SERMON OUTLINE:
(1). A Warning against Hoarding Wealth (vs 1-3)
(2). A Warning against Stealing Wealth (vs 4)
(3). A Warning against Decadence Wealth (vs 5-6)
SERMON BODY
Question: Would you like to be rich?
Answer: Very few of us would say, “Nah, it doesn’t interest me!”
Ill:
• One wise guy said,
• “They say it’s better to be poor and happy than rich and miserable.
• But couldn’t something be worked out,
• Such as being moderately wealthy and just a little moody?”
Ill:
• A few quotes that I read this week concerning money;
• They made me smile:
• “Whoever said money can't buy happiness, simply didn't know where to shop.”
• “If time is money are ATMs time machines”
• “A lot of money is tainted. 'Taint yours and it taint mine.”
• Quote: Françoise Sagan
• “Money may not buy happiness, but I'd rather cry in a Jaguar than on a bus.”
• Quote: Voltaire
• “Don't think money does everything or you are going to end up doing everything for money.”
• Quote: Francis Bacon
• “Money is a great servant but a bad master.”
• Quote: H.L. Mencken
• “When somebody says it’s not about the money, it’s about the money.”
• TRANSITION: Now in this chapter; “it’s about the money.”
• Money is important, because we all need money to pay rent, eat, provide clothing, etc.
Note:
• Now most of us would not consider ourselves wealthy,
• Quote: a famous comedian: "If ‘money talks’ all it ever says to me is good-bye"
• Because most of us would not consider ourselves wealthy,
• The temptation is to apply these verses to others and not ourselves;
• Now don’t do that!
• Because we (each person here) is extremely wealthy;
• On a world scale we are all very, very wealthy.
• i.e. We all have food, clothes, shelter, access to medicines and health services,
• And we all probably some money in the bank.
• (Or like Mr ????????? stuffed under the mattress)
Ill:
• Oxfam notes that more than a billion people still live on less than 1 euro a day (84p);
• Not even enough for a cup of Costas coffee,
• (£2.25 a medium Americano or for we cconnoisseurs £2.50 for the paradise blend!)
Note:
• The Bible does not teach that money is evil,
• It teaches that ‘the love of money is evil’
• It is a wrong attitude that makes money dangerous.
• Money is simply a means and any means must be used right or wrong.
• i.e. Money is like a loaded gun: it can be extremely useful in certain situations,
• But you’ve got to use it carefully, or you may hurt others and yourself.
• i.e. Money is like fire. Used properly and under control, fire is a helpful tool.
• But if it is used carelessly or with evil intent,
• It can become a powerful force that destroys both property and life.
2 THINGS TO NOTE FROM THIS PASSAGE:
(1). A Warning against Hoarding Wealth (vs 1-3)
“Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. 2 Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. 3 Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days”.
• Now I do not believe the apostle James is speaking against careful planning.
• It is wise to save for a rainy day, or for retirement, or for unplanned emergencies.
• Numerous scriptures that encourage this.
• 1 Timothy chapter 5 verse 8 & 2 Corinthians chapter 12 verse 14.
• Matthew chapter 25 verse 27.
• BUT there is a big difference between saving and hording.
• Hording is ‘the excessive acquisition of possessions (and failure to use or discard them)’,
• A more simplistic definition of hoarding is:
• “Wealth without God”
• It is the idea of acquiring as much as you can;
• It’s having the attitude of; ‘it’s all mine – I can do with it what I want!’
Note:
• In our times the signs of wealth display themselves in:
• The size of our houses, the type of car we might drive,
• And in the clothes or jewellery we might wear.
• In James’ day, there were three main indicators of wealth.
• James uses three terms to point to the temporary nature of each.
FIRST: there was grain:
• You could store it in large bins or silos.
• But James says a day is coming when (vs 2), “Your riches have rotted.”
SECOND: there was clothing:
• In a world where most of the poor only had the clothes on their backs,
• It was a sign of wealth to have more than one change of clothes.
• But James says a day is coming when (vs 2), “Moths have eaten your clothes.”
there were gold and silver:
• James knew, of course, that these metals are not subject to literal rust.
• But in verse 3 he is using irony to make a point.
• When God brings judgment, even these precious metals will be doomed to corruption.
Ill:
• We touched on this last week;
• The clearest illustration I can think of this type of lifestyle;
• Is the farmer in Luke chapter 12 verses 13-21.
• “Who tore down his barns to build bigger barns”;
• He had more than enough but refused to think of anyone but himself.
• Jesus called him; “Fool”;
• Because when his life was taken from him – all his wealth achieved nothing!
• He was rich in the eyes of the world;
• But he was poor where it mattered most—he was not rich toward God!
• To be rich without God is to be short-sighted in light of eternity.
TRANSITION: James reminds these readers:
• They had so much stuff horded, that it was rotting in storage.
• What good are silos full of grain;
• If, when you go to get a bag full, it’s spoiled or full of mould?
• What good are ten changes of clothes;
• If, when you go to get something out of the wardrobe, it’s moth-eaten?
• What good is a bank vault full of jewels;
• If you’re afraid to wear them for fear of being robbed?
The Bible instructs us to provide for our families’ and our own needs:
• But it condemns hoarding our money and possessions;
• When it can be put to use to further the Lord’s work or to help others.
• Where that balance point is, I cannot tell you.
• But I will say that not many of us here in the UK live on the lean side!
• Often behind our hoarding is either the sin of greed;
• Or a lack of trust in God to provide for our future needs.
• James tells us clearly;
• Don’t spend your life collecting junk that you never need or use. Give it away!
• This morning we can praise God;
• That he has blessed every one of us with clothes, food, homes and money!
• And each Christian must ask God on a regular basis;
• How we are to use these blessings for his glory and the blessing of others!
• We need God’s wisdom to get the balance between living and saving;
• Balance between what we have for ourselves and what we use for God.
(2). A Warning against Stealing Wealth (vs 4)
“Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty”
God is not only concerned with what we’ve got but also how we got it.
• Don’t use dishonest means to rip people off.
• How you become wealthy matters to God.
Note:
• The problem is not wealth, but rather how these employers got there wealth;
• James was denouncing wealthy landowners;
• That were cheating their labourers out of their hard-earned wages:
• Whether they were not paying them the full amount promised;
• Or cheating them on the pretext that they had not fulfilled their quotas or whatever,
• We don’t know.
• But this appears to be a common enough problem in ancient times;
• So much so that the bible mentions it several times
• e.g. Leviticus chapter 19 verse 13b:
• ‘“Do not hold back the wages of a hired worker overnight”.
• (See also, Deut. 24:14-15; Jer. 22:13; Mal. 3:5.).
Ill:
• We forget here in the UK;
• That often in that economy, day labourers got by on that day’s pay.
• If they did not work then they and their families did not eat;
• So to withhold it on some false pretences;
• Would literally rob the worker and his family of their daily bread.
Our English translation (N.I.V.), is weak here when it comes to the Greek text:
• What the N.I.V. translates as “failed to pay”:
• Literally, reads “you have robbed or cheated those men.”
• James does not mince his words, he tells them straight!
The other problem these workers had were they were defenceless:
• These poor people could not afford to take these rich employees to court;
• The whole legal system worked against them.
• And if they did ever manage to go to the courts;
• Then these rich people were able to bribe the officials;
• And so control the courts of their day.
Note: at the end of verse 4:
• James points out that the voices of those who have been cheated;
• “Have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty”.
• James wants his readers never to forget;
• That in our dealings with others.
• There is always one person watching with great interest,
• As father watches his children, so God watches his people!
• And the family reputation is at stake!
• So God is ready to judge those who claim to be his, but who are cheating others.
• In the short term, these cheats may seem to get away with it;
• But one day they will get their comeuppance and get it with interest!
A simple application for today:
• If somebody does some work for you – and they have done it properly;
• Then pay them and pay them straight away.
Ill:
• One of the big problem for self-employed businessmen today is unpaid invoices;
• Big companies who will not pay on time the money they owe the small businessman.
• Many a small business has failed due to the fact they have not been paid on time!
(3). A Warning against Decadence Wealth (vs 5-6)
“You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.”
Question: Why would those who are already wealthy cheat or rob the poor?
Answer:
• I guess the answer is greed;
• We always want more than we have.
Ill:
• There was a front page article this week in one of the tabloid newspapers;
• And this quote was highlighted in a red box.
• Quote: Jonathan Polnay (Prosecutor at trial):
• “Like most cases of dishonesty, it was motivated by greed”
Ill:
• Russian author Leo Tolstoy,
• (He wrote the acclaimed novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina)
• Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer;
• Who was not satisfied with his lot.
• He wanted more of everything.
• One day he received a unusual offer.
• For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day.
• The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown.
• So early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace.
• By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground.
• Well into the afternoon;
• The man realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point.
• So he quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky,
• Then he began to run,
• Knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown;
• Then the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost.
• As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line.
• Gasping for breath, his heart pounding,
• He drew upon every bit of strength left in his body;
• And he staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared.
• He immediately collapsed, blood streaming from his mouth.
• And in a few minutes he was dead.
• Shortly afterwards, the man’s servants dug a grave.
• It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide.
• PUNCHLINE:
• The title of Tolstoy's story was: ‘How Much Land Does a Man Need?’
• TRANSITION: Greed so often motivates wrong motives and wrong behaviour.
• It is disgraceful when we see it in the world;
• And it is shameful when we see it in the Church.
Note the imagery used in verse 5:
• He says they have; “fattening their hearts in a day of slaughter”
• He describes them as ignorant cattle;
• They just go on fattening themselves every day with no thought of others.
• But their selfish lifestyles only incur greater guilt.
• And James reminds them of a judgement day to come
• This life is not final.
• As Christians we believe and we touched on this last week with the rope illustration.
James reminds us in verse 6:
• Some people may live in luxury on earth;
• They make their money by exploiting people;
• And they seem to experience no guilt and no consequences for their actions.
• Verse 4: God is not unaware of these people;
• And one day they will face God as their judge!
IN CONCLUSION:
• You either trust in money that you see here and now;
• Or you trust in the Lord that you will see one day.
• If you trust in the Lord,
• Then you will be a good steward of the money and possessions that He entrusts to you.
• After all he owns it all;
• And one day we must give an account to Him of how we used it.
SERMON AUDIO:
https://surf.pxwave.com/wl/?id=rGpIU1YZdM0sPcEZO3dBdEwEL75yiWea
