My fiancé and I are a week away from getting married as I write this, and my ring has yet to come in from being sized. I have a feeling it will not be in on time, and in a strange way I hope it is late, so that I can learn this lesson: I am not getting married to wear a ring on my finger; the ring is just for the world to know that I am taken. I am not getting married to have a grand wedding and spend a million dollars on a one day party. I am not getting married to please anybody else but God. We’re getting married so we no longer sin against God. We’re getting married to officially bond ourselves together for eternity. Getting married has nothing to do with the material wealth of a ring or anything else that comes with it.
This is a little journal entry I had written when I was engaged, waiting excitedly to get married to the love of my life, that touches on the desire for material wealth but turning one’s heart towards focusing on the spiritual health and wealth of marriage. Spiritual wealth leads us to Heaven; material wealth makes it EXTREMELY hard to get even close to the Kingdom of Heaven.
The Lord answered my prayer and He blessed me with a situation that made me all the more stronger spiritually, helping to keep my treasure in Heaven with Him instead of on earth.
My ring did not come in until a couple days after my wedding day and I had to actually wait an extra week because they hadn’t sized it properly. I was upset at the time, but I believe now, the Lord knew I needed more time to learn this divine lesson completely.
I love my ring. I love wearing it. But I know that it is not an important aspect of my marriage. It just shows the outer world that I am blessed with a wonderful husband.
HARDER THAN A CAMEL THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE
Jesus said, “How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”
Luke 18:24-25
A person’s pride is bigger than a camel, clouding their view of the Kingdom of God. The rich person who does not acknowledge that their wealth and blessings came from the Lord, will never enter into the Kingdom of God, because they will have never known God. They will live their lives completely content under the notion that they did everything by themselves, and will dwell in the companion of their riches more than the companion of the Lord.
A person’s selfishness will lead them not into the Kingdom of God, for they live only for themselves, being greedy with their money, never sharing it or being generous with it. This person will never have done anything for the Kingdom of God. They will store up for themselves the materials of this world, yet have nothing. Their wealth in Heaven will be empty, for they cared to gain the wealth of this world instead of the eternal wealth of Christ.
Jesus said, “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.”
Luke 12:15
A person who idolizes money will never enter the Kingdom of God, because they have put money above the Lord. They will have denied Jesus and never accepted Him as their eternal wealth. They will have seen Him as second or possibly not even seen Him at all, for they drew up for themselves an image of money in His place. It will be impossible for these types of rich people to enter the Kingdom of God, for they will never have known God, and thus could not enter something they never even knew.
FEAR THE LORD
“If we have nothing, but we fear the Lord, we have everything….”
A. C. McGuire, Renew Your Mind
Many people believe they will be happy once they become rich. But then they become rich and are not happy.
But what even is “rich” in some people’s eyes? Anyone who doesn’t know the Lord, will never be happy with anything: with nothing or with everything. For these types of people, “riches” never end. They strive for more, and more, AND MORE. They need more to fulfill the emptiness inside – or at least so they think.
So then, eventually the strife for more money and more things turns into more power or influence.
OR
It turns into a genuine realization that nothing is working to fill that void within them. And so they finally seek other ways. Hopefully eventually reaching the fear of the Lord.
Riches, fame, and material wealth will never make you happy or bring peace. And that is why the real treasure is in the fear of the Lord.
“Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.”
Proverbs 15:16
When we live in the fear of the Lord, we see Him as the all powerful and all mighty ruler of His creation.
When we fear the Lord, we know of the wrath He will pour onto the ones who don’t believe in Him or live under His grace.
When we fear the Lord, we know He has delivered us from the evil one and we know He will deliver us from death.
If we have nothing, but we fear the Lord, we have everything, for we have eternal life with Him in Heaven and that is the real treasure.
SPIRITUAL WEALTH
The only thing that really, truly fulfills is having spiritual wealth. For with an abundance of spiritual wealth we can be assured we will enter Heaven with Jesus and we can rest easy knowing that nothing of this world can hold us captive to fear.
We could be completely poor, and yet be completely comfortable for
1. we know we have Jesus,
2. we know we’ll have the riches of Heaven, and
3. we know God will provide whatever we need.
Praise our wonderful and loving Lord who is willing to share His abundant riches with us!
When I obsess over material things
Like shoes, clothes and rings…
When I think only of material wealth
And nothing of my spiritual health…
I know I must rest in the Lord.
A. C. McGuire, Rest In The Lord
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