The Richest Man in Town

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“One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.”

Proverbs 11:24

 

If you’ve ever seen the movie It’s A Wonderful Life it’s likely that you can vividly remember the story of George Bailey. The story follows his life from birth through his years as a child who always wished for a million dollars, as a young man who dreamed of going places and building things, to a middle-aged married man with a wife, a bunch of kids and barely two dollars to his name who had never left his hometown of Bedford Falls.

Along the way he had kept to his responsibilities, many times somewhat reluctantly, and done the right thing, even keeping his head during the run on the banks during the Great Depression. As such he was highly respected in town. However, from his own point of view he viewed himself as a failure until one day when Clarence the Angel came and helped him to see just how rich of a man he was. At the end of the movie, George’s younger brother, Harry, raises a toast to him as “the richest man in town” because of all of the rich friends he had made in his life journey.

While not agreeing with all of the theology of this well-loved movie, I believe it highlights the wisdom of Proverbs 11:24. George Bailey gave of what he had to others freely, and because of it he became truly the richest man in town. In contrast, Mr. Potter, the miser who stole and swindled everyone out of as much money as possible, was poor in every way except his bank account. There was never enough money for Potter. The irony is that he was by far the wealthiest man in town, yet he suffered as the one who was the least satisfied.

The number on our bank accounts tells one story, but it is not the most interesting one. The story that is the most interesting and the most compelling is how freely we give away what we have been given, whether that’s in money, time, or talents. We need to think deeply on these words of Jesus and let them transform our lives, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35)

Lord Jesus, teach us the blessing of giving freely what you’ve given to us. Amen.

Devoted to keeping Jesus Christ the main thing.

Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 11, 2020 at 7:49 PM

    Thanks for pointing out the connection between this proverb and the words of Jesus.

    ReplyDelete

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