THE SPIRIT OF GREED.

THE SPIRIT OF GREED.

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 5:10.

Topic: The Spirit of Greed. 

"He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver..."

Ecclesiastes 5:10

This is the attitude of a greedy person. He is never satisfied with what he has. He is never satisfied with the opportunities and real situations that lie before him. He is always looking for something else, something special!  A greedy person will often stretch out his hands to take something that does not belong to him. Look at what happened to Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the prophet. His master refused to receive money from a healed captain of the host of the King of Syria. However, out of greed, Gehazi went ahead, lied to him and took the money for himself. By this, Gehazi had disgraced Elisha’s ministry forever. Elisha cursed

him and his seed forever, so Gehazi ended up with leprosy.

"The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow."

2 Kings 5:27

Perhaps he was in line to become the most anointed man of God after Elisha but that opportunity was denied him because of the spirit of greed. I am certain that in the book of Kings there would have been more chapters written about the works of Gehazi, but they were never written. Greed destroyed his ministry and his entire life. The spirit of greed can lead you to squander all the great opportunities that come your way.

Some people are not called to be heads, but they want to be heads. They look with greed at the things their superiors in ministry have. They look with greedy eyes at the cars and houses, which their bosses have!

Other people’s greed goes even further than that. They do not only want what you have, but actually want to be you! I was speaking one night to a pastor who had experienced the rebellion of several greedy junior pastors at the same time. He told me that in his opinion there are some pastors who would never be satisfied, no matter what they were offered or given. He complained bitterly about some of these greedy pastors, whom he said were even earning more money than himself. He went on to say that people like that would not even be satisfied if he gave them his own wife. He said such people are so greedy that they actually want nothing but to replace you.   They want to be you! Do not desire to be anybody. Be yourself! If you work with somebody, be content. Do not be greedy! You will not get to the top in a day. The only job that starts from the top is grave digging!

My experience tells me that it is not easy to prosper in this life. It is a long road to the prosperity we all hope for. Impatience and greed will only destroy your opportunities in life. The Bible says, “Beware of covetousness.” The prodigal boy had everything at home. Indeed, in his time of need he testified that even his father’s servants had more than enough to eat at home. However, because he was not satisfied with all his blessings, he stretched out his hand in the spirit of greed to take what was not yet his. Jesus warns us about covetousness:

"And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."

Luke 12:15

Do you have the spirit of greed? Let Apostle Paul’s admonition guide you and deliver you from this destructive spirit of greed:

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith be content."

1 Timothy 6:6-8

Credits: Excerpt from 
Opportunities
Bishop Dag Heward- Mills.