Investment Portfolio

When one hears the word investment, it seems that oftentimes the thoughts turn to money or quality of labor or a product. Solomon was quite wise and shared much of his wisdom about money in the book of Proverbs, as well as a smattering through Ecclesiastes. Here, in chapter 5, we see Solomon talking about different forms of investment that include much more than money. It seems that an incredibly rich person in the financial world can also be quite poor in other more important areas. Whereas, someone who is lacking financially might be considered one of the richest people by the things they have that money cannot buy.

Today, we’ll be looking at areas where it would be quite easy to invest wrongly and miss out on the true riches. We want to look at investing the way God wants us to invest.

Spiritual riches are where the follower of Christ wants to invest.

Worshipping God - 5:1-7

We recall Solomon’s journey last time, while picking up his journey to a completely different place. It appears now that he has gone to the temple, which he personally had been given the privilege to build. His father, David, had given the blueprint for this phenomenal building which was to glorify God. Its grand structure was to be a glorious reminder of God’s great provisions for His chosen people.

Solomon is observing many people going in and out, some to genuinely worship God in prayer and sacrifice. Sadly, you could say others were very religious in their worship attendance. Unfortunately, many were not sincere in their worship. Some were actually making vows or promises or commitments to God in various ways. Sadly, he also observed many just going through the motions. These individuals were not genuine in their worship of God. This is not unlike those who participate in church services just for appearances or to make certain criticisms, then leaving as if they’ve done God a big favor by their appearance. This would be considered true hypocrisy; pretending to worship the Lord, yet having hearts that were not at all in tune with God. The investment of their time of worship to the Lord was being minimized by their lack of sincerity.

The more modern translations do a good job in using what our vernacular would state: guard your steps or be careful where you step. I recognize that the Lord’s presence doesn’t dwell in church structures today in the same manner as it did in the temple. However, the Lord is in each believer in Christ, thus meaning that He is present in our midst even now. When we come for corporate worship, it makes sense that we come with a sense of reverence and awe and expectancy for God to move in our midst. In various places in the Bible, we are warned about pretending to be a part of corporate worship while having unconfessed sin in our hearts. We need to guard the investment of our worship by confessing that sin before God and coming together to genuinely worship and seek His face and direction in our lives.

Let’s look at a few aspects of worship upon which Solomon touches. In verse 1, he speaks of the sacrifice. It seems that in the Old Testament, many times sacrifices were made to simply follow regulations and requirements, but the people’s hearts were not truly of a sacrificial attitude. Today, we understand that Jesus Christ fulfilled all the sacrifices that were needed by His death on the cross. So, what are our sacrifices? We know that some of them include our bodies, souls won to Christ, our money and financial resources, works, praise, repentant and broken heart, even our prayers.

We also see that instructions are given to draw near to listen. Very simply, when we read and listen to God’s Word we are also to obey it. What Solomon is encouraging is that one do more than just listen and go along and participate. He is challenging everyone that God is much more interested in obedience to His Word. A person can give ginormous amounts of money, but if that person is disobedient to God’s Word, the financial or other gifts mean nothing to God. This must be what Solomon was referencing when he talked about the sacrifice of fools. After all, what sane person thinks they can buy off God.

What Solomon is encouraging is that one to to do more than just listen and go along and participate. He is challenging everyone that God is much more interested in obedience to His Word. A person can give ginormous amounts of money, but if that person is disobedient to God’s Word, the financial or other gifts mean nothing to God. This must be what Solomon was referencing when he talked about the sacrifice of fools. After all, what sane person thinks they can buy off God.

In verses 2-3, Solomon discusses reckless praying. This type of praying can sometimes sound quite pious and spiritual, but is merely flowery words supposedly addressed to God. It is more like a post card for everyone to read. Excess words or repeated words do not substitute for a heart full of love and adoration of God. We must understand that if we’re more concerned with what others are hearing than the fact that we are communicating with our Heavenly Father, then we might as well be quiet. John Bunyan wrote in Pilgrim’s Progress: In prayer, it is better to have a heart without words, than words without a heart. Make sure your heart is prepared as a result of being in constant communication and relationship with God.

Length of prayers, words that require a thesaurus do not impress God, nor do they move the hearts of the saints who are listening. Charles Spurgeon commented: It is not the length of our prayers, but the strength of our prayers, that make the difference.

Then in verses 4-7, Solomon deals with making vows to God. This may seem a bit foreign to us, yet there are probably several of us who have made promises to God and we’re reminded of the seriousness of making such promises. We need to understand that the Bible did not and does not require anyone to make a vow to God in order to be accepted by Him. However, there are various verses that provide the opportunity to do so if one feels led.

The first thing Solomon warns against is the empty vow. This person makes a vow and yet never plans on keeping it. If I might explain what this is, I will do so very simply—it is lying to God in order to impress people. My friends, when I make a promise, I need to fulfill it. God hears our commitment and will hold us to those commitments. It has accurately been stated that a broken vow to God is a sin and is simply a lie to God. Even in our own lives as a couple, we had made very serious promises to God, only to be reminded of them many years later when we were hesitating on following God’s direction. I have also heard various people over many years of ministry share with me how if God would do a certain thing, they would generously give to the ministry of the church financially. Interestingly, miraculously, their request to God had been fulfilled. I waited to see if the promised large gift would indeed come to the church as they had promised. Sadly, they had conveniently either forgot or never intended to make sure it happened. In fact, most of those individuals stopped coming to church.

James Smith comments: The religion that emphasizes dreams, verbosity and vows is vanity; it has in it nothing substantial and comforting. The superstitious person who puts his faith in dreams is impractical; the garrulous person who makes rash vows and thinks his prayers will be heard because of much speaking displeases God and incurs his wrath. You see, when people are not serious about their worship, what they say cannot be trusted. This is not how to guard the riches of your relationship with God. That is why Solomon issues these warnings. What God desires is a people who worship Him in spirit and in truth as we’re told in . We must guard that which is of utmost value in relation to God.

James E. Smith, The Wisdom Literature and Psalms, Old Testament Survey Series (Joplin, MO: College Press Pub. Co., 1996), .You see, when people are not serious about their worship, what they say cannot be trusted. This is not how to guard the riches of your relationship with God. That is why Solomon issues these warnings. What God desires is a people who worship Him in spirit and in truth as we’re told in . We must guard that which is of utmost value in relation to God.

Honoring Others - 5:8-9

Isn’t it interesting how we treat our time with God, how valuable that is to us, seems to be directly correlated to how we relate to others and how valuable those relationships are? In other words, the greater the investment in our relationship with God, it will be seen in how we invest in the lives of others over ourselves. In these verses, Solomon has arrived at where the community leadership is and he sees how horribly corrupt the provincial authorities are. What he observes is that these people who are in power and authority are using it for their own benefit and not using it for the benefit of those whom they are leading. For all their self-righteousness, they failed to follow Moses’ warning about doing this very type of thing.

Yet, Solomon writes do not be shocked at the sight. He is not condoning it, but recognizing the evil of humanity and how it manifests itself. Solomon goes on to spell out how the cycle goes on: for one official watches over another official, and there are higher officials over them. The Living Bible words it in a way that I believe we can all understand: the matter is lost in red tape and bureaucracy. Sadly, what most likely took place was the officials kept resources to themselves rather than helping those who really needed it.

We might think everything would be much better if there were no government involved at all. Verse 9 is a challenging verse which has confused many capable scholars. Yet it seems that Solomon is stating that even though things aren’t as they should be, having a king is by far better than everyone doing what is right in their own eyes, which is actually anarchy. Here is where we see that the bent towards evil when coupled with power and authority can cause terrible corruption. And the wondrous fact is that God is ultimately the One Who will make right all of the wrong, for He is above all the others.

For the believer, a simple admonition from Paul is a great place to camp: Honor one another above yourself.

Investing Properly - 5:10-20

By now, we understand that investing in our worship of the Lord and in honoring others creates a much more pleasing portfolio. However, some people just don’t seem to understand. The lure of money and wealth is too much for them as they have believed all the false promises this world has provided.

Many people think that if they just have a little bit more they will be fulfilled. They would do just about anything to insure this type of value. But listen to what Solomon says about investing their being in wealth and money. You see, wealth and the pursuit of it is incredibly enticing and many are swept up with the hunger for more.

Verse 10 shows those who guard money so carefully, they don’t want to spend it and are always looking for more. People are willing to give up or sacrifice many things just simply to have and to hold onto money. Interestingly, there is taught a form of security in having a large amount of money. Yet, this can be swallowed up or lost or stolen in a moment. For the Christian, we must understand that our security is found in our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Even the best financial counselors recognize that for the average person, there is a perpetual chasing after more and more money. Yet money cannot be of any eternal value, only a relationship with Jesus Christ has eternal value.

Verse 11 refutes the notion that money can solve most any problem. While it is true that we need money to survive and function in our world, it is not true that it can be the ultimate fixer for all of life. The first house we bought revealed that to us quite quickly, as we discovered that home ownership provides its own costly pitfalls which requires more money. It appears from this verse that friends and relatives began coming out of the woodwork to help spend the money that had been accumulated.

There is a quote attributed to John Wesley, one of the early leaders of the Methodist Church: Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can. This is not a maxim for how to get rich, but it helps one to truly understand what is the best investment.

Verse 12 reminds us that the wealthy are not necessarily more peaceful. In fact, it seems that Solomon is suggesting that the average person has a more fitful sleep than the individual who is rich. The Living Bible translates the verse quite nicely: The man who works hard sleeps well whether he eats little or much, but the rich must worry and suffer insomnia. The story is told that John D. Rockefeller is an example of a man whose life was almost ruined by wealth. At the age of fifty-three, Rockefeller was the world’s only billionaire, earning about a million dollars a week. But he was a sick man who lived on crackers and milk and could not sleep because of worry. When he started giving his money away, his health changed radically and he lived to celebrate his ninety-eighth birthday!

John D. Rockefeller is an example of a man whose life was almost ruined by wealth. At the age of fifty-three, Rockefeller was the world’s only billionaire, earning about a million dollars a week. But he was a sick man who lived on crackers and milk and could not sleep because of worry. When he started giving his money away, his health changed radically and he lived to celebrate his ninety-eighth birthday!

Remember how many try to convince us that wealth is what helps us to feel secure? In verses 13-17, Solomon debunks this, as well. He starts out by showing how a miserly person becomes a miserable person. Then we see how investments were made that were very unwise and lost it all, not even being able to support a son. The problem ultimately is to understand the reality that when you are investing in financial wealth instead of your personal relationship to God, you are investing in the wrong thing.

So what is to be done? It seems that Solomon reminds us to accept where we are and be thankful and enjoy the blessings God provides us. We need to work hard and faithfully in the process. This seems to be the best approach to wealth; enjoy work, be content with your life, knowing that this is a gift from God. It has been said that abundance is useless without the power to enjoy it.

Verse 20 seems to help us with perspective in that if we are grateful and rejoice at the many blessings from God, whether big or little, we will not be looking back with sadness. Listen to The Living Bible way of wording verse 20: The person who does that will not need to look back with sorrow on his past, for God gives him joy. I believe that this implies that we don’t dwell in the past, but focus on God’s blessings for the day, and eventually the reality that we will be forever in His glorious presence. This is much more easily done when we are investing in worshipping God and honoring others. Sounds a lot like the response Jesus gave when asked about the greatest commandment.

“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’  This is the great and [a]foremost commandment.  The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update Chapter 22

YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’

38 “This is the great and 1foremost commandment.

39 “The second is like it, ‘aYOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’

Reflections

Warren Wiersbe summarizes this chapter beautifully: If we focus more on the gifts than on the Giver, we are guilty of idolatry. If we accept His gifts, but complain about them, we are guilty of ingratitude. If we hoard His gifts and will not share them with others, we are guilty of indulgence. But if we yield to His will and use what He gives us for His glory, then we can enjoy life and be satisfied.

If we focus more on the gifts than on the Giver, we are guilty of idolatry. If we accept His gifts, but complain about them, we are guilty of ingratitude. If we hoard His gifts and will not share them with others, we are guilty of indulgence. But if we yield to His will and use what He gives us for His glory, then we can enjoy life and be satisfied.