I. Teaching for the Rich (6:17-19)

This is the God in whom the rich are humbly to hope. Why? First, God is the ultimate provider. Second, God provides richly. By using the word richly, Paul reminds them that God is the rich One and that it is he to whom they should give thanks and look as a model. Third, God gives us everything to enjoy and share. Consequently, with God as their model, the rich are to be rich (note pun) in good works and to be generous and willing to share. In this way, they will lay up treasures as a firm foundation for the coming age (contrast with 6:17). Then they may take hold of real life, which is more than the physical and material (cf. 4:8; Mt 6:25-34).

While these commands are directed to the rich, they apply to all of us. Even the one who has little can be selfish and miserly. God help us to use and enjoy all we have for him, remembering that he is our gracious Provider and our Hope. Hence John Wesley’s emphasis on caring for the needy.