JamesNäide

James opens this chapter talking with those who are rich. To be clear he is not condemning people for having possessions or judging people for having lots of money, but he does talk about the love of money. What this passage ultimately boils down to is stewardship.

James talks about those who store their your treasures, money, fancy clothes, etc and he has two things to say about them. The first is that they have stored all this treasure up, but let it all spoil, rust, and become worthless. Secondly, not only did they waste their resources, but they did it all while cheating others out of the pay they deserved. The people he is referring to have not stewarded well what God has given them.

God blesses us not so we hoard our blessings. He blesses us so that we can be a blessing to others. Proverbs 11:25 says “Whoever brings blessing will be enriched.”

Everything that we have and everything on Earth is God’s, so we are stewards of what God has given us. We are not here to hoard everything in hopes of becoming rich, but instead, look to help others giving of your time, talents, or treasures.

Prayer points:

• Ask God to show you how you can best steward what you have.
• Pray for opportunities to help someone using either your time, talents, or treasure.