Only Jesus can provide true wealth
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Editor,
From time to time I read something that grabs my attention; such was the case this morning as I read a brief reflection by Joe Stowell about a church whose people thought: “I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing.” (Jesus saw them differently, he said), “You don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” Revelation 3:17 (New Living Translation).
Stowell writes, “One of my favorite stories is about a Texas rancher who was doing agricultural consulting for a farmer in Germany. He asked the German farmer about the size of his property, to which he replied, ‘about a mile square.’ When the German asked the Texan about the size of his ranch, the rancher explained that if he got in his pickup truck and drove until sunset he would still be on his ranch. Not to be outdone, the farmer replied, ‘I used to drive a truck like that.’”
Stowell continues, “All joking aside, it’s important to have the right perspective.
Unfortunately, the Christians in that church (Laodicea) had the wrong perspective about wealth (Revelation 3:14-22). By all appearances, they were rich. They had plenty of earthly goods and thought they needed nothing-not even Jesus. But Jesus had a different perspective. In spite of their material prosperity, He saw that they were ‘wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked’ (verse 17). So He invited them to become truly rich by seeking what only He could provide: purity, character, righteousness, and wisdom.”
As I reflected on what I had just read, I thought, I don’t want to make the same mistake those people made; I want the right perspective about wealth, true wealth, which is not measured by what I have, but by who I am in Christ; pure, upright, holy and wise. Thank you, Jesus, only you can provide that kind of wealth.
Harvey A. Town
Polson
