“A wicked ruler is as dangerous to the poor as a roaring lion or an attacking bear. A ruler with no understanding will oppress his people, but one who hates corruption will have a long life. A murderer’s tormented conscience will drive him into the grave. Don’t protect him! The blameless will be rescued from harm, but the crooked will be suddenly destroyed. A hard worker has plenty of food, but a person who chases fantasies ends up in poverty. The trustworthy person will get a rich reward, but a person who wants quick riches will get into trouble. Showing partiality is never good, yet some will do wrong for a mere piece of bread. Greedy people try to get rich quick but don’t realize they’re headed for poverty. In the end, people appreciate honest criticism far more than flattery. Anyone who steals from his father and mother and says, “What’s wrong with that?” is no better than a murderer. Greed causes fighting; trusting the Lord leads to prosperity. Those who trust their own insight are foolish, but anyone who walks in wisdom is safe. Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to poverty will be cursed. When the wicked take charge, people go into hiding. When the wicked meet disaster, the godly flourish.”
Proverbs 28:15-28 NLT
Men are finite creatures. We are finite in our very perception. We literally cannot see around the bend. We are also finite in resources. When we have something, it diminishes until it is gone. These two things make it necessary for men to be reliant on something that is not finite. It is a part of our programming to be reliant on God. Yet sin has us act differently. It encourages us to take and hoard blessings out of fear of a lack of God’s providence. God calls us, instead to give freely of these blessings, that God has an abundance of them and an affection to continue to give them. The other way to abuse these blessings is through laziness. We must understand that our agency is a large portion of our identity. God wants us to feel our own power to be a meaningful part of his story. Often this means giving us a strong body and equal opportunity rather than equal outcomes. Those who simply want God to provide, without using it to grow their own agency, misunderstand a key point of God’s providence and their own identity. We should neither be hoarding God’s providence or be flippant with it. A wise person trusts on God for the opportunities to be a meaningful agent, whenever those come. This tenacity is a part of their identity.
JOSH McGARY.COM 