Revelation 18: 11 The merchants of the
earth also cry and mourn for her, because no one buys their goods any
longer; 12 no one buys their gold, silver, precious
stones, and pearls; their goods of linen, purple cloth, silk, and scarlet
cloth; all kinds of rare woods and all kinds of objects made of ivory and of
expensive wood, of bronze, iron, and marble; 13 and
cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine and oil, flour and
wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and carriages, slaves, and even human
lives. 14 The merchants say to her, “All the good
things you longed to own have disappeared, and all your wealth and glamor are
gone, and you will never find them again!” 15 The
merchants, who became rich from doing business in that city, will stand a long
way off, because they are afraid of sharing in her suffering. They will cry and
mourn, 16 and say, “How terrible! How awful for the
great city! She used to dress herself in linen, purple, and scarlet, and cover
herself with gold ornaments, precious stones, and pearls! 17 And
in one hour she has lost all this wealth!”
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Expecting to be rich, I asked for some stock tips from a
wealthy person. I immediately purchased some shares of stock to practice my new
route to extreme wealth! I watched “my” money grow for a minute, but then the
stock began to fall. I decided to keep “my” money in. After a while, the stock
went to zero and I lost “my” money.
- The loss came quickly.
- The loss made me mourn.
- The loss made me stay away from wasting any more time and money, searching for something empty.
John, the disciple JESUS loved, was shown a great city that
caused the world to sin in greedy ways. Merchants who had become wealthy
mourned over the immediate loss of income from the lustful wealth they once had
experienced.
My Observations:
- When GOD said “The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” HE said it as a warning.
- GOD also warned me that humans cannot serve two masters and the choice will be between HIM or money.
- GOD wants me to love HIM with all my heart, mind and soul, so there would be no room for loving things that could harm me.
Having money is not the problem, it is when money has me
that causes many issues. I mean, when I can easily give to people and do not
care if I am wealthy or not, then GOD can trust me to not fall into the
temptations of wealth. Unfortunately, wealth is flashed in front of us, seemingly,
every minute of the day.
Business owners face a dilemma of being profitable and
serving people. GOD blesses fair scales, or prices and wonderful treatment of
employees and customers. I gladly put GOD at the center of my business so I
will not share in the tearing down of the thing that makes greed appealing.
Challenge
- What detail does the writer mention?
- Have you ever wanted to be rich or at least more wealthy?
- Has money hindered your relationship with serving GOD?
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