Greed
In the last decade we have seen the rise of a class of people political who decry the greed of the rich. They are called “millennials;” they are simply the younger generation. They accuse the rich of it, of greed. They might have some righteousness in their accusations except for the fact that most of them are far richer than the truly poor of this world. Moreover, it does not take a rocket scientist to see that most who deride the greed of others are envious of the “fruits” of the greed that makes others rich. Envy, it is said, does not simply want what others have but wants that they should not have it! THAT is what provokes theft. The envious are willing to steal what is your rather than labor for their own. It remains to be seen if the socialism of the millennials and of Bernie Sanders will or will not morph into the tyranny of Joseph Stalin.
Full Definition of socialism:
1 : any of various economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods
2 a : a system of society or group living in which there is no private property
--b : a system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state
3 : a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done
1 : any of various economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods
2 a : a system of society or group living in which there is no private property
--b : a system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state
3 : a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done
The Australian Labor Party was the world's first elected socialist party when the party won the 1899 Queensland state election. Who knew? Karl Marx middle class Prussian, and Friedrich Engels son of an upper class Prussian merchant, developed a body of ideas which they called scientific socialism, more commonly called Marxism. It is man’s desire to acheive a utopia that spawned socialism and communism. It was Lenin who gets the credit for Communist Russia, the firts socialist state and nation. He served as head of government of the Russian Republic from 1917 to 1918, of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1918 to 1924, and of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924. Under his administration, Russia and then the wider Soviet Union became a one-party communist state governed by the Russian Communist Party. Ideologically a Marxist, his political theories are known as Leninism. And would you believe it? Lenin was born to a wealthy middle-class family in Simbirsk, Russia). The poor do not have time to indulge in politics; they are busy seeking bread to eat.
Communism is alive and well funded today by some very rich people! It is satanically inspired. satan’s desire is to steal, kill, and destroy. Students of history the truth, that Communisms high but false ideals can never be acheived. The Soviet Union was the first Communist (Socialist) “republic.” The USSR stood for the Unted Soviet Socialist Republic. (I think Bernie Sanders is sincere but deceived, AS ARE THOSE CAPITALISTS who insist they be free to callously increase their wealth without regard to the needs of those whose labors they wish to exploit. The “free market” capitalist needs to admit the sales pitches of his marketers rely much on the fact of greed in the buyer to provoke their purchases.
It
was famously said : “There is the right way, the wrong way and the Army way.” I
would add, there is MY way and God’s way. God’s way IS THE RIGHT way!
God
commanded the children of Israel
You shall
not covet your neighbor's house, your neighbor's wife, or his manservant, or
his maidservant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.
[Luke 12:15; Col. 3:5.] (Exodus 20:17)
Why
did He command this? Because they did not understand the danger of their
corrupt human nature, that which produces ungovernable desires for things, even
the things possessed by others, even by their neighbors. The Ten Commandments
all were the first God written rules by which He showed the incompatibility of
the human race with the God of heaven. Sin has disqualified all who sin from
membership in God’s family and entrance into His presence. That men are greedy
is very clear and powerful evidence that they are not compatible with God. The
evidence of greed is found in the manner in which we acquire our money and
possessions, and in our manner of use of them. These our manners and use of
money and it’s power reveal the motives in the deepest part of our heart.
The young people today who accuse the rich of greed do not yet understand that their discontent arises out of the universal human desire to have the “good” things others possess without laboring for them. If they were content they would seek those good things by their own abilities. If they were wise and knowing they would add faith in God and prayers for His blessing!
The blessing
of Jehovah--it maketh rich, And He addeth no grief with it. (Proverbs 10:22)
God
IS NOT greedy. God gives us life in
the flesh into the world AND He gives
life by His blood and Spirit into the His Kingdom. For the one we depend on His
power and providence, for the second we depend on His revelation and grace. And
His revelation comes to us freely being seen in all the things He has made. We
cannot earn the grace God GIVES us, or else it would not be a free gift. THE
ONLY THING GOD OUR FATHER REALLY WANTS is that we know Him and Jesus and love
them in Spirit and in Truth. God is Spirit and Jesus is the Truth. If we do
know the Father it will be by the grace and Love He pours out revealed by Him
to us WHICH GIFT we DO NOT REFUSE!
If it
is true that the rich have gained their wealth by oppressing others we all need to be careful not to seek to
possess wealth by the same means.
Better a
little with righteousness than a huge income with injustice. (Proverbs 16:8)
The
discontented young need to beware they do not satisfy their own desire by
illegal acquisitions. Peoples’ wars of independence arise and overthrow the
unjust who oppress them; then they often become the oppressors of following
generations. And those generations arise and overthrow them who have become
unjust oppressors themselves. In the words of a song writer: “money makes the
world go round,” but oh the woe for those who seek security in money, and
greater woe to those who get rich by stealing and by murder.
Better to be
poor and live an honest life than be crooked in one's ways, though rich. (Proverbs 28:6
The
Savior did not say “blessed are the
wealthy.” He said in fact:
"Yes. I
tell you that it will be very hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven Kingdom
of God
We
need to be careful to listen to God in this election season. The war of two
worlds over the White House is a venue for satan’s deceits. If you want to
fight that battle I won’t condemn you to hell. But I will question the wisdom
of your enlistment. Jesus has conquered the death and the grave. His apostle
writes that those, that we who trust and follow Him are “more than conquerors.”
This victory is ours not by the accumulation of riches. Nor is it our by being
able to rule the nation. We are more than conquerors because God who IS love
has loved us, has revealed His Son to us and received us into His Kingdom
because He willed and purposed from before the foundation of the world that it
be so. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so!
Donald
Trump cannot save us. Nor can Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders or any third
party or other candidate. My intuition is that many even most Americans and not
a few American Christians are very fearful that the nation will become a “third
world” nation. Whoever presumed to divide the world into 3 parts? I think there
is a division in the world between the rich and the poor. The scripture reflects
on this. It says something of us that we are often ignorant of or complacent
regarding the needs of the poor. This is an inequity God permits and does He
not permit it to test our hearts? Surely if people were reasonable they would
not go to war in the market place over money. This war for money (for
power) is the cause of great sorrow for
many. Some are sorry for not having it, some will be sorry for what they did to
acquire it. We have forgotten (or never known) the tenth commandment:
You shall
not covet your neighbor's house, your neighbor's wife, or his manservant, or
his maidservant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.
[Luke 12:15; Col. 3:5.] (Exodus 20:17)
I fear many
who have heard do not really know what it means. The biblical word is Hebrew;
it is חמד or châmad pronounced khaw-mad'. It means: to
delight in: - beauty, greatly beloved, covet, delectable thing, ( X
great) delight, desire, goodly, lust, (be) pleasant (thing), precious (thing).
When I was very
young (perhaps 4 or 5) my uncle saved my sister’s life! How? By taking from my
hands a large log of firewood with which I was about to strike her! He just
happened by the grace of God to come into the room and discover this crime in
progress! TY Jesus! I may not have killed her but I could have done great
damage to her. What did she have that made me covet her elimination from my
life? Was it simply my parents favor and attention? I don’t know, but I suspect
it was just that.
In their
children Abel and Cain we see covetousness. Sin overwhelmed all innocence in
the second generation of the human family! In their offerings Abel’s was
accepted and Cain was rejected. Cain was angry that God favored Abel. Although
not clearly stated, was Cain not covetous of Abel’s offering as much as his
acceptance? God came to Cain personally to help him through the difficulty but
it appears that Cain rejected God’s help! If Cain had been inclined could he
not have sought from God how to overcome the sin which was seeking to rule him?
Instead it appears that Cain’s solution was to eliminate the “cause” of his
discontent by murdering Abel! It is the first example of “sibling rivalry.
Why are we
forbidden to delight in that which is another’s? We only need look to our young
children fighting over a toy to see it. This wrong headed desire is rooted in
every human being, it is a part of the corruption that infected the whole of
humanity when satan deceived and provoked our first parents. Adam and Eve WERE
innocent. But they were not wise. Wisdom is something that would come to them
as a result of their loss of innocence. Having never known sin and war they
were somewhat I THINK, overwhelmed by
the fallen yet seductive adversary satan.
The world and
human flesh have been corrupted by satan who corrupted himself by what
means?... By coveting the throne of God! Satan is the first covetous being
ever! It was not God who corrupted satan, he did it to himself. And having done
so, he lost his place in God’s Heaven and Kingdom. Why did God allow him into Eden
It has been
taught that the Christian has three enemies: the world, the flesh and satan.
Certainly it is clear that corruption is real and has touched every part of
this earth. The cause is sin and wages of sin are death. That which is corrupt
dies! Only God and the high heaven He dwells in are free of corruption. We know
of three heavens by the apostle Paul’s writing. If the third is the highest, there
it is that God will not permit corruption to dwell. How then are we who are
corrupted to enter heaven to live with God forever? It will have to be an act
of God which accomplishes this. If it were possible for you or I as human beings to do it by our own power would we not have done so and also
brought the whole of humanity out of corruption into God’s dwelling place? Only
when we face these unpleasant but real truths about ourselves will we begin to
see how satan has turned us away from God and against each other, even against
our own selves. Suicide is the final act of self opposition. Some become
enemies of their own being and murder themselves. The comic strip character
Pogo said “We have found the enemy and he is us!” The perversity of our corruption
is revealed by our penchant to be humored by the most grievous truths!
The desire for
wealth and power will almost certainly rise up in the hearts of those who
ignore or forget God. Why? Because with no KNOWLEDGE of God and HIS will we are
left by ourselves with knowledge of ourselves, and knowingly or unknowingly
with satan as we journey through the
world. Our self knowledge is corrupt, all our knowledge is corrupt and remains
corrupt until we respond to God’s revelation and begin to learn His way. Jesus
is God’s way.
HEAR THIS,
all you peoples; give ear, all you inhabitants of the world, Both low and high,
rich and poor together: My mouth shall speak wisdom; and the meditation of my
heart shall be understanding. I will submit and consent to a parable or
proverb; to the music of a lyre I will unfold my riddle (my problem). Why
should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of those who would
supplant me surrounds me on every side, Even of those who trust in and lean on
their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches? None of them can by
any means redeem [either himself or] his brother, nor give to God a
ransom for him-- For the ransom of a life is too costly, and [the price one
can pay] can never suffice-- So that he should live on forever and never
see the pit (the grave) and corruption. For he sees that even wise men die; the
[self-confident] fool and the stupid alike perish and leave their wealth
to others. Their inward thought is that their houses will continue forever, and
their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands their own [apart
from God] and after their own names. But man, with all his honor and pomp,
does not remain; he is like the beasts that perish. This is the fate of those
who are foolishly confident, yet after them men approve their sayings. Selah [pause,
and calmly think of that]! Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol (the
place of the dead); death shall be their shepherd. And the upright shall have
dominion over them in the morning; and their form and beauty shall be consumed,
for Sheol shall be their dwelling. But God will redeem me from the power of
Sheol (the place of the dead); for He will receive me. Selah [pause, and
calmly think of that]! Be not afraid when [an ungodly] one is made
rich, when the wealth and glory of his house are increased; For when he dies he
will carry nothing away; his glory will not descend after him. Though while he
lives he counts himself happy and prosperous, and though a man gets praise when
he does well [for himself], He will go to the generation of his fathers,
who will nevermore see the light. A man who is held in honor and understands
not is like the beasts that perish. To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons
of Korah. (Psalm 49:1-20) [Amplified Bible]
So if you haven't
been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who is going to trust you with the
real thing? (Luke 16:11)
Let us not
mistake the gain of money for success. In the parable of the unjust steward we
learn that human corruption causes theft by embezzlement. It also causes the
bribe. Money is loved in such a way that almost everyone will use it for
advantage and many will steal it from others! These sins are not going to cause
us to be wealthy. Money is not to be loved. Money may however be used in such a
way as to express love. Our gifts of money can bless others. They might also be
a test of others. A pastor I know taught that our ability and WILLINGNESS to
give money away to others reveals the condition of our heart in a very
important way. See how the Lord teaches:
“Do
not store up for yourselves wealth here on earth, where moths and rust destroy,
and burglars break in and steal. Instead, store up for yourselves wealth in
heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and burglars do not break in or steal.
For where your wealth is, there your heart will be also. 'The eye is the lamp
of the body.' So if you have a 'good eye' [that is, if you are generous]
your whole body will be full of light; but if you have an 'evil eye' [if you
are stingy] your whole body will be full of darkness. If, then, the light
in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! No one can be slave to two
masters; for he will either hate the first and love the second, or scorn the
second and be loyal to the first. You can't be a slave to both God and money.
"Therefore, I tell you, don't worry about your life — what you will eat or
drink; or about your body — what you will wear. Isn't life more than food and
the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:19-25) [The Complete Jewish Bible]
Someone in
the crowd said to him, "Rabbi, tell my brother to share with me the
property we inherited." But Yeshua [Jesus] answered him, "My
friend, who appointed me judge or arbitrator over you?" Then to the
people he said, "Be careful to guard against all
forms of greed, because even if someone is rich, his life does not consist in
what he owns." And he gave them this illustration: "There was a man whose land was very productive. He
debated with himself, 'What should I do? I haven't enough room for all my
crops.' Then he said, 'This is what I will do: I'll tear down my barns and
build bigger ones, and I'll store all my wheat and other goods there. Then I'll
say to myself, "You're a lucky man! You have a big supply of goods laid up
that will last many years. Start taking it easy! Eat! Drink! Enjoy
yourself!" ' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night you will die!
And the things you prepared — whose will they be?' That's how it is with anyone
who stores up wealth for himself without being rich toward God." To his talmidim [disciples] Yeshua [Jesus] said, "Because of this I tell you, don't worry about your life
— what you will eat or drink; or about your body — what you will wear. For life
is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.” (Luke 12:13-23)
[The Complete Jewish Bible]
It is
often said that it is the love of money that it the root of all (or most) evil.
Yet there was a time when money did not exist. What existed before that? It was
surely the love of abundance, of everything money would eventually represent
and buy. Men love the power of money, the things it can buy, even the people
they can control and oppress by having money and power.
Better to be
humble among the poor than share the spoil with the proud. (Proverbs 16:19)
The
first mention of gold:
The name of
the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah
It is
interesting that the gold (and not the bdellium) is called good. The rich ruler
called Jesus “Good teacher.” Jesus said to him, "Why are you calling me
good? No one is good except God! (Mar 10:18) What is so good about gold? Gold
is not edible. At that time it was not useful and industrial or technical way.
Was there enough of it to use as construction material? It might have made for
a very strong fortress. Ultimately it was used as jewelry and as money. Silver
is somewhat less durable and also became money. BOTH were used to make idols
which were worshipped as false gods.
The
second mention of gold:
And Abram was
very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. (Genesis 13:2)
And it came
to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of
half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels
weight of gold; (Genesis 24:22)
Here
is first mention of coinage is in Genesis 24:22 where a gold earring is described by weight, the weight of a
shekel which is apparently the coin of that time and place. Why is it that gold
was measured and valued in this way? What happened that men began to weigh out
gold (and silver) into equal measures of “shekels” and later dollars? It must
be that in the purposes of God this came to be done. The corruption or the
virtue of our hearts is revealed in different ways. The perverse inclination of
men to acquire and possess things, money and use them to control other men is
evident. Slavery is the buying and selling of men by men. Why was it done? Was
it not so that men could exploit the value of human slaves (beings) in perverse
ways, making them labor and taking the fruit of their labors for themselves. Can
it be that God caused the universally corrupt nature of man expressed in perverse
lust which to be revealed full blown by the invention of money? I think it may
be so! Our use of money so often shows our capacity to do good or to do evil to
others. God eventually sent His Son Jesus to do good to all men. What did we do
to Him? Jesus was betrayed for thirty pieces of silver, than sum being the
price of a slave! For that sum the religious elites of Jesus one countrymen
turned Him over to foreigners to be beaten, scourged, mocked and murdered.
Jesus died so we might be forgiven the sins flowing out of our profoundly and
deeply corrupted hearts. And that corruption expressed in the Lord’s violent sufferings
after He was sold out by Judas for thirty silver coins, the price of a human
slave! Not for nothing are we warned about covetousness, and commanded to do no
harm to our neighbor.
Keep out of
debt and owe no man anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his
neighbor [who practices loving others] has fulfilled the Law [relating
to one's fellowmen, meeting all its requirements]. The commandments, You
shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall
not covet (have an evil desire), and any other commandment, are summed up in
the single command, You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself. [Exod.
20:13-17; Lev. 19:18.] Love does no wrong to one's neighbor [it never
hurts anybody]. Therefore love meets all the requirements and is the
fulfilling of the Law. Romans 13:8-10
Better
little with the fear of Adonai than great wealth coupled with worry. (Proverbs 15:16)
Better a
vegetable dinner with love than a stall-fattened ox with hate. (Proverbs 15:17)
Better a
little with righteousness than a huge income with injustice. (Proverbs 16:8)
How much
better than gold it is to gain wisdom! Yes, rather than money, choose to gain
understanding. (Proverbs 16:16)
Better to be
humble among the poor than share the spoil with the proud. (Proverbs 16:19)
Better a dry
piece of bread with calm than a house full of food but also full of
strife. (Proverbs 17:1)
Better to be
poor and live one's life uprightly than engage in crooked speech, for such a
one is a fool. (Proverbs 19:1)
A man's lust
is his shame, and a poor man is better than a liar. (Proverbs 19:22)
Better to be
poor and live an honest life than be crooked in one's ways, though rich. (Proverbs 28:6)
I [Wisdom]
walk in the way of righteousness (moral and spiritual rectitude in every area
and relation), in the midst of the paths of justice, That I may cause those who love me to inherit [true] riches and
that I may fill their treasuries. The Lord formed and brought me [Wisdom]
forth at the beginning of His way, before His acts of old. I [Wisdom]
was inaugurated and ordained from everlasting, from the beginning, before ever
the earth existed. [John 1:1; I Cor. 1:24.] When there were no deeps, I
was brought forth, when there were no fountains laden with water. Before the
mountains were settled, before the hills, I was brought forth, [Job 15:7, 8.]
While as yet He had not made the land or the fields or the first of the dust of
the earth. When He prepared the heavens, I [Wisdom] was there; when He
drew a circle upon the face of the deep and stretched out the firmament over
it, When He made firm the skies above, when He established the fountains of the
deep, When He gave to the sea its limit and His decree that the waters should
not transgress [across the boundaries set by] His command, when He
appointed the foundations of the earth--[Job 38:10, 11; Ps. 104:6-9; Jer.
5:22.] Then I [Wisdom] was beside Him as a master and director of
the work; and I was daily His delight, rejoicing before Him always, [Matt.
3:17; John 1:2, 18.] Rejoicing in His inhabited earth and delighting in the
sons of men. [Ps. 16:3.] Now therefore listen to me, O you sons; for
blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are those who keep my ways. [Ps.
119:1, 2; 128:1, 2; Luke 11:28.] Hear
instruction and be wise, and do not refuse or neglect it. Blessed (happy,
fortunate, to be envied) is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my
gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoever finds me [Wisdom]
finds life and draws forth and obtains favor from the Lord. But he who misses
me or sins against me wrongs and injures himself; all who hate me love and
court death.
(Proverbs 8:20-36)
[Amplified Bible]
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