8/13/25

Proverbs 23:5 NASB95 When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.

Mankind struggles with lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life. We tend to allow the physical to take precedence over our Spiritual self. This is a shame because everything physical will burn like chaff. It will cease to exist; however, the spiritual will go into eternity and last forever.

In our text, this Proverb speaks of wealth that is the riches of the flesh. These are items of life that appear to have great value. On earth, in our physical fallen form, they are precious and rare. Fewer people have a worldly value of Billions of dollars than those with millions. There are fewer who have millions than those who have thousands. So the ones with a billion seem to be rare and more valuable. Yet those who had this type of wealth 100 years ago are gone and their wealth has been shown to disappear in the wind like chaff. It seems to have been vanity or a vapor. It has sprouted wings and disappeared, leaving only minuscule particles such as ash from burned chaff.

Even worse than the vanity or the flying away of the wealth that our eyes have lusted after is the destruction of the true wealth in God's kingdom. This wealth is souls that will last eternally but not in God's presence. Instead they will spend eternity in a Christless Hell. Burning for eternity they will never be completely destroyed as the soul is everlasting.

The writer of this Proverb warns of earthly wealth flying away. So don't long for it, but instead long for the soul that is presently bound for the everlasting fire that, through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, can be valuable, precious, and eternally in the presence of the Lord next to you. If your soul has been saved by the same Christ.

Worldly wealth will burn like chaff.

Precious soul without Christ will burn everlasting.

Precious soul with Christ will thrive in eternity with all other saved souls. That is wealth!

True wealth is everlasting and only one can provide that kind of wealth. It is not Charles Schwab or Warren Buffett; it is Jesus Christ!

Love Bro. Scott