Wisdom of Living – Three Simple Principles

According to Forbes magazine, the United States and China rank top with the most billionaires in the world, followed by India, Germany, and Russia. However, many wealthy Chinese people keep a portion of their assets in the United States.

That means they don’t trust the stability of the totalitarian government. History shows things could turn dark overnight under a dictatorship. So, in case something should happen, they have planned to take shelter in the United States. That’s why most tycoons keep one foot in China and another in America.

Despite all the problems and complaints we have in the US, we are still the land of opportunity, security, and stability. Wise people say, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” You can say that those wealthy people are wise when they diversify their assets to reliable places to safeguard their rainy days.

However, we also know that we came naked into this world, and we will leave naked. No matter how many assets we can secure, they will belong to someone else after we die. A hundred years on earth is relatively short. In a blink of an eye, our hairs turn gray, our eyes dim, and our limbs weak.

Jesus said if God should take our lives today,

“‘The things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:20b-21).

There is an interesting phrase here, “rich toward God.” He is referring to storing treasures in heaven. Don’t you think it’s wiser to transfer your assets to where you are going rather than keeping them where you are leaving them behind? Jesus also said,

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Mt 6:19–20).

Since we don’t store physical cash and coins today, there is no concern for moths and rust, but at the beginning of the Ukraine war, we heard many countries froze Russian oligarchs’ assets kept there. So, spreading your assets in other countries doesn’t mean they are safe and secured.

Jesus wants us to store our assets in a more secure place, heaven. He also said,

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Mat 6:21).

That means while your body is still on earth, your heart can be in heaven. That’s living in heaven on earth. According to Jesus, that’s the most profound wisdom of living, and that’s what he meant by being “rich toward God” because you store your treasure where you are heading and enjoy life to the fullest.

So today, we will investigate three simple principles of the wisdom of living based on what Jesus taught us in this week’s scripture lesson. Let’s begin!