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“Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.” (James 1:9-11, ESV)

Pastor Abel’s sermon on this passage is titled, “Chasing What Won’t Last”.

I checked the Forbes real time list of today’s top billionaires. Elon Musk is at the top, worth over 900 billion (with a b) dollars. That’s more than twice as much as the closest runner up, Jeff Bezos (founder of Amazon), who is worth 368 billion. Such wealth is shocking, and it is difficult for me to even comprehend.

Contrast this with the average American who, though living in arguably the wealthiest nation on earth, owes $63,500 in debt according to USA Facts. Looking at these two groups of people through the lens of our culture, we see the gigantic chasm separating us.

However, James gives us the perspective of wisdom in the above passage, because he considers death. Notice he speaks of the rich man passing and fading away. Every human, rich or poor or middle class, will die and face God. It is not coincidental that James speaks of death immediately after encouraging us to ask God for wisdom, for grasping the reality of death is one of the foundations of biblical wisdom.

Psalm 90, written by Moses, says, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12, ESV). And the foundational wisdom book in the Bible, Proverbs, begins with. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7, ESV). Why fear God? Because our lives are in his hands (as Job, one of the wisest men who ever lived, learned so painfully).

Notice how death impacts the poor and rich differently according to James. When the poor Christian dies, they lose nothing material but gain eternity. That is an infinite return on investment. James calls it exaltation. When the billionaire Christian dies, they lose billions of dollars. James calls it humiliation. However, they still gain the same eternity with Christ that the poor Christian does! This is why can have real hope in Christ, regardless of our material wealth.

 

Further Study

 

Small Group Questions

  • Which of the two groups do you identify with, the poor, or the rich?
  • Have you ever compared yourself to others and valued or devalued yourself based on your wealth compared to them?
  • Why is it so hard to maintain an eternal perspective when dealing with our money?
  • How do we avoid deriving our value based on whether we are rich or poor?
  • Why do both groups have reason to rejoice, regardless of material wealth?