Money, money, money.

Steve Brown:
Money, money, money. Let’s talk about it, on Key Life.

Matthew Porter:
This is Key Life, here to let Christians know that God isn’t mad at them. Keep listening and you’ll hear that because of what Jesus has done, you’re welcomed home into the family of God because of His radical grace, free from the penalties of sin, and never alone in your suffering.

Steve Brown:
Thank you Matthew. We’re studying Proverbs, if you’re just joining us. And I’ve said this a thousand times, but Proverbs is different. You have to study it by subject and not by theme, or not by an outline of the book, because no outline really works. It’s a list of a very wise saying, spoken by some very wise people, who were inspired by a very wise God to give this to us and to say this is the best way to live. That’s why Proverbs ought to be a book you’re into very often. I have friends who read one proverb, one chapter of Proverbs every day and fill out their month that way. That’s not a bad practice. All right, next subject, money. And if you were listening yesterday and the day before, we were talking about how you’ve got to be careful when you think that if you do it right, you’re going to be rewarded. And if you do it wrong, you’re going to be punished. That’s not on a one to one correlation of the way that God works. Most of the time, if you do it right, it’ll be all right. Most of the time, if you do it wrong, you’ll pay a price. Satan always says, take what you want and pay the price. And that’s true, you know it’s true. Common sense says it’s true. Your life says it’s true. My life says it’s true. When I’ve done it right, generally it’s been okay. At least I slept better at night. When I did it wrong, I got into all kinds of trouble. And that’s what Proverbs is saying, and I taught you the difference between a principle and a promise. A principle is, this is the way things work. A promise says, this is what God does. And you’ve got to separate that. Well, that’s true also with money. The dangerous thing when you’re talking about this subject, is that you can set out a book on how to use your money, and if you do it this way, you’ll make a fortune, and you’ll be rich. The next time you hear that in a commercial, on television, or on radio, Or see it on your computer, delete, delete it in your mind, because those things don’t work and greedy people fall for it all the time and get into trouble. Make sure that you have somebody, like my wife, who understands money. There was a time in my ministry when I found out that some wives were using money as a weapon on their husband. They’d give him an allowance, and he better not spend outside of that allowance. And that was not right, that’s not the way a marriage works. And so, I decided to take over the family’s finances because I wanted to be an example. You know what happened? We almost went bankrupt, that’s what happened. And I finally brought it all back to Anna. And I said, you do this, I don’t, or we’re going to go broke if you don’t do it, because she understands money, because she talks to people who do understand money, because she’s wise, because she understands. And if you don’t have somebody around you like that, don’t go for one of those profit making schemes. You get into trouble, they’re lying, you get into trouble all the time. Okay. Let’s turn to what the writer of Proverbs says. This is Proverbs 3:9 through 10.

Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruit of all your increase, so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow with new wine.

Now, that’s a principle, not a promise. Proverbs 11:24 through 26.

There is one who scatters, yet increases more. And there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty. The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself. The people will curse him who withholds grain, but blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

Proverbs 11:28

He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like foliage.

And then Proverbs, and I could find more, there was more in Proverbs. Proverbs 28:11.

The rich man is wise in his own eyes, but the poor who has understanding searches him out.

Now, we’re going to take, I don’t have the time today, but we’re going to take some time tomorrow to look at some important principles that are taught here about generosity. But for now, let me tell you what my late mentor, Fred Smith, used to say, he used to say, the rich were miserable. And I would say, Fred, that’s because riches make you miserable. He said, no, it doesn’t. I’ve been rich and I’ve been poor and rich is better. When you’ve got riches, you get a lot of good, nice things, and that’s better than being poor. And then I said, well, why in the world are rich people so miserable? And he said, and he’s one of the wisest men I’ve ever known, Fred Smith said this, he said, they’re miserable because they got what they wanted. They’re miserable because they got what they wanted and they realized that it wasn’t what they wanted. And that it didn’t deliver on the promise that it made. That’s extremely wise. Earn all you can. Don’t make it carry too much water. You think about that. Amen.

Matthew Porter:
Thanks Steve. We have been strolling through Proverbs and today we got into a subject we’re always ready to hear more about, money. Again, our text today was Proverbs 3:9 through 10, Proverbs 11:24 through 26 and verse 28, and Proverbs 28:11. So, I don’t know about you, but I love an amazing true story. If that’s you too, then lean in and hear about the man who wrote one of the all time, most famous hymns after his four daughters died tragically. Steve spoke about it in a message named after that hymn, take a listen, then I’ll be back to tell you about a special free offer. Here’s Steve.

Steve Brown:
You’re shepherded, when Peter says he’s the shepherd of our souls, you begin to see that he takes care of things like food. He protects us. He teaches us. He’s working with us to make us even more. Anna is in Alabama with our grandchildren. I love you guys, but I wish I was with her. Because I, well, I love her, but I love our grandchildren a lot. They’re better than yours. God only sends boys to guys He doesn’t like. And I have two daughters and three granddaughters and our granddaughters are growing up, the oldest ones in college and the other two are in high school. And I want you to know that I love them, you have no idea. This is true with our daughter, I love them totally. I would have given my life for any of those girls. But I want you to know, as they grew and began to talk, and I began to see what was happening in their lives, the things they were learning, the exciting ways they were changing. I love them. Is it possible? Even more. That’s what God has done. You take, most of you don’t even know what it is, but the AARP magazine, when you turn 50, you can take it and join. Then you start getting that dumb magazine, burn it, filled with drivel. Case in point, the one that just came last week had an article called The Seven Things to Foster Your Inner Life. And I thought, that’d be cool, I’d like to know that myself. You know what they are? Hold on to your family. All right, I’ll go with that. Get a job. What? Get over yourself, well, maybe. Use different gifts. Find like minded folks. Get a dog. Make new friends. Who writes this stuff? What? Well, if that turns you on, I guess. If that fixes your inner life, there’s something wrong with you, or you don’t have much that needs fixing. I frankly, would rather hang out with Jesus. The truth is, he shepherds our souls. And so, the things that you and I are worried about, the sin you can’t quit, and you’ve tried over and over again, chill out, you’re going to get better. Do you have personality traits that drive your friends nuts? I do. And I’ve tried biting my tongue, smiling all the time, and being nice, and I just can’t do it. And Jesus told me, chill out, I’m going to take care of it. You, have lost somebody, and the nights are hard, and he’s not there to wind the clocks anymore. That’s awful, but it’s okay. Jesus is going to take care of it. You feel like you’re never going to be a strong, faithful Christian. I feel that way, and I’ve been doing it a lot longer than you have. Chill out. It’s going to be okay. Galatians 2:20 says, this is Paul speaking.

I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live, but Christ liveth in me.

Now, please note that Paul did not say, go be crucified with Christ. Or get a cat of nine tails or suffer some and be crucified with Christ. He’s not telling you what to do. He’s telling you what you are.

Matthew Porter:
Mmm. Powerful stuff. Listen, can we send you that entire sermon on CD for free? If so, then call us right now at 1-800-KEY-LIFE that’s 1-800-539-5433. You can also e-mail [email protected] if you’d like to mail your request, go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses. Just ask for your free copy of the CD called It Is Well With My Soul. And finally, if you value the work of Key Life, would you support that work through your giving? You can charge a gift on your credit card, you can include a gift in your envelope. Or give safely and securely by text. How do you do it? Easy, just pick up your phone and text Key Life to 28950 that’s Key Life, one word, two words. It doesn’t matter. Just text that to 28950. Key Life is a listener supported production of Key Life Network.