James 5:1-6

Good Morning,

James 5:1-6 (NIV)
Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you.

Wow! James surely doesn't hold anything back here, does he? His words are powerful and truthful in everything that he's saying here; in his warnings to those who have financial power over other people. I don't think we have to go over every thought in this section point by point as it's clear where God stands on this, as we believe that these words are "God breathed" as is all other Scripture. (See 2 Timothy 3:16)

What I saw this morning in these words is that not much, if anything, has changed from Jesus' time on this earth until now. We still have the rich and powerful taking advantage of those less fortunate. We still have those with the financial means using their laborers and not paying them their true due.

Point at hand in today's world would be the CEO's of these huge corporations being paid multi millions of dollars each year and then getting more multi millions of dollars in bonuses. I mean, how much is enough? Billions of dollars? Even then, we see men and women who demand even more. How many yachts, houses, cars, airplanes, and the like, do people need, for goodness sake? It gets even more ridiculous in our day and age when we realize that if these billionaires "earning" (and I use this term very, very loosely!) all of that money fail, then they are rewarded for that failure by getting more millions as a "golden parachute" when the are replaced by some other multi millionaire who will make even more than the last guy.

Now, all of this money, all of these rich people, have to get that money at someone's expense. I mean, it doesn't just sort of appear out of the mist. So, those who actually earn the dollars for major companies are the ones who are paid the least. It seems clear that the billions of dollars being paid to ridiculously wealthy people is being given to them our of the labors of those who have the least...and, it sort of seems, probably deserve the most. But that's another, more political, argument for another time.

Read carefully the words that God gave to James for him to write to those around him and to us these thousands of years later. Misery will come to the rich. Their wealth is rotten and their clothes will be eaten up. The gold and silver (riches) are corroded. All of what they have will testify against them at the final hour. They are hoarders and mistreat their workers. And on, and on, and on. I guess that I'm one of the fortunate who will not have to face the judgement of a Good and Just God as He decides what is due all of those wealthy folks who have taken advantage of their "harvesters" and workers and laborers.

God doesn't say the things He does just for our enjoyment in reading His words. God tells us things in what He says through those He gave His words to. We are to take His words and learn from them. It's our responsibility to live by what He has told us. You and I and all mankind responsible to put His words into practice and action.

So, let's pay close attention to EVERYTHING that God tells us, not just what we read today. Let's do all we can to actually be obedient to not only the words as written, but what they actually mean.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David