Unprofitable Profitability

-June 21, 2022-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

(Mark 8:36-37).

Riches are not the only stumbling block in coming to Christ, but they are certainly one of the greatest. There are two kinds of people: those who are rich and those who strive to be. Jesus explains that riches, in particular money, do not profit in the light of eternity. Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 6:10, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

We all need money to live on and provide for our families; but the obsession for it is to the detriment of our souls and is folly and vanity. Every year Forbes Magazine releases its list of the ten richest people in the world. Each year the mega wealthy move up or down the list. The top six in the world have net worth’s of over 100 billion dollars! It is a very exclusive club.

1. Bernard Arnault & family – $211 billion. 2. Elon Musk – $180 billion. 3. Jeff Bezos – $114 billion. 4. Larry Ellison – $107 billion. 5. Warren Buffet – $106 billion. 6. Bill Gates – $104 billion. 7. Michael Bloomberg – $94.5 billion. 8. Carlos Slim & family – $93 billion. 9. Mukesh Ambani – $83.4 billion. 10. Steve Ballmer – $80.7 billion.

Jesus did not speak glowingly about rich people, in fact quite the opposite. The rich young ruler had so much money and was unwilling to part with it to follow Jesus. Our Savior told the Parable of the Rich Fool who decided to tear down his barns and build larger ones to have more and more. The problem was God required his soul and his soul was lost for all eternity. No one can take their money or possessions with them into eternity. Even here on earth money can be lost, stolen, devalued, burned up, squandered, or at best spent.

I would rather have heavenly riches which will last forever. As believers we are the richest people in the world because all things are ours in Christ. Winning souls to Christ, building up the saints, serving the Lord, giving to support the Lord’s work, helping others in need build our spiritual bank account. No one can put a value on a single soul, its worth is beyond billions.

May the Lord help us to have the right mind set when it comes to money and possessions. God has given them to us to use as stewards. They can either help us or hinder us depending how we use them or abuse them. So many are possessed by their possessions, while only a few truly possess their possessions. As Christians we must be on guard over all that we have, use them for God’s kingdom and glory, and not let them distract us or destroy us. Unprofitable profitability is still and always will worse than profitable profitability.

Have a blessed day with the right attitude toward money, with genuine gratitude. Stay safe and healthy.

Content with little or with much,

Dean