Rich at Your Own Risk!

Sherman and Ben are busy engaging in a rescue mission - sewing a fallen button on Ben's jacket...

Exasperated after several failed attempts to thread a needle, Sherman moans, "Wah, I am really getting old!" Several more failed attempts and he started "preaching", "Now I know what Jesus meant when he says, 'It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God.'" After a while, he continues in a cheeky tone, "It means that there is no hope for the rich!"

I did not ask Sherman whether he was just joking or was serious about what he said. Nevertheless, Jesus did make the comparison to highlight the extreme difficulty for the rich to enter his kingdom. Furthermore, the account of the rich young man who rejected Jesus' invitation into his kingdom because of the man's love for wealth should serve as a clear warning to the rich and the rich wannabes.

Prosperity gospel, a teaching that advocates the pursuit of material wealth based on the belief that God wants all his people to be financially wealthy, has been well accepted in many affluent countries. It is a gospel that is easily accepted by the listeners as it demands no radical change in the lifestyle of the wealth-craving people. Worse still, it gives them the license to feed on their insatiable greed.

One of my friends is a proponent of the prosperity gospel. I know that he has compassion for the poor and he argues that the prosperity gospel is beneficial to the poor. This is his theory: If more people embrace the prosperity gospel, more people will strive to become rich. When they become rich, they can meet the needs of the poor. If we do not encourage Christians to be rich and all remain poor, who is going to meet the needs of the poor?

His argument sounds reasonable and noble, but when we encourage others to strive to be rich, we are also inviting them to embark on a much riskier path, as Jesus has warned us that it is very difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom. Like the rich young man, once we taste the sweetness of wealth, we may not be willing to let it go for the sake of God's kingdom.

Furthermore, when God grants us more wealth, he is also entrusting greater responsibility upon us. If we do not use the wealth with care, as we often use the wealth to satisfy our wants rather than the needs of others, we may become irresponsible stewards in the eyes of God.

Therefore, before we encourage ourselves and others to pursue wealth for whatever cause, think again. We may be pushing ourselves and others out of God's kingdom.