Your Money and Your Life #5: The Character Foundation, Work Fair

The last post laid open the question of why getting rich quick can be troubling. I think this next one is a pretty important reason why getting rich quick is a dangerous temptation. We may be tempted to hurt others, oppressing others to get ahead.

Proverbs 13:23 The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food, but it is swept away through injustice.

Proverbs is hard on the lazy, and rightfully so. The wisdom writers let them know that the lazy deserve their poverty. But texts like the one above show this is not exclusively the case. Some are poor because they have been treated unjustly by people in positions of power. The wicked are wealthy in Proverbs at times, and it is dangerous. Here’s likely why … the wicked are more prone to oppress than the righteous.

Whatever fortune you’re building, make sure you work fairly. You may not run a sweatshop, but how do you treat your employees? Do you lead with humility, and more important to this sub-point, do you treat your employees well, with respect and fairness?

God has stern warnings for those who oppress. Work fair.