POVERTY: BIBLICAL VIEWS
IF THERE IS GOD, WHY DO A LOT OF PEOPLE EXPERIENCE POVERTY?
The Bible says there are things that will disqualify you from ever having success!
The following two things will kill every business deal, and God will guarantee you poverty if you practice just one of them.
Idolatry. Idolatry is defined as the worship of a physical object as a god, or immoderate devotion or attachment to something. The first commandment says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” Exodus 20:3. Not rock stars, not movie stars, not athletic stars; just the Bright and Morning Star, Jesus Christ.
Idolatry is the inordinate devotion to anything other than God. How much time do you spend watching TV? Who gets prime time in your life? Who or what is the lord of your life? Who or what has influence over your life?
Consider the god of intellectualism. 1 Samuel 15:23 says, “for rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.” Who is stubborn? The man or woman who will not change his/her opinion, even when the word of God says he/she is wrong. The opinion has become their god. When you refuse to hear the word of God and stubbornly stick with your unbiblical opinion, you are in intellectual idolatry.
Laziness. If there’s a great book on the work ethic in the world, it’s the Bible. The Bible says, “Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work” Exodus 20:9. God worked, and some of you ought to try it. 1 Timothy 5:8 says that he who does not provide for his family has denied the faith and is worse than an infidel unbeliever.
If you’re a Christian, you ought to be the best worker in your company. When your boss gets ready to lay people off, he wouldn’t dare think of letting you go because he can’t do without you.