Well, good morning, podcasters. Hey, before we jump into our proverb of the day, I know some of you out there are hungry for more of the Word. You're growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord, the two of which work in tandem, you know. And you need more. Did you know that you can search the archives at sermonaudio.com? There you're gonna find a few more podcasts that I've left behind, but you'll also find over 10 years of sermons and Bible classes available. You can search Brandon Neely, or you can search We Are Christ Church. Either one will get you to the right spot. I'd especially direct you there in the archives to the sermon series on the book of Ephesians. It took us over a year to cover Ephesians, a year to go through the entire book, and if you're looking for an overview of what Christ has accomplished on our behalf, you couldn't go to a better book than Ephesians. It's going to take you some time to listen, but I expect you'll be greatly edified as you go through it. So, hope that works for you. Anyway, do you want to grow wealthy? This Monday morning? Got a lot of work ahead of you? Are you working to become wealthy? Well, you should be. Want to turn a profit? It's not a problem there either. In fact, it's a requirement of scripture. You know, there are many false and wicked teachings out there regarding money, and the love of it will kill you, and others, and the ones you love. But money can be a powerful tool for you to advance the claims of Christ into every area of life. Today I'm going to show you a little of how to do just that. You are listening to the all of life podcast I am Brandon Neely and this is a part of my teaching ministry at Christ Church of Acadiana in southwest Louisiana Join me every weekday as we study the word and apply it to every area of life Today's proverb is proverb 10 2-5 Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from death. We have here two sons. Their names are Wicked and the other is Righteous. Both are gaining treasure. But to one, the treasure is a blessing from the Lord, and to the other, the treasure is a curse. And what is the distinction between these two treasures? These two increases of wealth? The distinction is the manner in which they were gained. Treasure, prosperity, money is good. Our world today erroneously thinks ill of money and wealth. It's widely held that if you're rich, you are by definition suspect. You must have taken advantage of others to accumulate such wealth. And while that's true at times, it's not true by definition. Solomon was wealthy. So too was Noah and Abraham, Joseph of Arimathea, Barnabas, heroes of the faith. The question is not, are you rich? The question between the wicked and the righteous is, how was that treasure gained? Wickedly or righteously? You see, the righteous path to wealth is described in the very next verse, in verse four. It says, a slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. Do you see the key method that the righteous use to gain treasure? Diligence. Diligent hands. Listen, we aren't responsible to make something out of nothing. We are, rather, responsible before the Lord to make something with what we've got. Two hands, a mind, talents, resources, time, education, perhaps even an inheritance from our parents, our heritage. and even powerful technology and tools. We are to make something with what we have. As Paul says, let the thief no longer steal, no more theft, no more embezzlement, no more fraud or cheating, no more taking advantage of others or injustice. Rather, let the repentant thief work with his own two hands in order that he might be able to share. You see here, we provide a service, we provide a product, we produce a profit. That is, we are paid service certificates called money in exchange for our valuable addition to society. This is profit. And from this, we are cared for, our families cared for, and we have something to share. The righteous son. the one who honors his mom and dad, the one who honors his inheritance, the one who honors his heritage. The righteous son works hard, works diligently with his own two hands and with whatever he has in order to turn a profit in order that he might share. But the wicked son is not characterized by diligent work. He's known for his quote-unquote slack hand there in verse four. He does make a profit. He makes poverty. The only thing he has been successful in making is himself poor. He is slack. His bowstring is loose. He's sluggish and negligent and lax. He's got a lazy bone and a limp wrist. He's idle, which means he isn't productive. He doesn't provide a product or a service to others, and he is lazy, which means he has no desire to serve or produce for others. And this slack behavior allows natural atrophy to run its course, and all that he has is ultimately wasted. He squanders and wastes any inheritance that he might have received, and becomes a user and a mooch on the remaining members of society. The net result for the wicked son? Poverty. The net result for the righteous son? Wealth. Treasure. Now, of course, these things are proverbially true. One can be diligent and honest and still be poor. They may be enslaved under impression or be in the midst of a great recession. But generally speaking, lazy, idle hands are not only wicked, they are hungry and poor. This has been another episode of the All of Life podcast. We are daily building up our podcast archives, but if you'd like to dig a little further into scripture, remember you can search the archives at sermonaudio.com. There you're gonna find sermons, series, and Sunday school classes. I'm Brandon Neely, and remember, if Christ has called you to it, he'll equip you, he'll protect you, and he'll bless you along the way. So until next time, keep on pushing the claims of Christ into every area of life.