When we read about Solomon's palace, it's easy to question, Did he really need to make it that big? I mean, honestly, when do we reach a level of satisfaction and say enough is enough? Couldn't the resources that God gave to Solomon have been used for other means? Was an enormous palace really the best use of the wealth? Aren't there people starving in the world who could be blessed by this money? I wonder how Solomon would have been treated by Christians of our day. Perhaps he would have been approached and confronted about his ridiculous extravagance. Or maybe he would be viewed as an icon and seen as an example of something to strive after. Probably at least one news program would report on a monetary scandal within his administration.
Interestingly enough, though, the only thing the Bible tells us about Solomon's wealth is that it was a gift from God. That means that his wealth wasn't something evil. In some ways this seems to be contrary to what Jesus taught about the rich man who built more silos in which to keep all of his stuff. Perhaps the idea isn't whether or not a person has wealth but whether or not wealth has the person. In the case of Solomon, God gave him wealth because he didn't care whether he had it or not. In the case of the rich man, God was ready to demand his life because wealth had become the center of his universe.
When wealth violates the first commandment it becomes a problem. The principles seem to be that generosity should rule and that wealth should not become the center of one's affections. Some can handle wealth, and some cannot. But when wealth sits on the throne of your life instead of God, and when you get to the place where you are unwilling to be generous with what actually belongs to God in the first place, then wealth has taken an improper place in your life.
As Jesus reminded the man with the silos, his very life was to be taken from him, and what good was his wealth then? Did God truly enable you to have all that you have just for you? Or perhaps he wants to use you to be a blessing to others.
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