Psalm 17:14  
Inheritance
  What a cruel list if curses this is, with more than a hint of cynicism! We would probably say we wouldn’t wish such things on our worst enemies! However, I think David is actually saying that if you choose this life alone to be rich, God will grant your request! You may have all of the best of this world if that is all that you want.  The earth yields its treasures, its precious metals, its oil and gases. The fields grow valuable crops and men rape the oceans of their fish. Traders, merchants and bankers grow rich on their profits and revel in their prosperity. But none of this lasts, it is only for this short life. Men and women of means think of ways of passing on their riches to their children, partly to continue their name and their fame down successive generations. God, by His mercy, allows them to do this but again only in this life, He does not allow them to take their fortune or their reputations out of this world. Such people may be generous to their families, but they have no thought for eternity and no thought for God who has blessed them with plenty.  They do not see Him as the Giver and they do not thank Him but believe themselves to be the source of their good fortune. It is all about self, all about me, what I have done, what I have achieved, and God allows people to enjoy their success but only for a limited time span – their lifetime. 

Our western cultures rate success or failure in this life on these criteria alone.  Financial prosperity and material possessions are the usual yardstick for judging how well a person has done for themselves. As Christians we can be guilty of making the same judgements and forcing these values on our children.  Our education systems are geared to helping young people get a good job which really means a well – paid job.  Most people, having paid for their house and their pension then consider how to pass their wealth on to their children fairly.  Will – making is generally the means to this end.  Many older people see their success not just in what they have accumulated for themselves but the size of the Estate that will be left to succeeding generations. As Christians our values have to be different.  We have to be able to acknowledge that everything we own comes from God’s hand and we are incredibly blessed by Him. Secondly, if we are granted a portion of God’s blessing then surely it is wiser to not take it here and now but to “lay up our treasure in heaven?” Thirdly, we need to hold our treasure on earth very lightly, it is only temporarily held, we own nothing, everything must be released.  The treasures awaiting us in eternity far outweigh those in this life and we cannot have both!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm 4:1 Smear campaigns

Psalm 4:1    Smear campaigns   The background to this Psalm is so familiar; David is being slandered and maligned by his detractors.  It seems that some calamity has befallen the nation and the king is getting the blame! Lies are being told, a smear campaign has begun, and the reputation of the Sovereign is under threat.  As usual, if something goes wrong, culpability is laid at the feet of the one in charge.  David, quite rightly, turns to the Lord his God and prays for relief and for mercy. The Satan is a master of such campaigns and his emissaries gleefully turn on Christians in leadership positions although the whispering campaign can affect all of us. The whispering starts in our own heads, but it can also come from the lips of our detractors. It goes something like this: - You’re the reason it went wrong You messed up again You should have seen it coming Surely you know better You are not worthy You don’t know what you’re doing Someone else ought to be in c
Read more

Psalm 74:16

Psalm 74:16 God established the sun and the moon “ In  the beginning   God created   the heavens   and the earth.   2  Now the earth was formless   and empty,   darkness was over the surface of the deep,   and the Spirit of God   was hovering over the waters. 3  And God said,   “Let there be light,” and there was light.   4  God saw that the light was good,   and he separated the light from the darkness.   5  God called   the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.”   And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.” These, so familiar, words from Genesis 1 remind us of who is in charge! There would be no light without God. There would be no day or night without God. There would be no earth without God. And there would have been no living things unless God had created order out of chaos. The sun, moon and stars would not be fixed in their orbits without God and you and I would not exist unless He ordered our conception. It is because we see God as glorious, righteous
Read more
Psalm4:8        I will lie down and sleep                Th ere are times, in the life of all believers, when we no longer have control of situations. We can do nothing more. We have given our all, we have tried every possible solution and now it is out of our hands. As someone has wisely said, “It is time to let go and let God.” If we truly trust Him, if our faith will allow us, we can turn our backs on our enemies. We can block our ears to the threats. We can ignore the lies and the deceit and say,  “In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone Lord, make me dwell in safety.” I should imagine that the devil, having sent a hurricane our way is not amused, when we settle in our beds in the midst of it all and drift off into a peaceful sleep! But that is our right and privilege once we let the Lord God Almighty take control. These spiritual attacks are like whirlwinds, they blow with terrifying intensity and threaten to turn us upside down; the disciples witnessed one of thes
Read more