No Lasting Gain
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying, Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste? Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.”
Haggai 1:3–6
I read about a man making his first trip to Las Vegas who decided to try his luck at one of the casinos. Since he had never been in one before, he asked an attendant for some advice on how things worked. The attendant carefully showed him how to put money in the slot machine and how to play. After a few moments the tourist asked, “So where does the money come out?” With a smile, the attendant pointed at a nearby ATM machine and said, “Right over there.”
All around us there are people who are seeking success and satisfaction from things that do not and, indeed, cannot provide it. Nothing in the world is able to meet the need we have in our hearts for God. No matter how much money we have, how many cars we buy, or how many houses we own, it is never enough. Like putting money into a bag with holes in it, we end up feeling empty.
Solomon was one of the richest men in history. He literally had everything he could ever imagine. Yet, he learned that material success apart from God was empty. Again and again in Ecclesiastes, he described his great resources as “vanity”—something completely without value. Only in God do we find genuine prosperity and gain. Solomon wrote, “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22).
Haggai 1:3–6
I read about a man making his first trip to Las Vegas who decided to try his luck at one of the casinos. Since he had never been in one before, he asked an attendant for some advice on how things worked. The attendant carefully showed him how to put money in the slot machine and how to play. After a few moments the tourist asked, “So where does the money come out?” With a smile, the attendant pointed at a nearby ATM machine and said, “Right over there.”
All around us there are people who are seeking success and satisfaction from things that do not and, indeed, cannot provide it. Nothing in the world is able to meet the need we have in our hearts for God. No matter how much money we have, how many cars we buy, or how many houses we own, it is never enough. Like putting money into a bag with holes in it, we end up feeling empty.
Solomon was one of the richest men in history. He literally had everything he could ever imagine. Yet, he learned that material success apart from God was empty. Again and again in Ecclesiastes, he described his great resources as “vanity”—something completely without value. Only in God do we find genuine prosperity and gain. Solomon wrote, “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22).
Today’s Growth Principle:
Seeking happiness and contentment apart from God will never produce the desired result.
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