Was Jesus Really Poor?
Was Jesus Really Poor? Really?
Stop telling me Jesus was poor! Jesus was NOT poor! Not like many of us want to think he was. he was not homeless. He was not begging on the streets. He was born in the house of a carpenter. He learned a trade. A trade that kept food on their table. Yes he certainly lived a modest life. He came in the flesh of poor men in order for them to identify with Him. Yes, he laid down all of His riches to put on the flesh of man. And mankind was poor in spirit. If He would have came in all of His glory they would not have been able to comprehend all of royalty. It was a choice that Jesus took on His lowly earthly image. Be mindful of where He came from and where He went back too when He was done here on earth, with those that were still poor naturally. Be He left them with riches beyond their wildest dreams. So, those of you that are still proclaiming the only reason you live the way you do is because Jesus was poor need to stop! That’s your choice...not mine.
I totally get that we are to live a life pleasing to God. And our focus should be on heavenly things. Stop letting people make you feel a certain way just because you’re doing good. It’s not a sin to be wealthy, as long as that’s not your main focus in life. Don’t put your wealth ahead of God. As He gives, He can also take away.
Let’s talk about the different standard in the New Testament. You will not find where the church was ever given a land or the promise of riches. What I'm going to say and read, clearly, will not be a positive image but it will get better trust me, in Ephesians 1:3 we read, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” In Matthew 13:22 Jesus spoke, concerning the seed of God's Word falling among thorns and “the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful” (NKJV). This is the first reference to earthly riches in the New Testament.
Jesus looked around and said to His disciples in Mark 10:23, ‘How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’” It was not impossible—for all things are possible with God—but it would be “hard.” The rich young ruler was sad because he had a lot of money and he was not ready to give it all up and follow Jesus. And this is when wealth and riches become problematic for many Christians. Jesus talked about “mammon” in Luke 16:13, “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” The Aramaic word for mammon is riches. Here again we see the imagery of wealth as a negative influence on spirituality and one that can keep us from God.
When you keep the two in balance it’s a wonderful thing. You can be spiritual and rich as the same time. Dave Ramsey is an awesome financial educator. And there is one thing that I learned in studying his spiritual and financial philosophy he says “When it comes to money, we have three lenses through which we can view what we have. Two of them are unhealthy—even toxic. The third represents a proper approach to what God has given us.
One way we can choose to view wealth is with a spirit of pride, which says that everything I have comes from me. My hard work made it all possible. I’ve struggled with this one because I appreciate the hard work and self-reliance, but the spirit of pride has nothing to do with God’s Spirit.
We also can view wealth with a spirit of poverty. This spirit says that everything I have is evil because it comes from the devil. It feeds on guilt and shame, and it’s running rampant throughout our culture—even within the church. But the spirit of poverty offers another warped view of our resources.
The healthy, biblical view of wealth is the spirit of gratitude. This spirit acknowledges that everything we have comes from God and He expects us to use it for His glory. Gratitude pushes me to change my family tree and to make a difference in the world.” I couldn't agree more, the more I give to God the more He will give to me! People today are content being content, and that’s fine if that’s their calling. But I tend to believe they are cheating others of their gifts not stepping outside of the comfort of their contentment.
Being content does not mean sit on your butt doing nothing. Doing nothing breeds discontentment, regret and financial hardship. God did not create you to sit around feeling content with just the necessities. He created you for greatness and out of that greatness breeds success. Success that produces the resources to help other people. You can’t do that effectively being broke.
One of the greatest verse for New Testament believers, in regards to riches, is Philippians 4:19: “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Paul wrote this because the Philippians had sent sacrificial gifts to take care of his needs. But wait! Paul was not sitting around on his hands waiting for people to cater to his every needs because he was some high priced apostle. He was jail at the time. And even though Paul said to be content in what you have…didn’t not mean not to strive for better. Paul had one speed in life, full steam ahead. And he was constantly moving forward, even when it landed him in prison, more than once, he said “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
Let’s recap there is nothing wrong with having wealth and riches as long as it’s not your main focus in life. But use those riches in building the kingdom of God. There is a warning for those with wealth and riches that misuse their money, 1 Timothy 6:17 says “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.”
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