READ: James 5:1,2 NLT
'Look here, you rich people: Weep and groan with anguish because of all the terrible troubles ahead of you. Your wealth is rotting away, and your fine clothes are moth-eaten rags.'
You can almost see the steam coming out of James’s ears can’t you? He is furious at the way in which the rich people were abusing their position. His very specific gripe with them was that they had failed to pay their workmen for mowing their fields. For James this wasn’t a little economic problem. This was an evil that had reached the ears of God himself and the rich people were heading for certain judgement.
The Bible isn’t against rich people. However, God is certainly against anyone who abuses others and on many occasions the Bible reveals times when rich people have abused their position and exploited others. This was a major theme in the prophecy of Amos. He had particularly severe words for the women of Bashan in chapter 4:1 “You women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and say to your husband, ’Bring us some drinks’” These rich women lived in their charmed and privileged world, totally cut off from the suffering of the poor people on whose hard work their wealth depended. God tells the rich people, men and women, that he is not willing to listen to their worship. They need to change their actions and start acting justly.
Wealth in itself is a thoroughly good thing, because it is part of God’s creation. Our responsibility is to be good stewards of whatever God has put in our hands. In world terms there is a great deal of wealth in this country. More than a third of the world’s population live on less than £2 a day and have no access to clean water. Whatever God has given us we need to use it wisely and ensure that the most vulnerable are protected and cared for. James wants us to know that we all have a role to play in sharing God’s good gifts.
QUESTION: What do you own and how could you use it more effectively to help vulnerable people?
PRAYER: Thank you Lord for all my possessions. I recognize that they have come from your hands and I ask your Holy Spirit to help me to use them in a way that will glorify your name. Amen.

Released on 16 Nov 2020