Proverbs 11:24, Gain or Drain!

May 22, Proverbs 11:24

2 Cor. 9 “As we have opportunity, let us do good unto all, especially the household of faith” (Gal. 6”10).

Gain or Drain!

This is a physical, moral and spiritual principle engraved by the Creator into the Laws of His Universe. By an act of faith the sower casts his good seed into the ground, and expects a good harvest. Applied to the spiritual realm it instructs believers to be good stewards, not only of their treasure, but also how they use their talents and time (3:9-10). He who does not give does not live!

1. Sow Well; Reap Well. There is that scatters yet increases. This seems, at first glance, to be folly, a contradiction, but it is not. It is a deliberate paradox, a seeming absurdity! Solomon’s proverb still exists among all peoples, and is at the heart of appeals for every good cause. Giving may be likened to fishing. The fisherman gives a sprat to catch a salmon, but it is equally true, “Spare your bait, and lose your fish!” Was not Jesus teaching this when He said that to save one’s life is to lose it, while losing it, for His sake and the Gospel’s was to keep it, and to keep it forever (Matt. 10:39). The Apostle had this rule in mind when writing to invigorate the Corinthians in their bounty for the poor saints in Jerusalem. Sowing sparingly would mean reaping sparingly, while bountiful sowing would result in bountiful reaping. “Sow cockle, and you will not reap corn!” Yet many spend all their lives in such senseless sowing. Those who scatter deeds of kindness, who seek to ease human suffering, who bless poor saints with their wealth, for Christ’s sake, will reap accordingly. “Keep not from sowing for fear of the birds. Sometimes some of your work will be lost, but the major part will bring forth a harvest; therefore, sow on” (CHS). By such giving no man is a looser, but the gainer.

We can all do better than yet we have done,
And not be a whit the worse;
It never was loving that emptied the heart,
Nor giving that emptied the purse.

b). Sow Ill; Reap Ill. Withholds, but tends to poverty. This is the opposite side of the coin. There is reckless scattering and wise withholding. Giving should be done with discretion, or we may do more harm than good. “Give alms to the lazy, and you license their laziness.” Sadly, welfare programs prove this to be all too true. God will call us all to give an account of our stewardship. To withhold more than is meet (right, not what is justly due, RV marg., then the Versions put it in the text!) stems from the sin of avarice not justice! It is that greedy disposition that keeps back what should be shared to meet human need. It holds all and ends with nil. This is often true materially, but it is always true spiritually. “The lack of faith is the source of greed” (Calvin). The miser ends a grub of blighted humanity. How strange that we still find it hard to grasp that wealth and worth are two different things! A man may be worth a million dollars, yet be a worthless man!

Some swim in wealth, yet sink in tears;
Some rise in state, yet fall in fears.

Thought: God doesn’t want what we have before we give Him what we are.

Prayer: “To give and not to count the cost; to toil and not to ask for any reward.”