‘God does not want you to be poor.’

You have probably heard this statement. Many people today speak on God’s behalf, declaring what He “wants” or “does not want” for every Christian. The problem is that such claims often become teachings Scripture never gives us.

Who is rich and who is poor?

If you earn €1,000 a month while someone elsewhere lives on €50, you are rich compared with them. But if you compare yourself with Elon Musk, you will look extremely poor.

So who is rich and who is poor?

Material wealth is always relative. It depends on whom we compare ourselves with. That is why God does not place the focus on accumulating earthly goods, but on the condition of our hearts.

“Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”Luke 12:15

Jesus never made a bank balance the measure of God’s favour. Instead, He warned us not to lay up treasures on earth, but treasures in heaven.

The secret of contentment

The question is not simply whether we have much or little. The question is whether we have learned to be grateful and content in every situation. The apostle Paul experienced both need and abundance, yet wrote that he had learned to be content in every circumstance and could face all things through Christ who strengthened him.

True wealth is not found in how much you possess, but in who possesses you. It is having peace with God and thanking Him through every circumstance, whether your wallet is full or empty.

The person who has Christ is rich even with little in this world. The poorest person may be the one who possesses everything but is without God.

Do not measure God’s love by your wallet

God does bless some people with material means. But nowhere does He promise that material wealth is proof of greater faith or greater favour. If it were, the apostles, who often lived through deprivation and hardship, would have been outside God’s will.

Do not measure God’s love by your wallet. Measure it by the cross.

The greatest treasure God has ever given humanity is not money. It is His Son.

Jesus tells us not to be anxious about food, drink or clothing, because life is more than food and the body more than clothing (Matthew 6:25).

God cares for us. That is enough.