Proverbs 23:4-5. 4Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. 5When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.
The first eight verses of Proverbs 23 contain three warnings for those of us who want to climb the social or corporate ladder, those who desperately want to get ahead in this life. The first warning concerned being around the social elites and powerful. They will serve you deception for dinner (see yesterday’s devotional).
Today’s warning concerns the pursuit of wealth. The problem lives within both our motivation and the nature of wealth itself. Obviously there is nothing wrong with working hard, the proverbs have made that perfectly clear. Several proverbs have even connected wealth to hard work. Wealth has been presented as a reward for diligence, generosity, and wisdom. So why the negative portrayal of wealth here?
The proverb isn’t down on wealth. The proverb is down on toiling after wealth. To toil is not to work hard. To toil is to work too hard. To toil is to work to exhaustion, and to put that work above everything else in your life. Hard work is not the curse. Toil is.
What is your motivation for hard work? Is it wealth? If so, you’re not alone. We live in a culture where the almighty dollar decides where we work, how much we work, why we work. In a 2023 survey, only 1/3 of American workers said that they are satisfied with what they are paid for their work. Are we grossly underpaid, or are we pursuing job satisfaction, and thus life satisfaction, through a paycheck?
The problem is in verse five. Wealth sprouts wings and flies away like an eagle. The Hebrew contains a play on words, something like “when your eyes fly to your wealth, your wealth will fly away.” When wealth is a gift from God it can be a great blessing, but when we become obsessed with gaining wealth it will literally destroy us. Peace will fly away. Contentment will fly away. Relationships will fly away. Why? Because enough is never enough. In the words of John D. Rockefeller when asked how much money a man needs to be happy, “Just a little bit more,” he replied.
In Christ we have the never ending riches of his grace. We are his treasure and he is ours. He is a treasure that will never fly away. He is a treasure that requires not toil, only faith.
As Jesus himself said, no one can serve two masters. You simply cannot serve God and wealth at the same time. Thankfully we don’t have to. Our loyalties never have to be divided. In Christ we can love and trust our Heavenly Father’s care for us with daily bread, while also working hard at all we do for the glory of God.
You: Are you toiling after wealth? Be honest with yourself?
You in Christ: How does knowing that we have all the riches of Christ allow us to work hard without toiling after fleeting wealth?
Christ in you: How can you begin to put Christ ahead of your wealth today?What attitudes, motivations, or behaviors need to change?
Pray: Father, I want you to pursue and trust you, not wealth. My money will fly away, but Jesus never will. Amen.
To Live is Christ 