“I Wanna Be Rich"
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If you win the Powerball jackpot, you may not be as lucky as you may think. Many winners befall the so-called curse of the lottery, with some squandering their fortunes and others meeting tragic ends.
"So many of them wind up unhappy or wind up broke. People have had terrible things happen,” said Don McNay, 56, a financial consultant to lottery winners and the author of Life Lessons from the Lottery. “People commit suicide. People run though their money. Easy comes, easy goes. They go through divorce or people die.”
“It’s just upheaval that they’re not ready for,” McNay told TIME on Tuesday. “It’s the curse of the lottery because it made their lives worse instead of improving them.”
About 70 percent of people who suddenly receive a windfall of cash will lose it within a few years, according to the National Endowment for Financial Education.
Mo Money, Mo Money, Mo Money, without using Yo Money. What an amazingly powerful thing it is. In the end its all about the Benjamins. What is it about money that gets us to do the unthinkable. Many will say it is that way of the world. Many believe that our society is built on it. Even in modern evangelicalism we even have a prosperity gospel. And the problem with prosperity is that it is never enough. We always want more. Money continues to be a problem, we see it we all know it, but it continues more than ever. Today we will get a better perspective on it seeing that our God is a much better master than money.
Don’t be surprised if you see a poor person being oppressed by the powerful and if justice is being miscarried throughout the land. For every official is under orders from higher up, and matters of justice get lost in red tape and bureaucracy. Even the king milks the land for his own profit!
Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness! The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it. So what good is wealth—except perhaps to watch it slip through your fingers!
People who work hard sleep well, whether they eat little or much. But the rich seldom get a good night’s sleep.
There is another serious problem I have seen under the sun. Hoarding riches harms the saver. Money is put into risky investments that turn sour, and everything is lost. In the end, there is nothing left to pass on to one’s children. We all come to the end of our lives as naked and empty-handed as on the day we were born. We can’t take our riches with us.
And this, too, is a very serious problem. People leave this world no better off than when they came. All their hard work is for nothing—like working for the wind. Throughout their lives, they live under a cloud—frustrated, discouraged, and angry.
Even so, I have noticed one thing, at least, that is good. It is good for people to eat, drink, and enjoy their work under the sun during the short life God has given them, and to accept their lot in life. And it is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it. To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God. God keeps such people so busy enjoying life that they take no time to brood over the past.
Ecclesiastes 5:
The grass withers, the flower fades, but the Word of our God stands forever.
Empty Injustice
Empty Prosperity
Our Lasting Treasure
The first thing we will look at is how the love of money can lead to the unjust oppression of the poor by those who are supposed to uphold justice. Second we will see the futility and emptiness of money. Finally, we will see that Christ is our treasure and the only treasure that can satisfy.
Thesis: Though sin and the pattern of this world cause us to chase things that will not last, it is our Lord Jesus who is the water that will so satisfy that we will never thirst again.
I. Empty Injustice
- Injustice in the sinful social systems of society.
A. As Solomon begins the journey of showing us the meaninglessness of money he begins by showing us the injustice of the system.
Don’t be surprised if you see a poor person being oppressed by the powerful and if justice is being miscarried throughout the land. For every official is under orders from higher up, and matters of justice get lost in red tape and bureaucracy.
B. Man we see this in our world today don’t we. We see it with Monarchy and Dictatorships and their totalitarian methodologies. We see it in communism, where the state seizes control of the means of production. But we also see it in capitalism whenever profit is pursued without regard for the well-being of other persons. In any case, somehow and someway the poor always seem to get the worst end of the bargain. Right?
C. Ecclesiastes tells us not to be surprised by the vanity of all this injustice or more literally robbery. This is not to excuse unrighteousness; it is simply being realistic about life in a fallen world. He wants us to see that oppression and injustice at every level of societies systems are the inevitable result of sin.
We see it in communism, where the state seizes control of the means of production. But we also see it in capitalism whenever profit is pursued without regard for the well-being of other persons. Somehow poor people always seem to get the worst end of the bargain. Ecclesiastes tells us not to be surprised by the vanity of all this injustice. This is not to excuse unrighteousness; it is simply being realistic about life in a fallen world.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 130). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
oppression and injustice at every level of society.
D. Interesting though, why should we not be surprised by this? Qoheleth tells us. It might be about red tape bureaucracy, it might simply be about authorities abusing their power. But the real point of emphasis depend on the word shomar literally translated “watch out for.” So the officials or the people in government are watching out for one another, protecting each other. This kind of cronyism creates a political machine that leaves poor and ordinary people on the outside looking in.
people in government are watching out for one another, protecting each other. This kind of cronyism creates a political machine that leaves poor and ordinary people on the outside looking in.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 130). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
E. Because of the desire for more and more money governments have built a network of corruption that oppresses the poor.
F. One commentator wrote, “So the problem is not with some rascal who gains power and does evil by accident. No he obeys who is above him and they are worse. And they are under a still even worse, higher person, and the higher we climb on the ladder of power the worse people we have to deal with.” What he is saying is that the officials have each others backs in the efforts to oppress the poor. There are so many kinds of injustice in society that we should never be surprised by sin.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 130). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
G. But it continues...
There are so many kinds of injustice in society that we should never be surprised by sin.
Even the king milks the land for his own profit!
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (pp. 130–131). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
H.On this reading, the king is not part of the solution but another part of the problem. Certainly this is the way most rulers operated in the ancient world, and ever since: they claimed the profits of the land for themselves.
On this reading, the king is not part of the solution but another part of the problem. Certainly this is the way most rulers operated in the ancient world, and ever since: they claimed the profits of the land for themselves.
I. Our experience with injustice in this fallen world leads us to expect corruption at every level of government, right up to the very top. Although some leaders are motivated by a pure desire to serve society, many others are like the notorious Philadelphia politician who used public funds to sustain his own lavish lifestyle and then boasted to his friends about spending “Other People’s Money.”
J. The best governments assume from the outset that people are sinners and that therefore they need checks and balances to restrain unrighteousness. But even the best governments are far from perfect. As long as we live on this earth, we will see people buying their way to power, using public position for personal gain, and manipulating the system for their own advantage.
Our experience with injustice in this fallen world leads us to expect corruption at every level of government, right up to the very top. Although some leaders are motivated by a pure desire to serve society, many others are like the notorious Philadelphia politician who used public funds to sustain his own lavish lifestyle and then boasted to his friends about spending “Other People’s Money.”
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 131). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 131). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
The best governments assume from the outset that people are sinners and that therefore they need checks and balances to restrain unrighteousness. But even the best governments are far from perfect. As long as we live on this earth, we will see people buying their way to power, using public position for personal gain, and manipulating the system for their own advantage.
K. Rather than looking for the government to solve our problems, we need to acknowledge that even the best rulers fall well short of perfection. Therefore, we live in the hope of a better administration—We do not ultimately rest in the governments of the world. What government do we rest on? This one.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 131). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
Rather than looking for the government to solve our problems, we need to acknowledge that even the best rulers fall well short of perfection. Therefore, we live in the hope of a better administration—one that we may not find in Ecclesiastes but do find in the gospel:
For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
His government and its peace
will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
will make this happen!
II. Empty Prosperity
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 131). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
- If you live for money you will never be satisfied.
A. To this point the Preacher has been talking about wealth and poverty on the national scale, but beginning in verse 10 he brings things down to the personal level. Public officials are not the only people who want to get more money; this is a temptation for all of us. So the Preacher warns us about the vanity of prosperity:
Ecclesiastes 5:
Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness!
B. Here we have a well-known truth, stated as a proverb, to which the Preacher adds his typical editorial comment about vanity. No matter how much money they have, people who live for money are never satisfied. They always want more. John D. Rockefeller was one of the richest men in the world, but when someone asked him how much money was enough, he famously said, “Just a little bit more.”
C. The contemporary author Jessie O’Neill has diagnosed this spiritual problem. She calls it “affluenza,” which is “an unhealthy relationship with money” or the pursuit of wealth. Most Americans have at least a mild case of this deadly disease. Even if we are thankful for what we have, we often think about the things that we do not have and how to get them. This explains the sudden pang of discontent we feel when we realize that we cannot afford something we want to buy or the guilt we feel because we bought it anyway, and now we are in debt as a result.
Here we have a well-known truth, stated as a proverb, to which the Preacher adds his typical editorial comment about vanity. No matter how much money they have, people who live for money are never satisfied. They always want more. John D. Rockefeller was one of the richest men in the world, but when someone asked him how much money was enough, he famously said, “Just a little bit more.”
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 132). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
The contemporary author Jessie O’Neill has diagnosed this spiritual problem. She calls it “affluenza,” which is “an unhealthy relationship with money” or the pursuit of wealth. Most Americans have at least a mild case of this deadly disease. Even if we are thankful for what we have, we often think about the things that we do not have and how to get them. This explains the sudden pang of discontent we feel when we realize that we cannot afford something we want to buy or the guilt we feel because we bought it anyway, and now we are in debt as a result.
D. The appetite for what money can buy is never satisfied. The only way to curb it is to be content with what God provides. Charles Bridges said that when our desires are running ahead of our needs, it is better for us “to sit down content where we are, than where we hope to be in the delusion of our insatiable desire.” Rather than always craving more, we are invited to be happy with less because we are satisfied with God.
The appetite for what money can buy is never satisfied. The only way to curb it is to be content with what God provides. Charles Bridges said that when our desires are running ahead of our needs, it is better for us “to sit down content where we are, than where we hope to be in the delusion of our insatiable desire.” Rather than always craving more, we are invited to be happy with less because we are satisfied with God.
E. This is a lifelong struggle. The fact that we have resisted the temptation of money before does not make us immune to it from now on. One day we may say, “I don’t care too much for money.” But soon we are singing a different tune, like the Beatles did: “Money don’t get everything, it’s true / What it don’t get, I can’t use. / Now give me money (that’s what I want).”
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 132). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
F. Ecclesiastes warns our divided hearts that living for the things that only money can buy is vanity. To help us avoid coming down with a bad case of “affluenza,” the book gives us a long list of reasons why.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 132). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
G. The first problem with money is that other people will try to take it from us.
The first problem with money is that other people will try to take it from us.
Ecclesiastes
When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes?
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 132). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
H. The phrase “they increase who eat them” refers in some way to people who consume our wealth. It might be the oppressive government described in verses 8–9, which takes away our money through higher taxes. It might be our children or other dependents—the hungry mouths around our table. Or it might be the people who come begging for us to give them something—the spongers, the freeloaders, and the hangers-on. But no matter who they are, the more we have, the more other people try to get it.
The phrase “they increase who eat them” refers in some way to people who consume our wealth. It might be the oppressive government described in verses 8–9, which takes away our money through higher taxes. It might be our children or other dependents—the hungry mouths around our table. Or it might be the people who come begging for us to give them something—the spongers, the freeloaders, and the hangers-on. But no matter who they are, the more we have, the more other people try to get it.
I. No one knew this better than King Solomon. He was the richest man in the world, but given the many thousands of people whom he had to feed.
The daily food requirements for Solomon’s palace were 150 bushels of choice flour and 300 bushels of meal; also 10 oxen from the fattening pens, 20 pasture-fed cattle, 100 sheep or goats, as well as deer, gazelles, roe deer, and choice poultry.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
J. Here he warns us that the more we have, the more people will want it. If they succeed in getting it, we will never be able to enjoy it ourselves. We may see it, but it will be gone before we ever get the chance to use it. This is vanity.
Here he warns us that the more we have, the more people will want it. If they succeed in getting it, we will never be able to enjoy it ourselves. We may see it, but it will be gone before we ever get the chance to use it. This is vanity.
K. A second problem with having more money is that it will keep us up at night.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
A second problem with having more money is that it will keep us up at night.
Ecclesiastes 5:
Sweet is the sleep of a laborer, whether he eats little or much, but the full stomach of the rich will not let him sleep.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
L. As a general rule, people who work hard all day, especially if they work with their hands, are ready for a good night’s sleep. Whether they have had a decent supper or else are so poor that they go to bed hungry, they will be tired enough to go right to sleep. The idle rich do not enjoy this luxury but are up all night.
M. This is not because they are worrying about all their possessions, like the rich fool in the parable that Jesus told, but because a gluttonous diet of fatty foods gives them a tummy-ache. Their insomnia is caused by indigestion.
As a general rule, people who work hard all day, especially if they work with their hands, are ready for a good night’s sleep. Whether they have had a decent supper or else are so poor that they go to bed hungry, they will be tired enough to go right to sleep. The idle rich do not enjoy this luxury but are up all night.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
N. Having a lot of money can be very unhealthy—not just spiritually but also physically. People who work hard should count their blessings, even if they cannot always count on getting a fat paycheck. Refreshing sleep is the blessing of manual labor. But the lifestyle of the rich and lazy tends not to be very restful.
O. Derek Kidner points out one of the ways that we see this in the West, where almost everyone is wealthy. Kidner looks at all our “modern exercise-machines and health clubs” and says it is “one of our human absurdities to pour out money and effort just to undo the damage of money and ease.”
Having a lot of money can be very unhealthy—not just spiritually but also physically. People who work hard should count their blessings, even if they cannot always count on getting a fat paycheck. Refreshing sleep is the blessing of manual labor. But the lifestyle of the rich and lazy tends not to be very restful. Derek Kidner points out one of the ways that we see this in the West, where almost everyone is wealthy. Kidner looks at all our “modern exercise-machines and health clubs” and says it is “one of our human absurdities to pour out money and effort just to undo the damage of money and ease.” One is reminded of Oliver Goldsmith’s warning: “Ill fares the land, to hast’ning ills a prey, / Where wealth accumulates, and men decay.”9
Ryken, P. G. (2010). Ecclesiastes: Why everything matters (p. 133). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
III. Our Lasting Treasure
- Where your treasure is there your heart will be also.
A. But the problem we face today. Though Solomon who had it all, called it futile, this truth still goes ignored. We say things like money isn’t everything. We say things like money can’t buy happiness. But the chase continues. And even when you get it, it does not last because it does not satisfy.
B. That is the insanity of sin. It causes us to chase things that will not satisfy, that will not make us happy, that will always leave us empty. We trust money, because we don’t trust in the Lord, then when we got money it does not deliver and the Lord continues to deliver again and again.
C. We cannot serve to masters. We cannot serve God and money. And does it not seem that we are confused about the in God we trust on our money? Money is supposed to be a tool, not supposed to be a master. But this is the reality of sin. Sin that easily besets us. Sin that affects us all. Sin that we all commit. Sin that brings death. But do we have hope. Absolutely.
D. The mighty official, our mighty king Jesus did not bring oppression for us poor in righteousness. This government put the weight of the world on His shoulders. Justice will be forever. This kingdom has come. John the Baptist called it. Be hold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
E. Yes family. Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures... The saying is trustworthy… Christ died and rose again for this very purpose—to be Lord both of the living and of the dead.
F. The wonderful promises continue. All who call upon the name. If you confess with your mouth...
Christ died and rose again for this very purpose—to be Lord both of the living and of the dead.
G. Money will not satisfy. But Christ can give exceedingly abundantly above all we could ever ask of imagine. We can think and day dream about all that we don’t have that money can buy. None of it will last. But you already have everything that matters, if you have Christ.