Proverbs 30:7-9 - "Two things I ask of you, O LORD; do not refuse me before I die: 8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. 9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
When I read these verses, what struck me was Agur’s love for God. Agur only asked for two things while he was still alive. The first was to keep falsehood and lies far from him. Most of us don’t outrightly plan to lie. But, in the heat of the moment, we sometimes exaggerate things or distort the facts just to save ourselves from unnecessary trouble, or to gain favour with others. How many times have you said – “I’ve done it” when you actually haven’t?. How about when you say - “I’ll do it” but don’t intend to actually...?.
Agur recognised how he (like us) was prone to this weakness, and asked God to keep him from it. What could prompt a man to ask this of God unless he truly loves Jesus? I mean, lying – white lies or otherwise – is so common it’s almost like a way of living in today’s world. Lie about your qualifications to get that job. Exaggerate your testimony a little to make it more ‘sensational’. All these may seem harmless, but a sin is still a sin. Sin grieves the heart of God, and keeps you from the much more life.
Consider his second request – “give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.”. Agur was asking God to not make him poor or rich, but give him just enough for each day.
Having too little may make him dishonour God. Do you know that when you’re financially strapped, you can be tempted to steal? I’m sure we don’t set out to be thieves; but we sometimes ‘steal’ in these ways – not returning extra change, or under declaring our earnings to enjoy certain privileges. Agur knows how being poor can make him vulnerable to such a sin. Because Agur loves God, he prays -‘bless me with money, but not too much… I don’t want to dishonour Your name in any way.’
Having too much may make him disown God. Not love Him. Hence, Agur prays ‘protect me from too much wealth’. The pre-believing banker earning big bucks may have more money than he has time to spend. To this man, you might want to say, ‘You need Jesus’. However, they think they’re doing fine without Him. Even for us as believers, wealth can make us feel accomplished, empowered and self sufficient…
Therefore, Agur wisely prayed - ‘just give me what I need each day’. That way, it’ll keep him close to God and dependent on Him. It’ll keep him loving God for who He is and what He can do. George Mueller had some incredible stories of how God provided for his orphanages. One day they had no food for lunch, and so, he prayed for God to provide lunch. Soon, there was a knock on the door, and a guy said his bread truck broke down right in front of the orphanage, and that he’d like to unload all his bread there while the truck was getting fixed.
The much more life is not having more riches or none. It’s loving God the way Agur did!
Ps Tan Sok Hwee
When I read these verses, what struck me was Agur’s love for God. Agur only asked for two things while he was still alive. The first was to keep falsehood and lies far from him. Most of us don’t outrightly plan to lie. But, in the heat of the moment, we sometimes exaggerate things or distort the facts just to save ourselves from unnecessary trouble, or to gain favour with others. How many times have you said – “I’ve done it” when you actually haven’t?. How about when you say - “I’ll do it” but don’t intend to actually...?.
Agur recognised how he (like us) was prone to this weakness, and asked God to keep him from it. What could prompt a man to ask this of God unless he truly loves Jesus? I mean, lying – white lies or otherwise – is so common it’s almost like a way of living in today’s world. Lie about your qualifications to get that job. Exaggerate your testimony a little to make it more ‘sensational’. All these may seem harmless, but a sin is still a sin. Sin grieves the heart of God, and keeps you from the much more life.
Consider his second request – “give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.”. Agur was asking God to not make him poor or rich, but give him just enough for each day.
Having too little may make him dishonour God. Do you know that when you’re financially strapped, you can be tempted to steal? I’m sure we don’t set out to be thieves; but we sometimes ‘steal’ in these ways – not returning extra change, or under declaring our earnings to enjoy certain privileges. Agur knows how being poor can make him vulnerable to such a sin. Because Agur loves God, he prays -‘bless me with money, but not too much… I don’t want to dishonour Your name in any way.’
Having too much may make him disown God. Not love Him. Hence, Agur prays ‘protect me from too much wealth’. The pre-believing banker earning big bucks may have more money than he has time to spend. To this man, you might want to say, ‘You need Jesus’. However, they think they’re doing fine without Him. Even for us as believers, wealth can make us feel accomplished, empowered and self sufficient…
Therefore, Agur wisely prayed - ‘just give me what I need each day’. That way, it’ll keep him close to God and dependent on Him. It’ll keep him loving God for who He is and what He can do. George Mueller had some incredible stories of how God provided for his orphanages. One day they had no food for lunch, and so, he prayed for God to provide lunch. Soon, there was a knock on the door, and a guy said his bread truck broke down right in front of the orphanage, and that he’d like to unload all his bread there while the truck was getting fixed.
The much more life is not having more riches or none. It’s loving God the way Agur did!
Ps Tan Sok Hwee
