On a chilly winter evening, my family and I strolled through Chicago gazing as we went at the beautiful snow and lights that lit the city. Although the adventure brought lasting memories, I remember that as we walked my subconscious thought that not everyone happily hustled and bustled that day fully revealed itself. In fact, some of these people may have lived on the streets. Softly, near a store front, change clanked from an old man’s cup and I became aware had needs along with many other people in the city.
When one class of society may appear superior to another, as the shoppers in Chicago in comparison with the pleading beggars on the street, ultimately both types of people share a common problem – they cling to their physical luxuries as what gives them a status. Consequently, in the long run, whether one lives among the poor or the rich, his soul yearns for more, for something else, for a spiritual awakening. Within the depths of the heart lies a desire for hope and supernatural love which only comes from an Almighty and Allsovereign God.
While a high-status unsteadily stands and a lowstatus wavers, a God-given status cannot be shaken. In our culture, the middle class teen girl can, for example, be considered “the rich” with her prominent position resulting from her abundance of tenure. Typically a girl puts her identity in social media such as Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, etc. which she can access through her most prized possession – her smart phone. Moreover, another teen takes pride in her boyfriend and the love she feels in that relationship.
Furthermore, merely having numerous friends who make her feel popular boosts a girl’s self-esteem. Since many a teenager girl’s parents pay for her car or college, she identifies herself with the high end girls her age. However, as she “lives her life to the fullest”, questions sit in the pit of her heart concerning why these pleasures seem to wisp away. Attempting to retain her grasp on them, she can never hold tight enough. Under these circumstances, eventually the middle class teen girl recognizes the reality that her abundance will not last and her prosperous status is shaky.
Even the poor man on the streets of Chicago seeks something stable in which to put his confidence. Because he owns very little, this hobo seizes whatever he can get his hands on to brighten his unfortunate life. Namely, such things include cocaine. From simply buying such a drug, he lures himself into a lifestyle of drug dealing. To his fate, this man becomes an addict, which affects his behavior, and he settles into a cycle of thievery to get his drug.
Hence, by starting a seemingly innocent life, this poverty-stricken fellow slides progressively downhill through the urge of one desire that seems to satisfy to the next. When even the destitute city man chases unworthy fame, he comes back empty, craving something impregnable. Whether we own riches or get along with very little, we all have need, and God has almighty power to spiritually fill any individual’s heart. Because of our sin, in God’s holy justice, we deserve eternal wrath. When we could do nothing to save ourselves, Jesus, God’s Son, came down to earth to live a holy life and die a bitter death in our place.
Through his sacrificial love to sinners, we can rest in the hope and assurance of eternal life if we put our faith in Christ. Accordingly, we should not identify ourselves by the car we drive or the drugs we take. Since all in this earth will fade away, our identity in God’s love should represent our foremost status. Therefore, with confidence we may draw near to God for his love never fails. In whatever social class we may be in, God’s love can personally reach down, touch our hearts and satisfy. How can someone occupy a high or low-ranking status?
Contrarily, no matter what position we obtain, if we do not know the love of Christ, we are needy. Connecting this truth in Scripture, Luke 12:33-34 says “Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”1. In short, this verse expresses that if our hearts cling to possessions we will find out the hard way, just as a teenage girl, that such things never fill the hole in our hearts.
Additionally, from 1 Samuel 16:7 it says, “For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart. 2” Maintaining our earthly social standing takes too much effort just as the poor man realizes. Instead, we have freedom to live lives controlled by Christ’s outward-focused love because through his atoning work, we inherit eternal satisfaction. Thus, when we ask God for a status which reflects Him, genuine, permanent wealth, in Christ, follows.