Proverbs 17:20
As I read today’s proverb, I can think of
several people who seemingly defy the teaching of this verse. There have been,
and are some, very corrupt people who seemingly prosper. The Middle East is
filled with leaders who have prospered physically and materially, for long
periods of time. I walked through some of the palaces of one of those leaders,
Saddam Hussein. He had wealth and luxury that few people in the world have.
Looking in from the outside, he had a life to been envied. But look a little
deeper and you find a very different picture.
You
see, what we see on the outside is only part of the picture. Saddam was a man
in hiding for years. He had doubles who made public appearances for him, in
case someone tried to kill him. He rarely slept in the same place for more than
one night. He didn’t even trust his closest advisors. When he built a palace,
after it was completed, he would kill key individuals connected to the
construction to conceal security elements from getting into the wrong hands.
And his final moments of freedom were in an underground hideout, little more
than a hole in the ground.
We
don’t know the heart of some people who prosper. We don’t have the ability to
look in and see their attitude. All we can see is their outward. There are some
people who have prospered greatly in other parts of the world and we don’t know
the final outcome of their life.
So
what does this proverb say to us today? I hear it saying that corruption may
bring temporary gain, but not true prosperity. Things have a tendency to catch
up with you over time. If you have practiced corruption, chances are the other
shoe will drop, and usually at a time you don’t expect it.
But
I also hear it telling me that prosperity is much more than financial gain. I
am a prosperous person, although my financial bottom line is not what is
usually associated with a rich person. I have wealth far beyond my checkbook
balance. I have a relationship with the LORD that has carried me through and
blessed be in innumerable ways over the past 37 years. He never fails. I have a
wife of 33 years who loves me and two grown children who have loving, stable marriages.
I have six grandchildren. And we enjoy spending time together.
I
have seen the LORD work through my wife and me over the past 33 years of
ministry. His hand has been evident, pouring grace on us and through us. We
have had the privilege to serve some of the bravest people on the planet. He
has a calling and a place of continued ministry far greater than our
imaginations can conceive.
And
the LORD wants to bring this kind of prosperity into your life. Corruption and
perversity will rob you of these rewards.