Gluttony and Consumerism: A Warning
James 5:1-6 "A Warning to the Rich"
I came across this in my reading today (Tuesday) and found it really sobering in light of the Thanksgiving/ Black Friday holidays. (And, yes, it seems that Black Friday has become a "holiday" of its own.) I have nothing to say at this time about American society or culture at large, but here are some personal reflections I think would be helpful as we enter the holiday season.
1) Everything I have is God's.
2) Everything I receive is God's.
3) There is no merit in me to deserve anything I have or anything I receive.
4) Gold and silver will corrode. The moth will destroy, the thief will steal, and the fire will consume.
5) Slavery, fraud, and coercion still exist. There are more slaves today than when the Atlantic slave trade was active. The laborer cries out for his wages, which have been held back.
6) Have I been living to indulge myself? To fatten my heart as others cry out to God?
7) Do I value righteousness over personal comfort?
8) What steps do I need to take to defend the widow, the orphan, and the oppressed and to live righteously?
What other personal reflections do you think we should add to this list?
1Come now,(A) you rich, weep and howl for the(B) miseries that are coming upon you. 2(C) Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire.(D) You have laid up treasure(E) in the last days. 4Behold,(F) the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and(G) the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of(H) the Lord of hosts. 5(I) You have lived on the earth in luxury and(J) in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in(K) a day of slaughter. 6You have condemned and(L) murdered(M) the righteous person. He does not resist you.
I came across this in my reading today (Tuesday) and found it really sobering in light of the Thanksgiving/ Black Friday holidays. (And, yes, it seems that Black Friday has become a "holiday" of its own.) I have nothing to say at this time about American society or culture at large, but here are some personal reflections I think would be helpful as we enter the holiday season.
1) Everything I have is God's.
2) Everything I receive is God's.
3) There is no merit in me to deserve anything I have or anything I receive.
4) Gold and silver will corrode. The moth will destroy, the thief will steal, and the fire will consume.
5) Slavery, fraud, and coercion still exist. There are more slaves today than when the Atlantic slave trade was active. The laborer cries out for his wages, which have been held back.
6) Have I been living to indulge myself? To fatten my heart as others cry out to God?
7) Do I value righteousness over personal comfort?
8) What steps do I need to take to defend the widow, the orphan, and the oppressed and to live righteously?
What other personal reflections do you think we should add to this list?
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