God Only Permits Sorrow, April 26

The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and He addeth no sorrow with it. Proverbs 10:22.RRe 118.1

“The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: He bringeth low, and lifteth up.” 1 Samuel 2:7.RRe 118.2

In the midst of prosperity lurks danger. Throughout the ages, riches and honor have ever been attended with peril to humility and spirituality. It is not the empty cup that we have difficulty in carrying; it is the cup full to the brim that must be carefully balanced. Affliction and adversity may cause sorrow; but it is prosperity that is most dangerous to spiritual life. Unless the human subject is in constant submission to the will of God, unless he is sanctified by the truth, prosperity will surely arouse the natural inclination to presumption....RRe 118.3

Whenever pride and ambition are indulged, the life is marred; for pride, feeling no need, closes the heart against the infinite blessings of Heaven. He who makes self-glorification his aim will find himself destitute of the grace of God, through whose efficiency the truest riches and the most satisfying joys are won. But he who gives all and does all for Christ will know the fulfillment of the promise, “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and He addeth no sorrow with it.” With the gentle touch of grace, the Saviour banishes from the soul unrest and unholy ambition, changing enmity to love, and unbelief to confidence. When He speaks to the soul, saying, “Follow Me,” the spell of the world’s enchantment is broken. At the sound of His voice, the spirit of greed and ambition flees from the heart, and men arise, emancipated, to follow Him.—Prophets and Kings, 59, 60.RRe 118.4