James 5:1 (ESV)

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.

This must have sounded so strange to the ears of Jewish believers. To them, having wealth meant that God was pleased with them. Wealth was the measuring stick of one’s relationship with God. The Mosaic Covenant promised blessing for obedience and a curse for disobedience. It was assumed then, that wealth meant blessing. Blessing meant God was pleased with you. It didn’t matter that the wealth was amassed on the backs of those less fortunate. This was the very thing Jesus was addressing when he pointed out the widow who gave her last two coins. For his listeners, poverty meant that God was not pleased with you. Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box” (Mk 12:43 ESV) His words did not make sense to them. That is just not how they understood their world to work.

Too often we have adopted the same mindset without realizing it. We would never say that God is pleased with the rich and displeased with the poor. We would never say it, but we often act as though it is true. Too often our wealth is not a blessing at all. It is a hindrance to truly seeing the blessings of God. Furthermore, we neglect to think of ourselves as wealthy. We look at the uber-wealthy and think of ourselves as normal. Few of us are millionaires. Few of us live in mansions. Few of us fly First Class all over the world. That is what the rich do. We just live in our warm dry homes that have more bedrooms than we need, and well stocked pantries. We fail to see that much of the world is grateful to have any place to sleep, and any food to eat. When James writes about the rich, we are the rich. If you have eaten out in a restaurant in the past week, if you have not worried about whether you would have a warm, dry place to sleep in the past week, if you have not gone to bed hungry every day this past week, then you are the rich.

Please don’t misunderstand me; James is not saying that we need to feel guilty for our wealth. He is saying that we need to make sure that our wealth is not amassed off the backs of those less fortunate. He is saying that if we have people working for us, then we should be paying them a decent wage, and treating them with respect. They too are created in the image of God. He is saying that, “You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you” (Jas 5:5-6 ESV). He is saying that we ought to re-evaluate how we have gained our wealth, and how we have used it. We don’t need to feel guilty for our wealth, but neither do we feel superior because of our wealth. Wealth only lasts a lifetime. People last forever. Stuff is just stuff. People are reflections of the Creator. People are the priority.

Today is Martin Luther King Day of Service. We refer to it as Martin Luther King Day, but we often fail to remember that it is officially designated as a Day of Service. Service reflects the priority of people over stuff. How can I reflect the teachings of James 5 and the priority of people over stuff in my life? What is one thing you might do today in response to James 5?