Worldly Riches Can Lead to Destruction
- Michael E.B. Maher
- Jun 17
- 6 min read
Proverbs 10:22 “The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it.”
Another subtler path that will lead believers to committing the sin to death is becoming caught up with the things of the world. The reason I say that this path is subtler, is because God does bless His children, for it is His will for us to be blessed. And so a part of God’s blessing in our lives is that He can and does make us rich (rich means having a full supply). But I want you to notice in the above quoted passage of scripture that when our Lord makes us rich, that there is no sorrow that comes it. Sadly many in the church have been made rich through their own efforts and not through the blessing of the Lord, and as a result, even though they may have wealth, they have pierced themselves through with many sorrows in attaining their wealth (1 Timothy 6:10).
Mark 4:18-19 “Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, (19) and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”
In the parable of the sower that our Lord Jesus taught, there were four categories of people. The first category were the unbelievers (Mark 4:15). The second category, which we have dealt with in the previous section, were believers who fell away because of trials and tribulations (Mark 4:16-17). The third category, which we will discuss in this section are the believers who produce no fruit in the kingdom of God. In the above quoted passage of scripture our Lord Jesus taught us that the category of believers who do not produce fruit in the kingdom are those who get caught up with the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things. In other words the things of the world become more important to them than the things of God. So what is the consequence for those who do not produce fruit in the kingdom of God? Our Lord Jesus taught us that those who do not produce fruit in the kingdom are eventually removed from the kingdom (John 15:2-6). In other words they eventually commit the sin to death.
1 Timothy 6:9-10 “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. (10) For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
In the above passage of scripture the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul describes believers who have strayed from the faith because of their desire to be rich. The Holy Spirit warns believers in this passage that it is possible for those who desire to be rich, to drown in destruction and perdition. The picture of one being drowned in destruction and perdition is a picture of one who has committed the sin to death, for you will recall that our Lord Jesus taught us that a man has no profit in gaining the whole world and yet looses his own soul (Matthew 16:16). Clearly the Holy Spirit warns the church in this passage not to pursue riches.
1 John 2:15-16 “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (16) For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father but is of the world.”
It is not only the desire for riches that can drown believers however, for in the above quoted passage of scripture the Holy Spirit through the apostle John teaches us that the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, all fall into the same category. So what does that mean? It means that some believers look at what others have but they don’t, and so they begin to covet those things. It also means that some believers look for status in life, rather than serving the Lord and allowing Him to promote them as and when He sees fit. For example God promoted both Daniel and Joseph overnight to substantial positions in the world, but neither of them sought those positions. All they did was serve the Lord, and so God chose to bless them because He knew that He could trust them with authority and wealth. And so believers, who learn to love the world and the things in the world, are drawn down the path that will eventually lead them to committing the sin to death, for we see that being rich is not the issue, but rather being covetous is.
James 4:1-4 “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? (2) You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. (3) You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. (4) Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
In the above quoted passage of scripture the Holy Spirit through the apostle James has a harsh word for believers who love the things of this world, for He says that believers who do that place themselves in a position where they actually become enemies of God. So why do believers that desire pleasures in this life eventually become enemies of God? The reason is because as they go down the path of desiring more of the things of the world, eventually becoming hardened to the things of God, and it is in that place that they become prone to committing the sin to death. It is for this reason that Jesus describes riches as being deceitful, because although riches are pleasurable to the flesh, they lead the believer down a path that eventually ends up in death for their spirit. The flesh is never satisfied and always wants more, and so those who are deceived into feeding their fleshly desires become ensnared in a downward spiral that leads away from eternal life.
Revelation 3:14-19 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, 'These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: (15) "I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. (16) So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. (17) Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing'--and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked-- (18) I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. (19) As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent.”
In the above quoted passage of scripture we can see that the church in Laodicea were far advanced along the path of loving the things of the world, for our Lord described them as boasting that they had become rich and had need of nothing. But I want you to notice that our Lord painted a very different picture of their spiritual state, for He told them that they were actually wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. And so we see that in their pursuit of worldly wealth and status, the church in Laodicea had become completely blinded to their spiritual condition. In other words their wealth had become more important to them than the things of God. And so our Lord warned them that unless they repented He would spew them out of His mouth. In other words they would no longer be part of the body of Christ, for Jesus would allow them to continue down the path they were on until they finally reached the point of turning their backs on Him and committing the sin to death. The saints today are no different to the saints in Laodicea, and so the Lord’s warning to them is just as applicable to us today. And so we have clearly seen in this section that believers that choose to follow the pathway of the deceitfulness of riches will eventually reach the point of committing the sin to death. In this section we have highlighted the four main paths that believers can take, which all converge at the same end point i.e. the believer will ultimately commit the sin to death.
Michael E.B. Maher
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