“Are you rich?” Not many of us will say we are. What does it mean to be rich anyway? If you own a HDB flat in Singapore, you may even be a millionaire if your flat is worth that much. What about a $100,000 COE for a car? Surely we must be rich to be able to afford something like that.
Well, regardless of our financial ability, the possessions we have, or the lack thereof, the Word of God declares we are rich. Spiritually rich in God.
We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:3).
By the riches of His grace, we have the forgiveness of sin and the redemption through His blood (Ephesians 1:7).
We are spiritually rich with God’s peace, a peace that the world cannot give (John 14:27), a living hope in Christ (1 Peter 1:3), the strength to do all things through Christ (Philippians 4:13), and the abiding presence of God so we can be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:9).
We are indeed so rich in God and His kingdom!
Yet here’s a spiritual paradox. To be rich in God is to be poor in spirit.
Matthew 5:3 reminds us that the poor in spirit are blessed for theirs is the kingdom of GOD.
How true this is. We are naturally kings over our lives. We don’t want anyone to rule over us.
Yet we need to be humble and recognise the poverty of our spirit. We need to acknowledge how much we need God to fill our emptiness. Only then can God truly be our king.
When God is king, then we will have the kingdom of God in us and we will experience the richness which the King alone has and is able to bless us richly with.
Jesus said, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matt 23:12, ESV). Let us not wait to be humbled. Instead, let us humble ourselves and allow God to be truly king over our lives and hearts.
This way, we will be rich in Him!
While we are rich in God, let us also be rich toward God.
This phrase comes from a parable which Jesus told in Luke 12. Highlighting the rich fool who built bigger and bigger barns and then had his life taken away before he could enjoy his riches, Jesus warns us not to be foolish and lay up treasure for ourselves but instead be rich toward God (v. 21).
What does it mean to be rich toward God?
It clearly means the opposite of accumulating earthly treasure and counting God as greater than the riches of this world. “Rich toward God” is an invitation to be drawn to God and not to the things of the world. As worldly riches suggests available abundance, being rich toward God is when you avail the abundance of your devotion toward God.
John Piper describes being rich toward God as having the heart drawn toward God just as our hearts may be inclined to earthly riches. How true that must be.
May our hearts be rich toward God, focusing on a life that is pleasing to God more than the laying up of earthly treasure.
Here’s why stewardship is so important.
We are rich in God to be rich toward God.
We are to steward the riches of God’s kingdom for the worship, devotion and glory of God. We are called to steward the spiritual richness of God to bless others. Just as we have been blessed with God’s grace, love and strength, we are to bless others with the same. We are called to steward our time, possessions and devotion to love and care for those in need. We are called to share the good news of the kingdom of God, especially to the least, last, lost.
Our stewardship is that life of witness as light in the darkness, as our deeds glorify God in heaven (Matthew 5:16).
What’s on your heart today? Is it earthly treasure you are accumulating or are you storing up eternal treasure? Such is the treasure from a faithful stewardship of the spiritual riches in Christ.
We are indeed blessed to be a blessing. The verse 1 Timothy 6:18-19 (ESV) declares: “Be rich in good works … ready to share … take hold of that which is truly life” (emphasis added).
What is truly life?
It is a life of being rich in God and rich toward God.
Read also: Radiance From The Lord; Rejoicing In The Lord
