The true Christian life is the most difficult life we can live on this earth, but it is also the most fulfilling life we can live. As John wrote in 1 John 5:19, “The whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” We can be sure the evil one is making this life as difficult as he can for the true followers of Christ, and the Lord allows it for our sake. Those who walk with Christ at the end of the age will walk in a power and glory that no other generation has and demonstrate the authority of the coming kingdom of God. They must be found adequate to handle such authority.

      The world celebrates the false Christianity of comfort, ease, and devotion to the ways and the wealth of this world. The Lord taught that those who were at ease in this world would have a very difficult time getting into His kingdom.

      He also said that His true followers would not be loved or celebrated by the world but would be hated by it just as it hated Him. He said, “Woe to you when all the people speak well of you; for their fathers used to treat the false prophets the same way” (Luke 6:26). Contrary to this, how much of the modern church seeks to be accepted and celebrated by the world? Is this why the church has so much worldly wealth and power, but very little spiritual wealth or power?

      The book of Revelation reveals that there are two churches—one built by men and one built by God. The one built by men is full of the world’s wealth, and those in it live in luxury. The one being built by God is composed of sojourners who are strangers in this world, persecuted and living under constant threat from the world.

      The point is that there are two churches—the one the world sees and acknowledges and the unseen one being built above, which few people on earth can see. This is the one that Abraham saw that would compel him to leave everything that he had known and built his life on, to seek the city that God is building, not men.

      Even so, let us consider this twist. Abraham, the father of faith, was one of the wealthiest men of the times, so wealthy he even made kings jealous. So were his sons and heirs of the promises of God, Isaac and Jacob.

      Now, consider that the apostle Paul was from a wealthy and distinguished family of Jews who had been given Roman citizenship. In Acts 24, we’re told that the Roman governor, Felix, would listen to Paul hoping that Paul would give him money. Paul also used his Roman citizenship to his advantage when it was beneficial. Paul also experienced great trials and want. He wrote that he had learned to be abased and to abound. Most of us need to learn both of these as well.

      It’s not the condition we’re in that will determine whether we walk with God, but it’s what we do with those conditions. Paul wrote to the Corinthians that they should remain in the condition they were in and be content. He wrote this about marriage, but it includes all other conditions—status, where we’re born or live, or any other factor. The authority of the King we’re called to serve is above all of these.

      We’ve been called to live in difficult times, but in many ways, they’re far easier than any other time. I have flown across the world many times for ministry. Each trip I was so thankful that I could go from one side of the world to the other in hours, in comfort, instead of taking the slow and storm-beaten ships that required many months to do this not so long ago. Today, some of the poorest among us have many more conveniences and luxuries than kings did not too long ago.

      It is not wrong to use the conveniences of this world if we can, but we should do all things in moderation and use what we do with gratitude. When we are being abased, we should also be thankful for all of the trials that He is using to make us into vessels He can use.

      We are using this study as a practical Word for the Week to help us in our daily walk, as well as a study of the book of Revelation, and we are connecting biblical prophecies to help us navigate these times and the world today. We are in a time of unprecedented advancement and wealth, which we also must know how to navigate. The church at Laodicea in the book of Revelation, which we will see relates to the times we’re in, did not do to well with this. Why? Handling wealth can be even more difficult spiritually than dealing with poverty.

      In Luke 16:11, Jesus said, "Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true wealth to you? If we are being entrusted with wealth, it can be more dangerous than being tested with want. We need to view it as a test and resolve to grow in our faith in the Lord through this as stewards of His wealth. As in the Parable of the Talents, if we are good managers of what He has entrusted to us, He will give us more to manage. But it is His, and it is not being given to us to just consume ourselves.

      We shouldn’t feel guilty about having wealth if that is something He has called us to, but we should be grateful and keep in mind the exhortation of Philippians 4:5 (KJV): “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”

 

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