. Some of us are exceptions to the general rule that “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19:24). The tendency for worldly treasures to steal time and attention that should be going toward God is a tendency most people cannot resist.<\/p>\n (3) Temporarily poor, but spiritually rich.<\/em> From the church in Smyrna, Jesus said that he knew about their poverty. Yet, He said, \u201cYou are rich\u201d (Revelation 2:9). We may lack the riches that the world enjoys now, but if we have obeyed the gospel and are faithful to our Lord, we possess riches that time cannot touch, a \u201cconsecration that is incorruptible and undefiled and that fades away, reserved for you in heaven\u201d (1 Peter 1:4).<\/p>\n (4) Temporarily rich, but spiritually poor.<\/em> Unfortunately, many of us living in the rich countries of the world would have to be classified this way. We have prospered economically, yet our souls are starving. We have money, but money is all we have. We don’t see how poor we really are, like the people of Laodicea who were rebuked by the Lord: “You say, ‘I am rich, have become rich, and have need of nothing’ \u2013 and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked” (Revelation 3:17).<\/p>\n If the Lord told us to get rid of what we have, what would we do? Will we, like the rich young ruler, refuse to become poor so that we may gain what is truly wealth?<\/p>\n “He is poor who has nothing but money” (Anonymous).<\/p>\n Gary Henry – WordPoints.com AreYouaChristian.com<\/a><\/p>\n