NOTHING FOR SOMETHING

Proverbs 13:7

There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.

There is a tool of rhetoric called the oxymoron.

It is when two things that seem to be contradictory are used together in a harmonic manner; something like:

·   “Make haste slowly.” (Hurry up and wait)

·   “That’s a fine mess you’ve made.” or

·   “She’s just a poor little rich girl.”

Our passage this morning contains two such oxymorons:

·   The rich with nothing and

·   The poor with riches

One of them is a negative application and one of them is a positive application.

I. A NEGATIVE APPLICATION

Proverbs 13:7

There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing…

There are some who pretend to be rich when they really have nothing. They are fakers, liars. To them everything is show.

A. Their heart may be under deep burden, but they pretend to be light hearted

They pretend to be rich in joy, but they are truly miserable inside.

They act like everything is great in their lives, but in truth they are unhappy with their circumstances.

I have met two different kids of miserable persons:

One is miserable and wants everyone around them to be miserable too.

The other is miserable but he doesn’t want anyone else to know it.

1. It might be because he is proud.

He doesn’t want anyone else to thing they are better then him.

He lives in this illusion that he is the only one suffering and people who don’t feel like he does will think less of him for being miserable.

2. It might be because he is stubborn

I think of the person who is miserable because he refuses to get things right with God.

·   He knows God is

·   He knows he ought to repent and get right with God

·   He knows in his heart that what Christians teach is right

But he chooses to pretend he is all right so he doesn’t have to deal with his sin.

He makes himself out to be happy, when he is really miserable.

*B. They might be mean and hateful toward another, but they pretend to be a great friend

You know the sort of person I refer to here:

This is the guy who treats you well to your face but stabs you in the back.

On the other hand

C. Some pretend to be poor who are in reality very wealthy

Americans probably do this habitually.

We have so much more than the rest of the world but we think we are but poor people.

We compare ourselves with our neighbors and, if we have anything less than they have, we think of ourselves as impoverished.

I understand that, because we live in such an affluent culture, it takes more to get along. But really, I know only a hand full of people whose lives can even remotely compare to the poverty and suffering of some, in other parts of the world.

*II. A POSITIVE APPLICTION

Proverbs 13:7

… there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.

A. Many have much of this world's goods but have hearts filled with grief.

Material possessions and financial gain can never give a person the things that truly make one content and happy in life.

They have a lot, comparatively speaking, but they aren’t happy with what they have.

They have never learned to be content.

B. I have also known many who have very little of this world's goods but who are a very content and happy people.

Sometimes our desire for things so blinds us that we cannot see what would bring the greatest wealth:

· Peace,

· Joy and

· Contentment

We cling to and pursue the material worldly wealth to the point of being spiritually and emotionally impoverished.

That brings me to

*III. A SPIRITUAL APPLICATION

Pro 13:10

Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.

The well advised man will seek the counsel of others to bring things into a proper perspective so he may see:

A. What things he ought to release for the sake of spiritual wealth

·   There are some emotions we ought to let go of in order to have great wealth (peace)

·   There are some people we ought to let go of in order to have great wealth

·   There are some habits we ought to let go of in order to have great wealth and

·   There are some things we ought to let go of in order to have great wealth

The problem is that we often can’t see that thing we are holding onto so tightly is the very thing that is robbing us of real wealth.

A godly outside observer can more often than not show us what it is that is making us poor.

B. What he ought to keep, guard and hold onto for the sake of what is right.

Sometimes the very thing we think we ought to quit so we can be happy is the very thing we need to hold on to in order to succeed.

Often a person thinks he needs to quit tithing to save money – it won’t work.

They need someone to tell them what they should stop spending money on so they can keep tithing and honoring God.

Sometimes a person thinks they need to quit their job in order to get a better one.

They need someone to help them see whether they really ought to quit that job, or else stick with it and focus on better stewardship.

Conclusion

There are some things that seem like they would make us successful but instead they just make us miserable.

There are other things that seem like they would be a waste of time and money, but they are things God blesses.

A lot of the time we can’t tell which ones are will make us successful and which ones will bring us to poverty.

The answer is to be well advised.

Surround yourself with Godly people who can help you to seek those things that will give make you successful

·   Spiritually

·   Emotionally and maybe even

·   Materially