In many of the modern apostate churches labeled as “Christian”, it is taught that monetary wealth and personal assets are a gift from God. This is a foundational teaching of anti-Jesus and anti-Christ theology – God is rewarding you in this lifetime on Earth. Because you say the word “Jesus” – money appears in your bank account and your life is easy.
Today we are looking at gospel evidence that not only did Jesus hold a deep dislike for the rich, he also said they would not find entry to the Kingdom of Heaven. In fact, in part of the bible, Jesus interacts with a man of great wealth:
Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.
Mark 10:21-22
After this wealthy individual turns his back on Jesus and the Kingdom of Heaven, we can see the same story playing out in churches across the planet. Well to do church goers, bank accounts loaded with money, yet cannot bring themselves to take that final step and join the Kingdom of Heaven. They have chosen Earthly wealth over the everlasting riches of the Heavenly Father.
Jesus goes on in this verse to say (and if you are poor in this life, hold this to your heart):
It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.
Mark 10:25
So does the Heavenly Father hate rich people? Not at all. Earthly wealth is the Kingdom of Heaven giving individuals a chance to do great things in this life. However, an excess of wealth is a sign of squandered chances. Real lives that could have been altered and saved, and real fortune made with the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus never said “blessed are those who own expensive real estate”, he said “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3) and he said this with strong intent. It is the rich, those who appear to have power in the earthly realm, who drown out the voice of the poor with their own agendas. We see this in the money obsessed world of politics, and right on into modern churches where the congregants with the most material wealth are seen as the most blessed.
Jesus was bold enough to paint the Pharisees (our modern-day priests, pastors, and other church leaders) in the same light:
Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and respectful greetings in the marketplaces.
Luke 11:43
So it is not so much material wealth that displeases the Heavenly Father, it is the act of worshipping something else before Him. It makes no difference if it is money or power, the desire for earthly power and prestige is the temptation of a person’s spiritual core. What will your soul serve? Love or money? Power or service?
That isn’t to say if you currently have more than adequate earthly wealth that you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven. It is about what priorities you set with your money and what intention you have with that money.
This is the message that Jesus was delivering to his disciples. His students. When he sent the rich man away unhappy with the truth that unless he gave away his money, he would never enter Heaven. You must forsake all to follow the narrow path that leads to the Kingdom of Heaven.
If you have wealth and you have faith then the Heavenly Father has placed a powerful weapon of righteousness in your hand. A weapon that can be used in peace. We see it everyday in run of the mill philanthropy, but what the Heavenly Father requires is total financial commitment to a cause. All in.
However, this is a tricky spiritual path because the road of wealth is broad and leads many to a destructive end. The temptations available to the rich are diverse, and it is easy for individuals to begin to thank the money for their lifestyle or power, and not to the Heavenly Father who controls all.
I hope that this has caused you to consider your personal wealth carefully. When we are weighing the treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven, no gold or currency in the world can compare. I leave you with an interesting quote from the Bible, if you are a believer or not. God will use money to punish the human race, if you believe Ezekiel 7:19:
‘They will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will be treated as a thing unclean. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD’s wrath. It will not satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs, for it has caused them to stumble into sin.
As a believer you should long for that time, for the Kingdom of Heaven is upon you!
May you all wash and be made clean before the LORD ALMIGHTY, in this blessed rain sent forth by the Host of the Heavenly Father. Amen.
Thank you Heavenly Father, for everything
“Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen.
Revelation 1:7
