Hypocrisy Is Worse Than Poverty

Common Sense Commentary: Be fair, be honest, be true ... let that be you.


I am not wealthy but I am not jealous of, or covetous of,  other people’s wealth. Whether they earned it or inherited it, their wealth is “their own”, and they are accountable to God, who allowed them to have it, for how they use it. In Acts 5:4, a man and his wife told people they were going to sell a piece of property and give the money  to the Lord’s  church. They sold it but secretly kept back part of the sale price. The Apostle Peter, being led of God, confronted them with their lie…   “Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.” The land was theirs. They could have kept it all if they had not lied about it. Lying is worse than poverty.

Both poverty and wealth are relative terms. In the U.S., our government subsidizes millions of families who have  a home, two cars, TVs, computers, and a fair income, as being in poverty.  Real poverty is a grass or cardboard hut, no clean water, no electricity, no bathroom or kitchen, no money, no medical care and very  little food. I have seen much of that kind of poverty in many other countries but not in the U.S.  People in many areas of the world are convinced that every American is rich because we all have clothes, cars, houses and abundance of food. They think we are rich because we have those things and they do not. But those same Americans, rich in the eyes of many needier people, deny they are wealthy, but think  other Americans who have even larger, nicer homes ,than they, are the rich ones. But those “larger nicer homes” people do not think they are rich either, but its someone else… with two homes and several cars, who are wealthy ….. and so on up the wealth ladder.

I think material wealth is measured by how much you have in excess to the bare essentials of life. All above that level is wealth.

The first two people born in the world, Cain and Able, gained excess wealth, Cain in fruit and vegetables and Able in excess sheep. They both brought of their excess as an offering to God. Job was a very successful and wealthy rancher/farmer, judging by his excess of every thing. Yes, he lost it all, but God allowed him to regain wealth in even larger  amounts, later. But, why did Job allow himself to become wealthy when there were people around him in need, if he was so close to God? Why didn’t he give away all but the very minimum necessities of life, to survive, if he was so spiritual?  Why did God think Job needed to be so wealthy when there were others with nothing? The same was true of Abraham. He had great wealth in terms of livestock and land. `Why did God prosper Abraham and allow him to accumulate so much excess?  Joseph became extremely wealthy and powerful in Egypt, second only to the Pharaoh himself. Why did Joseph allow himself to become wealthy enough to bail out the original twelve tribes of Israel from the great drought?  Mary, who anointed the feet of Jesus with costly ointment had it in excess to basic needs. Those  two who later attended the dead body of Jesus were also wealthy believers. Many   “religious”  and “non-religious” people would ask, with Judas, Why wasn’t this (excess) value sold and the money given to the poor? Matt. 26:9. Why did Jesus rebuke those who criticized her for her generous act? It was her’s to give or to keep, and none of their business.
There were starving people all around these wealthy believers. Why didn’t Job, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Mary and those who provided a new tomb, a hundred pounds of costly herbs, linen and other personal excess, sell these things and give the money to the poor instead of, in Judas’ eyes, wasting it on the feet of Jesus … and later on His dead body for burial? God, obviously, did not disapprove of them but, in fact, He gave them the ability and resourcefulness to gain that wealth.

Wealth is simply excess to the basic needs of life, in whatever amounts. If you, after the basic needs of survival food, water, clothing, and a minimal house, car and utilities, have enough excess to buy beer, cold drinks, TVs, computers, entertainment and such luxuries, you are wealthy in comparison to most of the world’s population. They know it; but you don’t. Why didn’t YOU give that excess to starving people, homeless children, sick people and the abused, helpless people of this world? You might say, “because it’s mine, I earned it or inherited it and I’ll spend it like I want to.”  But do you allow everyone else to do the same, including those you consider richer than yourself? If not, you, my friend are a hypocrite …. and hypocrisy is worse than poverty. RB