Wealth and righteousness
In this article, we look at the relationship between wealth and righteousness. Job is the story of a man who suffered a great deal, through no fault of His own
The name of Job has several meanings. The short list includes persecuted, cruelly or hostily treated, hated and counted as an enemy, one that grieves or moans, persecuted one, the patient sufferer
Job, as mentioned above, was a righteous, successful and wealthy man who was respected in the community. “There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil (Job 1:1). He was blameless not sinless.
Job knew God. He knew the fundamental principles of doctrine though at that time the scriptures did not exist in the form that we have them today. He respected God and His doctrine and tried to live by Godly principles. He avoided evil as much as he could. Job was a man who was able to separate in his mind, his worldly possessions from his spiritual possessions. He had not departed from God’s commandments as expressed in Job 23:12 “I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.”
He had a wife and ten children, all of whom lived in their own individual homes. We do not know his ancestry but his acknowledgement of God and the practices of faith is what characterised the man. He lived in a very ancient era and yet possessed a thorough knowledge of God, history and spiritual life.
Being a farmer of crops would imply that Job was not nomadic. He was stabilised in his life. He was involved in the social, local governing and justice of his region. We also know that he had brothers (19:17)
He had a reputation for righteousness and perhaps patience as reflected in Ezekiel 14:14 “ Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness,” says the Lord GOD”
Job’s righteousness
We have seen above that God testified to Job’s character. The book of Job gives us further insight into the type of character that pleases God. This is recorded in Job 31.
Here Job was asserting his innocence to God and called upon God to answer based on righteousness. Job exhibited the following characteristics as recorded in this chapter
• His attitude to women: he has not lusted after them: 31:1-4
• Attitude to lies: He has not lied or deceived : 31:5-8
• Attitude to adultery: he has not committed adultery: 31:9-12
• Attitude to servants: he has not failed to help his servants (31:13-15
• Attitude to poor people: he has not failed to help the poor and needy: 31:16-23
• Attitude to wealth: he has not trusted in his wealth: 31: 24-25
• Attitude to false gods: he has not turned to idolatry: 31:26-28
• Attitude to enemies: he has looked for their destruction: 31:29-30
• Attitude to strangers: he has not been stingy: 31:31-32
• Attitude to evil: he has not hidden his sin: 31:33-34
• Attitude to farm workers: he has not been unfair: 31:38-40
Basically, Job was generous with his time and money. He was there to help the poor and used his money for the public good. He helped many people, not just his family, friends and employers. He guarded both his private and public life.
This gives us an insight as men and women who handle money, no matter how small or big – this is the type of behaviour expected of Christians
About the Author: Ola Aroyehun is the editor of ‘The Christian Business Magazine’ – a magazine dedicated to applying biblical truths to the world of business. She has a desire to see Christians be ‘students’ of the word and not just ‘readers of the world’. For more information on wealthy people of the bible, register for the free newsletter at www.christianbusinessonthenet.com.
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Print Article | Download PDF | 56 views | Mar 03 2008
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