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Royalty and Ruin
the necessities of life. Worried and oppressed, they do not know
where to turn for relief. And all this so that the rich may live extrav-
agantly or indulge their desire to accumulate more!
Love of money and display has made this world a den of thieves.
“Come now, you rich,” James wrote. “You have heaped up treasure
in the last days. Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your
fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the
reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth [hosts]. You
have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened
your hearts as in a day of slaughter.”
James 5:1, 3-5
.
Even some who profess to fear God are repeating what the nobles
of Israel did. Because it is in their power to do so, they become
oppressors. And because the lives of those who have taken the name
of Christ show such greed, people hold the religion of Christ in
contempt. Extravagance and extortion are corrupting the faith of
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many and destroying their spirituality. The church gives approval to
evil if she fails to lift her voice against it.
Every unjust act is a violation of the golden rule—done to Christ
Himself in the person of His people. Every attempt to take advantage
of another person’s ignorance or misfortune is registered as fraud
in the books of heaven. Just to the extent that we may try to gain
personal advantage at the disadvantage of another, to that extent will
we become unresponsive to the influence of the Spirit of God.
The Son of God paid the price for our redemption. He became
poor that through His poverty we might be rich. By helping the poor
liberally we may prove the sincerity of our gratitude: “Let us do
good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
Galatians 6:10
. “Whatever you want men to do to you, do also to
them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 7:12
.
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