Riches to Rags Story

Riches to rags. No, you didn’t read that wrong, I wrote “riches to rags”. We are used to seeing it the other way around, “rags to riches” right?  We celebrate those that go from nothing to being on top of the world. Those that pull themselves up by the bootstraps and make something of themselves. But what about the stories of those that have everything and lose it all because of their mistakes or give it all up for something better.

The first riches to rags story we come across in the Bible is the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They had access to all of God’s creation and even access to God Himself in a personal face-to-face way. There was nothing God held back from them in the Garden yet they wanted more, they wanted to be “like” God because of the temptation of Satan. Due to their sin of disobedience, they were kicked out of paradise to live among the thorns and the thistle, having to produce by the sweat of their brows and the work of their hands. The original riches to rags story.

However, the greatest riches to rags story, not associated with being disciplined because of sin, was that of Jesus Christ. He voluntarily left the glory of heaven and the presence of God to be born and take on the form of the creation. The Apostle Paul said it best in his letter to the Philippians, “who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

We celebrate those who make a name for themselves be going from rags to riches, but the Bible teaches the opposite is to be celebrated. Paul continues with the next verse saying, “Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  That is what should be celebrated; the fact that Jesus humbled Himself for our salvation.  Do we live with a humble spirit or do we look to exalt ourselves?  Be humble and let God exalt you in His time.

Have a great day and God bless.