Expert: John of AllFaith - 11/9/2009

Question
My brother recently became a Christian.  He is doing well in his studies but we have a disagreement on the wealth of Jesus.  He tells me that Jesus was a monetarily wealthy man and had plenty of money.  I say that isn't true.  I use the verse that explains that the Son of Man had nowhere to lay his head. The verses that tell the people to support his disciples when they come to preach, like evangelists of today.  The only verse he gives me to prove Jesus was wealthy was the one that says He was rich but became poor for our sake.  I try to explain that Jesus had all the wealth because He is God.  He gave up the heavenly wealth to became poor to save us spiritually not so we can be monetarily wealthy.
Is there anything you can give me to help explain this.  If I am wrong is there anything you can tell me to show me that also?
Thank you for your time.

Answer
Hi David,

The Bible does not directly answer this however ALL indications are that he had no wealth to speak of.

Baptists, like all traditional Protestants, Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholics have historically celebrated the Master's poverty.

I suspect your brother has been listening to Kennith Copeland, Rev. Ike or some of the other "prosperity teachers" who seek to justify their own wealth and greed by saying the Master was like them. He wasn't.

What we do have are verses like this:

Matthew 8:20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

There are several accounts of people (like Mary, Martha and Lazarus) providing shelter for him for a night here and there. A rich man would have stayed in the Roman inns.

We know that Joseph, his step father, was a carpenter (as was Jesus until beginning the ministry) and as a general statement Jewish carpenters in first century Judea were not wealthy men. They were more like what we think of as barrel makers who lived on subsistence incomes from very hard toil. Jesus was born in a manger because his parents could not afford an inn (even if every inn in the town was full a rich man with a pregnant wife could always have done better than a stable).

The evidence strongly suggests that Jesus did not belong to any of the religious or political parties of the time and most Jewish wealth (what little there was) was held by such men.

The Scripture says that "the love of money is the root of all evil" (I Tim 6:10) and Jesus said "Its harder for a rich man to get to heaven than for a camel to pass through the needle's eye (Matt 19:24) (i.e. the small opening in the gate for night time travelers: they had to unload the camel and have it crawl though the opening for security).

And again,
I Cor 1:26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:
27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

Here's this verse in a modern English version (the World English Bible). The King James is a bit tough with this verse:

1:26 For you see your calling, brothers, that not many are wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, and not many noble; 1:27 but God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong; 1:28 and God chose the lowly things of the world, and the things that are despised, and the things that are not, that he might bring to nothing the things that are: 1:29 that no flesh should boast before God.

You are completely correct.

May God bless you and your brother,

~ John of AllFaith