You have probably heard the saying “he who dies with the most toys wins.” This saying may make you chuckle, but it isn’t true. It is true that a lot of wealthy people start thinking about their legacy when they get older and many of them donate money to charities and colleges and most of the time they end up with a building or a fund named after them. They do these things because we all know this truth: You Can’t Take It With You.
Psalm 49:6-7, 10-12 says: They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; 10 For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others. 11 Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names. 12 Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish.
Verse 10 points out that the wealthy leave their riches to others; because you can’t take it with you. Verse 11 states that they name lands after themselves. This reminds me of how many rich people get buildings or football stadiums named after them when they donate large sums of money. But somewhere down the road people forget who they were. So even when they put a clause in that the stadium has to keep their name and that it can’t be changed; when the next large donor comes along, they just name “the field” after this rich person. For example Wake Forest’s stadium is called Groves Stadium, but the bank BB&T donated money and for the next ten years the school agreed to call it BB&T Field. “Money talks,” at least it does in the secular world.
Not only can you not take it with you, but whatever legacy you think you are leaving based on your wealth will be meaningless in the end. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up (2 Peter 3:10). All monetary and earthly possession will be burned up in the end. All of it is vanity. It is worthless and it will do you no good. So don’t be envious of people who have more worldly possession than you. They just have more to lose and they have more things to keep them away from Jesus Christ our Lord.
Even more importantly, Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death (Proverbs 11:4). God cannot be bribed. Riches will not save you on Judgment Day. Money won’t wipe away single little white lie. It will be useless. Jesus said For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (Mark 8:36) You could be like Alexander the Great and conquer the whole world and still die miserable and worse yet die damned for eternal torment in Hell because of your sins.
Don’t love money and don’t be jealous of rich people. I’ve been a loan officer for 29 years and I’ve made a lot of loans to rich people and some of them are not only unhappy, but some of them are the meanest people that you will ever meet. Many rich people are slaves to money and slaves to their work. Don’t be envious or jealous of rich people. All their money, all their wealth, all their perceived prestige won’t do them one bit of good on Judgment Day.
Riches profit not in the day of wrath. God cannot be paid off and He is angry with unrepentant sinners. God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11). Nahum 1:2-3 says: God is jealous, and the Lord revengeth; the Lord revengeth, and is furious; the Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. 3 The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him (1 John 2:15). Set your affections on Jesus Christ. Don’t love the world, nor worldly pleasures and the things of the world – such as money and riches. I can tell you from personal experience that money does not make you happy. I used to worship money before I was saved. I loved money and the things that money could buy and I was a miserable person. I was a horrible husband, an even worse dad and a lousy boss. I was unhappy and pretty much made everyone else around me unhappy too. I can also tell you that the more money you make, the more you want. You are never satisfied. You never reach the point where you say this is the perfect amount of money. You always want more and more because it never satisfies a lustful heart.
No matter how much you want it, no matter how much you love it and no matter how much money you accumulate; you can’t take it with you. Even if you won the lottery or invented something wonderful and became a multimillionaire over night, it wouldn’t matter in the end. One day you will take your last breath. All that money would do you know good when you stand before the great God of Heaven and earth. God will not be impressed with your bank account. He will not be impressed with everything that you have accumulated over the years. He won’t be impressed with how much money that you have given away. Only one thing will matter at the judgment and that is your very soul.
Jesus said what shall it profit you to gain the whole world and lose your very soul? Your soul is worth more than anything you could ever possibly possess. You already have the most valuable thing in the world and that is your own soul. But where will your soul spend eternity? It will either be Heaven or Hell. There are no other options. Since riches profit not, then you need to be focused on righteousness. Proverbs 11:4 said that righteousness delivers from death. That sounds good doesn’t it? Righteousness delivers from death. How good is your righteousness? Psalm 53:2-3 states God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God. 3 Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
This isn’t good. You can’t count on money or wealth to save you from God’s wrath and the Bible says that none of us have done good. Romans 3:10 says that none of us are righteous. Isaiah 64:6 tells us But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. So money can’t save us and our own righteousness can’t save us. Are we all doomed to spend eternity in Hell? Is there no hope for any of us?
You don’t have to despair. There is hope tonight. There is hope in Jesus Christ! Jesus came to save sinners from their sins (1 Timothy 1:15). He made a way for us to escape the wrath of Almighty God. Please don’t miss this. God is not petty. God derives no pleasure in punishing the wicked. Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 33:11). The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). He wants everyone to come to repentance and faith in Jesus.
But unrepentant sinners are rebellious. Unrepentant sinners harden their hearts. Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness (Psalm 95:8). They hate God and they are His enemy. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God (James 4:4). They love the pleasures of the flesh and they don’t want to be held accountable to our Creator. This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy (2 Timothy 3:1-2).
But we will all stand before God on Judgment Day and we will all give an account. Don’t foolishly trust in riches. You can’t take it with you and it won’t profit you one red cent at the judgment. Likewise, don’t trust in your own goodness because none of us are good, especially when we compare ourselves not against others, but against our Holy and righteous God. None of us measure up to His perfect standard.
Only Jesus met that high and lofty standard and only Jesus can save you. He came to save sinners and He can save you and forgive you for your sins. He can represent you on Judgment Day. He can be your Advocate because He suffered the punishment that you deserve for your sins. But you must receive salvation. Salvation is of the Lord and He offers it to us by His grace alone (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Receive salvation today. (John 3:16). Believe on the Lord Jesus today and be saved. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God (1 John 5:12-13). Jesus said Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life (John 6:47).
Do not die in your sins trusting in your riches or your good works. Do not die as an unrepentant sinner and be cast into Hell and suffer unimaginable, unbearable torments forever and ever. Trust Jesus tonight. Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved (Acts 16:31). Believe on the Lord Jesus and be saved. Be saved tonight. Don’t put this off.
God is angry with the wicked every day and this may be your last day on earth. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him (John 3:36). Don’t die in a state of rebellion against God and suffer God’s wrath over your sins for all of eternity. Believe on the Son and receive everlasting life. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Call upon Jesus tonight. Surrender your life to the Lord Jesus. Trust Him. Don’t count on money and don’t count on good works. Count on Jesus Christ alone for your salvation. Call upon Jesus tonight and be saved. Believe on the Lord Jesus to save you. Submit to the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Do this tonight and be saved.