Greed

Luke 12:13-21

Introduction:     This lesson will hit close to home for most of us because it is about money and the things money can buy.  Jesus taught more about dealing with things than about any other subject.  I would conclude that He knew that would be a serious problem for most of us.  Here is what he says:

I. Needs

         A. Definitions

                 1. A physiological or psychological requirement for the well-being                of an organism

                 2. Something that is necessary or required

         B. Surfing the web I found different people have different lists for the              basic human needs

                 1. Security, adventure, freedom, exchange, power, expansion,                         acceptance, community, expression

                 2. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

                          a. Physiological needs - food, water

                          b. Safety needs

                          c. Love, affection, and belongingness needs

                          d. Esteem needs - self-respect

                          e. Cognitive needs - know & understand

                          f. Aesthetic needs - order & beauty

                          g. Self-actualization

                          h. Transcendence - help others

         C. Sirach 29:21

         D. What do you need?

         E. What do you have that you don’t need?

         F. Philippians 4:19  Fully satisfy every need

         G. If you have a need you think God has overlooked:  Hebrews 4:16

                 Ask God

II. Covetousness  vs. 15

         A. Definition

                 1. Greed

                 2. pleonexia - a desire to have more (pleon, more, echô, to have),                always in a bad sense.  (Do you want more?)

                        3. pleoneci¿a - a strong desire to acquire more and more material                     possessions or  to possess more things than other people have,                                all irrespective of need - —greed, avarice, covetousness.' kaiì                               thpleoneci¿an hÀtij e)stiìn ei¹dwlolatri¿a —and greed,                              which is idolatry' Col 3.5; kardi¿an gegumnasme/nhn                                        pleoneci¿aj eÃxontej —they are experts in greed' 2 Pe 2.14.         B. Be on your guard

                 1. Be careful, take heed

                 2. Take positive steps to avoid greed

                          a. What is in your heart?  check it out

                          b. Stop loving money

                                  1) I Timothy 3:3 (elders), 8 (deacons); 6:10 (love of money);                                                   II Timothy 3:2 (last days); Hebrews 13:5 (be content with                                                    what you have)

                          c. Give it away   Luke 18:22

                          d. Stop giving so much time to earning it & what it buys

         C. Life does not equal things / possessions

                 1. When we substitute things for life, we stop living by faith and                     trusting God.   Wiersbe

                 2. Jesus came that we might have abundant life, not abundant                        things   John 10:10

                 3. We all know this!  So why do we give so much of our time to                     things instead of to life?

III. The parable   vs. 16-20

         A. The dilemma:  What would you do if you had too much money?

         B. The decisions:  How can I keep it for myself?

                 1. My crops, my barns, my grain, my goods, my soul

                 2. How much did he leave when he died?  All of it!

         C. His death ended his greed

IV. Store up riches toward God   vs. 21

         A. One can be rich toward God and oneself

         B. Matthew 6:19-21   Do not store up treasures on earth

         C. This means putting your trust in God, not money

Conclusion:   What will we do with Jesus’ words?  My inclination is to ignore them, and hope they go away!  But if I’m going to trust Him, I must stop trusting money.  Maybe we need to reevaluate our time and our use of material things.

Wichita, KS.  Central.  June 20, 1999.  PM.

Canal #2.  WBD. Guyana.  February 24, 2002.  AM.  Revised.

Lamaha Gardens, Guyana.  September 19, 2004.  AM.