Toys
Children love playing with their toys & have so
much that they can’t fit them all in their toy box.
They get older and want the latest game
systems (Wii U, Playstation 4, X-Box One, etc.)
When children grow up & leave, they see what
their parents have (cars, cell phone, computers,
clothes, etc.) and want it ASAP.
Why Do We “Need” So Much?
• We’re saturated with 5,000 ads daily (TV, radio, email,
internet, billboards, magazines, regular mail, etc.)
• The advertising industry spends about $100 billion a
year which leads us to want more so that we will
spend more.
• We live in a prosperous nation where we as Americans
want better for our children than we had it- especially
through the depression. So we try to buy their
affection or try to keep up with Jones’ family.
What is “Greed”?
“an excessive desire to acquire or
possess more than what one needs or
deserves, especially with respect to
material wealth”
(American Heritage Dictionary)
Jesus Warns About “Greed”
"Beware, and be on your guard
against every form of greed; for
not even when one has an
abundance does his life consist of
his possessions“ (Luke 12:15).
Greed Can Become Your God
• "No one can serve two masters; for either he
will hate the one and love the other, or he will
be devoted to one and despise the other. You
cannot serve God and wealth” (Matt. 6:24).
• What you treasure in your heart is what you
will follow (Matthew 6:21).
Greed Can Become Your God
• Balaam was bribed by Balak (king of Moab) to curse
Israel so he could defeat them in battle (Num. 22:5-7).
• Being a prophet of God, he had to obtain permission ...
God said, “No.” (Num. 22:12).
• The king’s men came back with offers of more wealth.
Balaam said he couldn’t go against God’s commands,
but he really wanted the money (Num. 22:15-19).
• Balaam placed a stumbling block before Israel which
led to idolatry, sexual immorality, and the death of
24,000 Israelites (Num. 25:1-9; 31:16; Rev. 2:14).
Greed Will Rule & Ruin Your Life
• “But those who want to get rich fall into temptation
and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires
which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the
love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, & some by
longing for it have wandered away from the faith and
pierced themselves with many griefs” (1 Ti. 6:9-10).
• Many today are forsaking the right way, having trained
their heart in greed, and are following the way of
Balaam (2 Peter 2:15).
What Would You Do For $10 Million?
2/3 would do one or more of the following:
25%- abandon their church
25%- abandon their family
23%- become prostitutes for a week or more
16%- give up their American citizenship
16%- leave their spouses
10%- withhold testimony & let a murderer go free
7%- kill a stranger 3%- put up their children for adoption
(James Patterson & Peter Kim, The Day America Told the Truth, 1991)
You Wouldn’t Do That?
How about gambling?
How about overextending your credit?
How about consistently making minimum credit
card payments while charging more?
How about “robbing Peter to pay Paul”?
How about bankruptcy?
What are you thinking about?
• Do you spend more time thinking about your
bank account or the stock market than the
Bible (2 Timothy 3:16-17)?
• Do you dream, imagine, or think about your
next purchase that will make you happy or
are you setting your affections on things
above (Colossians 3:1ff)?
Money Will Never Make You Happy
• Solomon, a very rich man, said that you
will never be satisfied with money or
things (Ecclesiastes 5:10-11).
• You cannot serve two masters (God and
money) because you will hate one and
love the other (Matthew 6:24).
Trust in God to Take Care of You
• Greed leads us to think that God can’t take
care of us so we trust in what we see but we
are supposed to “walk by faith, not by sight”
(2 Corinthians 5:7)
• Don’t “fix your hope on the uncertainty of
riches but on God who richly supplies us with
all things to enjoy” (1 Tim. 6:17).
Admit, Confess, & Forsake Your Greed
“He who conceals his transgressions will
not prosper, But he who confesses
and forsakes them will find
compassion” (Proverbs 28:13).
Seek God’s Kingdom First- Count Blessings
• If we seek His kingdom first, God will take
care of all our needs according to His
riches in Christ Jesus so that we don’t have
to worry (Matt. 6:33-34; Phil. 4:19).
• Learn to count all the many blessings that
you have from God.
Conclusion
• If greed is your god, it will rule and ruin
your life (like Balaam). It must not be
named among Christians (Eph. 5:3).
• But if you store up for yourself treasures in
heaven it will not corrupt and thieves can’t
break in or steal (Matthew 6:19-20).
Conclusion
• Everything that you cherish on the earth will
be burned up (2 Peter 3:10) but God desires
to show us the surpassing riches of His glory
in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:7).
• You must be willing to surrender all to Jesus
or you cannot be his disciple (Luke 14:33).
He who dies with the most toys wins?
If you live with
this attitude
you will be like
the man who
built bigger &
bigger barns …
Luke 12:20-21
In the end,
you will lose
everything
dear to you
and will
suffer
eternal
torment!
Surrender all to Jesus now!