Wisdom & Wealth

INTRO: Well, if there’s one thing that makes folks uncomfortable, it’s when the pastor preaches a sermon on money.

Why do you think that is? I believe there are all sorts of reasons.

Perhaps you have heard stories of preachers who twist Scripture into a prosperity gospel. These men somehow end up in multi-million dollar homes and private jets and you simply have a reflex against such perversion of God’s Word.

Or, maybe you have the idea in your mind that your money is your business and no preacher or anyone else has the right to tell you what to do with it.

Or maybe you don’t see the big picture of how God uses our giving to advance His mission, therefore you are not invested, and you have adopted a defensive posture about such teaching.

Whatever your thoughts on it, I am asking you to hang with me this morning. You see, my aim is not to guilt you into giving more. In fact, I don’t know what you give or if you give. Neither is my goal to chastise you and, at least for today, I am not even going to attempt to fundraise for a new ministry project.

Here’s what I want you to know: God does not need your money. He doesn’t. Psalm 24:1 “1 The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.” Haggai 2:8 “8 ‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the Lord of hosts.”

Ultimately, He will accomplish His will, with us or without us. But God invites us into the joy of His redemption; to receive and to share it. As followers of Jesus, we are called to leverage everything in our lives for Him. After all, we have been made new; purchased by God for His glory. And as we’ve been discovering throughout this series, the wisest thing we can do is to rightly know God and rightly respond to Him.

And each week, we’ve learned how to surrender our lives over to His lordship in different areas- the family, work, politics, friendships, etc. So, of course we are going to speak about wisdom and wealth. It’s important that you realize this morning that the discomfort you may have regarding this topic most likely stems from your view of money.

We live in a world where money has been elevated as the goal of life- a modern day idol. Of course, this is nothing new. We see this way back in the book of Judges. In Judges 18, a son steals money from his mother, but returns it for fear of a curse she pronounced on the thief. The silver in question is soon forged into the image of a pagan god, but in fact, this money had become a god in the lives of these two long before it took the form of an idol.

Jesus said in Mat 6:24

Matthew 6:24 NASB95

24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

Now, you need to understand something. Jesus is not condemning wealth. You don’t have to feel guilty for your wealth. Solomon was the richest man to ever live. What we must look at is how we view and use our wealth. I want to point you to Prov 3:9-10

Proverbs 3:9–10 NASB95

9 Honor the Lord from your wealth And from the first of all your produce; 10 So your barns will be filled with plenty And your vats will overflow with new wine.

Friends, this is not a message about tithing… although I encourage you to tithe. Instead, we will look at the topic of wealth and wisdom a bit more broadly. And because we are looking at Proverbs, we can expect some very practical application; hands on ways we can live wisely regarding our finances. Ultimately, I pray that in our time together this morning, we will learn how we can be wise with our wealth so that we honor the Lord.

So, if you picked up a bulletin, I invite you to make use of the sermon guide to take notes as we learn together. We honor God from our wealth when we...

Exercise Self Control (17:18, 22:7; 26-27, 28:20)

Self Control is the act of denying your flesh. We see this command from Jesus when he tells his disciples that anyone who wished to follow Him, must deny himself (Luke 9:23). Later, in Galatians, Paul lists self-control as a fruit of the Spirit. IOW- Self control happens when the Spirit is leading, not our flesh.

Many of Solomon’s proverbs here are written as warnings which can be summarized this way: Lust leads to poor financial decisions. Let’s look at a few of these proverbs together.

Proverbs 17:18 NASB95

18 A man lacking in sense pledges And becomes guarantor in the presence of his neighbor.

Proverbs 22:7 NASB95

7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.

Proverbs 22:26–27 NASB95

26 Do not be among those who give pledges, Among those who become guarantors for debts. 27 If you have nothing with which to pay, Why should he take your bed from under you?

These 3 proverbs are all warning against unnecessary debt. And Solomon simply points out the reality that comes with debts. Borrowing money will always cost more than what you borrow. Therefore, the warning goes, don’t buy what you cannot afford. It makes no sense.

Now, this flies in the face of a consumer culture like that of America. The marketing and advertisements all reinforce this facade that you need this new thing - the latest and greatest clothing, technology, or vehicle. Do you know that the average American carries over $6500 in CC debt?

According to Solomon, that lacks sense. And, if you were to just pay the minimum payment (which many Americans do), it would take you about 20 years to pay off that $6500 and it would end up costing you around $22000.

In Solomon’s day, if you were in debt and could not pay, you would be forced to give up your land or home, or you would become a slave to the lender until you worked off your debt. In our day, millions of people are working just to pay off debts, not working as unto the Lord, but working as unto the bank.

Wisdom says that instead of buying that which we don’t need, we should exercise self control. So, let me ask a practical question: Are your buying habits honoring the Lord or are they chasing your lusts?

Now, exercising self control isn’t just about spending. It’s also about earning. Sometimes, our lust for money or the things money can buy may tempt us to try and find a shortcut to a padded bank account. But, the reality is that these so-called shortcuts are often just traps in disguise. Listen to Prov. 28:20

Proverbs 28:20 NASB95

20 A faithful man will abound with blessings, But he who makes haste to be rich will not go unpunished.

Making haste to be rich can be understood as a ‘get rich quick’ scheme. This might be a promise of a big payout if you do some ethically questionable things. It might be a hope of a big win at the casino or from the lottery. And it might be taking advantage of another person to try and receive that which does not rightly belong to you.

The warning is that this kind of approach will not go unpunished. Or, said another way, these schemes will cost you more than money.

ILL: Story of someone famous who lacked self control with money - elevating lifestyle with every raise?

Here too, we must exercise self control. Surrender your desires to God, let Him shape them and lead you. You may not get all the things you want, but you will discover a freedom that is worth more than all the money in the world.

But self control does not mean that we need to be stingy or greedy. Actually, as if God anticipated that kind of response, the Scriptures tell us that if we want to honor God with our wealth, we must...

Exercise Generosity (11:24-25, 22:9, 28:27, 19:17)

Generosity does not mean impulsive, irresponsible giving. Rather, generosity is rooted in stewardship and discernment. A generous person may not (and should not) give to every cause nor spend without conviction. Instead, they see their wealth as a tool to bring glory and honor to the Lord. Thus, generous people look for ways to be intentional. Look with me to Prov. 11:24-25

Proverbs 11:24–25 NASB95

24 There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want. 25 The generous man will be prosperous, And he who waters will himself be watered.

The principle here is that generosity is a way of investing our wealth for a positive return. This reminds me a bit of the parable of the talents. God expects us to take the wealth that we have and use it to advance His purposes, not just bury it.

But don’t get stuck thinking about stock markets and bonds. We must remember that all of our wealth belongs to God- so our generosity is not looking for our greatest financial gain, but rather the honor of the Lord. Here’s a couple more proverbs to help us think through this: Prov 22:9

Proverbs 22:9 NASB95

9 He who is generous will be blessed, For he gives some of his food to the poor.

Proverbs 19:17 NASB95

17 One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the Lord, And He will repay him for his good deed.

Generosity, in many cases, means that we find ways to leverage our wealth to show compassion on others. This can be as simple as buying food for orphaned children, helping pay medical bills for a poor widow, or even sponsoring a ministry that will reach into the lives of victims of natural disasters.

ILL: I remember hearing Chip Ingram talk about a man in his church who came to him with a checkbook. He had opened an account for Chip to use to minister to anyone he saw fit- buying them food, clothing, a night in a hotel… whatever. The only condition was that Chip had to give a report each month. And the man would continue to put money in that account.

You know, one of the most difficult things about exercising generosity is opening your eyes to see how you can be a vessel of blessing. Look with me at Prov 28:27

Proverbs 28:27 NASB95

27 He who gives to the poor will never want, But he who shuts his eyes will have many curses.

How can you exercise generosity this week? Let me give you a few practical ideas:

Buy gift cards for a restaurant and give them out to people as the Lord leads with a note that shares God’s love.

Partner with a food bank or rescue mission where the Gospel is proclaimed.

Identify needs of people in the community, and offer support.

Contribute to church ministries. (God loves a cheerful giver!)

Honoring the Lord through our wealth goes far beyond tithing; when we exercise self control and generosity, we are communicating that it all belongs to God, and we too are His. Finally, Solomon helps us see that we can honor the Lord through our wealth when we...

Exercise Integrity (3:27, 15:27, 23:4-5, 30:8-9)

Integrity, as we’ve discussed before, is doing the right thing, even when nobody is looking. When it comes to our wealth, this means that we do what is right concerning our practices. Let’s look first at Prov 3:27

Proverbs 3:27 NASB95

27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in your power to do it.

I’ll say it another way: Pay what you owe.

ILL: Some of you have been on one side of this or the other. If you have ever tried to collect payment for a service rendered, you know the pain involved when someone dodges you. But more than that, do you realize what kind of witness that is? Do you think that when we do not pay our debts that we honor the Lord? Pay what you owe.

But there’s more to integrity than paying bills. Integrity speaks to the heart or motivation that we carry. Listen to Prov 30:8-9

Proverbs 30:8–9 NASB95

8 Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, 9 That I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?” Or that I not be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.

This proverb demonstrates that a heart of integrity recognizes the temptations of wealth and poverty, and knows that the greatest danger in it all is bringing shame upon the name of the Lord. That’s why other proverbs speak to our priorities in wealth. Look at Prov 23:4-5

Proverbs 23:4–5 NASB95

4 Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, Cease from your consideration of it. 5 When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.

IOW - We ought not chase wealth for wealth’s sake. In fact, when we are so focused on earning money, we often trash the rest of our lives. Think about the celebrities and billionaires who keep chasing money, and never find joy. The thing about money is that you’ll never be satisfied. Solomons says, that the goal seems to just grow wings and we never catch it.

And when we are so focused on getting more money, the methods for making money begin to become corrupt. So Solomon says, Prov 15:27

Proverbs 15:27 NASB95

27 He who profits illicitly troubles his own house, But he who hates bribes will live.

Integrity in our wealth means that we deal uprightly and honor the Lord. The way your manage your wealth tells the story of your integrity. It’s what you believe about God’s rule in your life and it’s what you model for those who know you. So, this week, I challenge you to review your finances.

Are you paying your bills? On time?

Are you rightly putting money UNDER the lordship of Christ?

What do your finances say about your belief and trust in God?

You’ve seen this morning that how we handle our wealth reveals something deeper—it reveals our heart.

And here’s the truth: money has a way of competing for that place in our lives that only God deserves.

That’s why Jesus said in Gospel of Matthew 6:24 that you cannot serve both God and wealth. Not because money is evil—but because it is powerful. It will either be your servant… or it will become your master.

But here’s what I don’t want you to miss:

The call today is not simply to manage your money better. The call is to surrender your heart more fully to Christ.

Because when your heart belongs to Him, your wealth will follow. Let me point you to another of Jesus’ admonitions: Matthew 6:21 “21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Think about the gospel.

Jesus Christ—the One who owned all things—laid aside the riches of heaven… He took on flesh… He lived in perfect obedience… And He went to the cross.

Not because He needed anything from you; But because you had a debt you could never repay.

And on that cross, He paid it in full.

So that you could be forgiven. So that you could be made new. So that you could become a child of the King.

When you see that clearly… generosity is no longer a burden. Self-control is no longer restriction. Integrity is no longer merely a duty.

It becomes worship.

So the question this morning is not simply: “Are you handling your money wisely?”

The question is: Who is your master?

Is your life centered on accumulating wealth… Or is it surrendered to the One who gave everything for you?

Today, you have an opportunity to respond.

Maybe for some of you, that means taking an honest look at your finances and bringing them under the lordship of Christ.

Maybe for others, it means opening your eyes to needs around you and stepping into generosity.

And for some… it may mean surrendering your life to Jesus for the very first time.

Don’t settle for lesser riches. Don’t chase what will fly away. Come to Christ—the One who offers eternal treasure. Choose Him.

[PRAY]

DISCUSS: How can you build habits that consistently put your finances under the lordship of Christ?

DISCUSS: Have you ever felt financial pressure or stress shape your decisions in ways that didn’t honor God? What happened?

DISCUSS: In what ways does Jesus’ sacrifice challenge or inspire your view of generosity?