May
the mumbling commence!
How
do you define richness or wealth? On the
eternal scale, it means everything. Read
from Zechariah 11.4-16:
This is what the Lord my God says: “Pasture the flock marked for slaughter. Their buyers
slaughter them and go unpunished. Those who
sell them say, ‘Praise the Lord, I am rich!’
Their own shepherds do not spare them. For I will no longer have pity on the people
of the land,” declares the Lord. “I will
hand over everyone over to his neighbor and his king. They will oppress the land, and I will not
rescue them from their hands.”
So I pastured the flock marked for slaughter, particularly
the oppressed of the flock. Then I took
two staffs and called one Favor and the other Union, and I pastured the
flock. In one month I got rid of the
three shepherds.
The flock deserted me, and I grew weary of them and said, “I will
not be your shepherd. Let the dying die,
and the perishing perish. Let those who are
left eat one another’s flesh.”
Then I took my staff called Favor
and broke it, revoking the covenant I had made with all the nations. It was revoked on that day, and so the afflicted
of the flock who were watching me knew it was the word of the Lord.
I told them, “If you think it best, give me my
pay; but if not, keep it.” So they paid me thirty pieces of silver.
And the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the
potter” – the handsome price at which they priced
me! So I took the thirty pieces of
silver and threw them into the house of the Lord to the potter.
Then I broke my second staff
called Union, breaking the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
Then the Lord said to me, “Take again the
equipment of a foolish shepherd. For I
am going to raise up a shepherd over the land who will not care for the lost,
or seek the young, or heal the injured, or feed the healthy, but will eat the
meat of the choice sheep, tearing off their hoofs.” or heal the injured, or
feed the healthy, but will eat the meat of the choice sheep, tearing off their hoofs.”
Do we get rich by selling out our brother and
sisters in Christ? Perhaps in the short
term, but in the long term it is disastrous.
It means deserting the Great Shepherd.
It means losing the covenant of favor.
Do we get rich by undervaluing the worth of our
Great Shepherd? No. When we undervalue our Great Shepherd we also
tend to undervalue our brothers and sisters. It means losing the union we have with our
family.
The greatest riches and wealth come from faithfully and
attentively following the Great Shepherd.
And it means valuing the Lord our God properly.
I praise you, O
Lord! I give thanks for you. May I follow you with all attentiveness.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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