Pride is programmed into the sinful heart of mankind. Only through the power of Jesus Christ can we live above self centered pursuits. Benjamin Franklin articulated this truth quite well. Franklin wrote: There is perhaps no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride. Beat it down, stifle it, mortify it, as much as one pleases, it is still alive. Even if I could conceive that I had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my humility.” As we continue our study on living a humble life, we will investigate another contrast found in Proverbs 11.
The second contrast between the prideful person and the humble one is found in the kind of treasure they pursue. Both long to attain treasure, but the kind of treasure each one pursues is different. PR 11:4 Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. The proverb begins by rebuking those who put their full trust in accumulating earthly treasures. Some Christians misquote the scripture and teach that money is a root of all kinds of evil. Money has its place. Many wealthy believers are wonderful stewards and use their resources generously for God's Kingdom. The text actually says, 1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. The love of money can distract the child of God and send him or her off in wild goose chases that waste precious time.
Fanatical pursuit of earthly treasures consume our time like a raging fire consumes a forest. Someone has written: “You don't really pay for things with money. You pay for them with time. “In five years, I'll have put enough away to buy that vacation house we want. Then I'll slow down. That means the house will cost you five years-one twelfth of your adult life. Translate the dollar value of the house, car or anything else into time, and then see if its still worth it. Sometimes you can't do what you want and have what you want at once because each requires a different expenditure of time. The phrase spending your time is not a metaphor. Its how life works.” Much of what matters here will be trivial in Heaven. For example, the roads will be made of gold. If you think about it, it seems crazy to spend much of our time working to acquire pavement.
The humble person seeks a different type of treasure. PR 11:4b ...but righteousness delivers from death. Jesus told a parable that encouraged His followers to seek the kingdom of a God which He described as a valuable fortune. MT 13:44 "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. MT 13:45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. Eternal treasures do not rust, or decay. Neither can they be stolen from us, (Matthew 6:19). What we store up in this kingdom is destined to perish. Thus, the humble person seeks to store up eternal treasures.
What are these eternal treasures? 1CO 13:13a And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. Faith in Christ is an eternal prize secured for us at the cross. JN 3:3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. " When we are born again into God's family by the finished work of Jesus we receive a secure place in the family of God. The value of that security cannot be calculated. Jesus said it like this, Mark 8:36 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Salvation is priceless. To be able to know the forgiveness of the Lord personally and to know that you will be with Him forever is an awesome benefit of righteousness. Salvation affects both our past (forgiveness of committed sins), and our future (assurance of Heaven); but that is not all. It also affects us here and now. The salvation power of Christ at work within us enables us to live victoriously over sin on a regular basis. Our faith is a great indicator that the Kingdom of God is at work within us.
Hope is a wonderful aspect of the presence of God's kingdom at work. The Christian always has hope. Paul said, “To live is Christ and to die is gain.” No matter what happens to us we have hope in the Lord. I think of the awesome story of the early church father Polycarp. While in his eighties he was confronted by the Roman authorities. They desperately wanted to quiet his eloquent preaching and writing. He refused. "Then we'll take all your possessions," they told him." Go ahead," he said. "My God has promised to supply all I need according to His riches in glory. He will take care of me." (Philippians 4:17-19) "If you don't stop preaching, we'll take your wife and children and kill them," they threatened."You can't take them away from me," he answered, "for they belong to God. I will spend all eternity in heaven with them." And he continued teaching about the love of God. They came back with a final warning: "Then we'll kill you." "That would be best of all," answered Polycarp, for I would go immediately into the presence of my Lord. Nothing could be more wonderful." Folks, that is hope.
The final component of a kingdom outlook is love. Where God is, love is. 1 John 4:16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. It is an awesome thought that nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:38-39). His love gives us security by letting us know that we are loved no matter what. That security enables us to turn our thoughts off of ourselves and onto others. Such love works as a beacon of divine light to the broken. Hopefully, they will find faith and hope as they see God's love in action. Let me close with these words that I ran across today. “What is love? It is silence--when your words would hurt. It is patience--when your neighbor's curt. It is deafness--when a scandal flows. It is thoughtfulness--for other's woes. It is promptness--when stern duty calls. It is courage--when misfortune falls.” The child of God looks for a treasure chest that is filled with faith, hope and love.