Those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf. Proverbs 11:28
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I love reading Proverbs because there is such a depth of wisdom in each of the chapters. Many of the chapters seem like a collection of random thoughts, but if we pay attention, we can find little pockets of wisdom that all focus on one subject.
Proverbs 11 does just that. Many of the verses in this chapter talk about the difference between righteousness and wickedness. There are a lot of verses about business. Just look at verse 26 “People curse the one who hoards grain, but they pray God’s blessing on the one who is willing to sell.”
The Bible constantly encourages business. Even Solomon in all of his wisdom knew the power of business when it comes to doing business with the right motives. Let’s continue in this chapter.
Verse 27 tells us to “seek good.” We are in business to help other people. When our focus is on doing good and helping others, our business will naturally grow. We will find God’s favor resting on our lives and our business.
That brings us to our focus verse. If we trust in riches, we will fail. If we trust in righteousness, we will thrive. The key word here is ‘trust.’ If our focus is entirely on the bottom line, we miss the opportunity to help others. We miss the favor of God because we are not caring for the people God has entrusted to us.
Sometimes doing the right thing may cost you money. Yet, we all know that we must act on our morals do the right thing. Many times, we see that the right thing may cost for the now, but it will pay off greatly in the long run.
In verse 25 we see the perspective for our focus verse: “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” This verse tells us how we are to look at riches. We are to look at money as a tool to help others. The purpose of our business is to make someone’s life better and add value to the world.
When we seek after righteousness and do the right thing because we are aligning our business with God’s plan, our business will thrive. We will grow when we keep the concept of riches in line with scripture. God gives us riches so that we can bless other people.
When you are generous with what you have, you refresh other people. Too many people use wealth as an opportunity to manipulate, but as Christian business owners, we must use wealth to grow righteousness in ourselves and in the lives of everyone we touch.
Those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf. Proverbs 11:28
