I hear so many believers make reference to the fact that God would transfer the wealth of the wicked into their laps. Therefore, though the title of the article might sound like a rhetoric question, there is an important truth that we need to be aware of.
The scripture reference is found in Proverbs 13:22
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children; And the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the righteous.
The reference in this scriptural verse refers to the righteous and not the believer. This is not a play on words. The obvious question that comes to mind is that, isn’t every believer righteous because of what Christ has done? After all, in 2 Corinthians 5:21 and 1 Corinthians 1:30, the scriptures tell us that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
A good starting point is to go back to the definition of the word righteous. Righteousness simple means to be righteous and righteousness, in turn means that we have a right standing before God.
Therefore, what Paul is implying here is that because of the finished work of Christ on the cross, we now have a right standing before God. Indeed, because of this, we are encouraged to approach the throne of God with boldness, knowing that we are accepted.
On the other hand, there are scriptures such as Matthew 5:and Luke 6:33, where we are told to hunger and thirst after righteousness. In fact, in the Luke reference, Jesus places seeking righteousness above seeking for our daily water and food. If there was not a need to seek after righteousness, it would not have been recorded in the Bible. The righteousness spoken about here conveys the idea of moral righteous – doing what is right.
So how do the two scriptures fit together and what are we to make of it? The work of Christ enables us to have a right standing before God but the scriptures also encourage us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling i.e. now as believers, we should strive to continue to have a right standing before God.
We cannot say that because Christ has made us the righteousness of Christ, we can live our lives any-how because we have been bought with a price. However, the Christian journey is a process and a journey that we live in conjunction with the Holy Spirit.
We should thrive to make righteousness our main priority, so that, at all times, we have a right standing before God, with clean hands and a pure heart.
There is action involved on our part and as we do so, we can see that the wealth of the wicked, would be laid up, not for the believer but the righteous. We should seek to deliberately walk in a righteous manner.
Yes, we all know many people who are neither believers nor righteous, but are wealthy but that’s a discussion for another day.
However, for you, my fellow brothers and sisters, who are seeking the best from God, let’s remember, that the key to the wealth of the wicked, is the need to be righteous. Pursing God’s righteousness, you cannot go wrong.
I hope that you have enjoyed and be challenged by this post. Please don’t forget to leave your comments. So until I appear again in your inbox, stay blessed.
Ola Aroyehun
Last update : Wednesday 10/29/08
|
|
Users' Comments  |
|
Average user rating
 (0 vote)
|
|
|
Enter your details to receive your free ebook and regular newsletter
Blogs 
