032309, Is Greed Good? by John.

Is Greed Good?

There is an old question that people bring up once in a while: Can good come from evil? In sixty-two years of ministry, I never heard anyone say the world or any individual needed to be greedy until I received a clip of an interview this week. The person being interviewed stated that greed is good, not that it can be, but that it is good, and it is necessary for the good of mankind. He indicated that every person who accomplished anything good for the people of the world did it because of greed. He made some telling historical points, but somehow he did not convince me. I've read Romans 8:28. The writer states, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."

I wondered if he would call war good? Greed for land, power, prestige, and control of others cause wars. These aren't the only possible causes. I suppose a war may be waged to right some wrongs, but most of the time the cure is worse than the disease; yet, good does come from war. It is not an outgrowth of it, but God uses it to carry out His promises. Surgery advanced over and over again due to war's victims, and doctor's attempts to save them. Their abilities were sharpened and their tools vastly improved. God used evil to accomplish good for innocents and for his own children.

While I listened to the man talk, I remembered numbers of people such as Mahatma Gandhi who starved himself in passive resistance to gain freedom in India. He didn't become a millionaire in the process, did he? Then I thought of Madam Curie who pioneered the way for our safety with the modern technology of radioactive materials. I remembered Lottie Moon, a tiny woman who spent her life in China teaching children about Jesus, and who gave her own food to them trying to keep them from starving. She starved herself literally to death! She will always be a heroine to me!

I didn't always agree with Martin Luther King, but I certainly admired him for his stand to bring equality to this nation's people. Apparently a lot of other people did, too, or we wouldn't have a holiday in his honor. To a great degree, he accomplished what Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation started. Where was his greed?

What about Jesus? (If you aren't a Christian, I may lose you here). Was it greed that caused Him to leave the comfort, prestige, position, and His Father in heaven to be born as a human baby? Theologians argue about how much as a child He knew of His former life. In fact, religious sects have arisen throughout history because of the different views about it. I'll just take what John 1:1-3 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being." If you believe that, then you also believe what He says.

Jesus said, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. " Matthew 6:24. Mammon should be translated "money." I happened to pick up a New American Standard Version as I began writing this.

Money is frequently the tool used by greedy people, and it does become your god when you put it ahead of the Living God. Matthew 16: 26 says: "What will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" Isn't it obvious that Jesus was saying, fulfilling your greed is a destructive thing unless you can keep God on the throne of your life. Perhaps your desire for wealth or position will be the fulfillment of God's will for your life instead of being greed. I have no doubt that God intends for some to be much richer than others, but He also expects you to be faithful to Him and for you to obey Him. Jesus said He always did the will of His Father. So should we! Being rich brings with it responsibility for those not so blessed. That responsibility is not based on the poor's merit, but simply on their need. Many rich people wonder if the money they give the poor went to "deserving" people. No one deserves help by the world's standard. All do by God's standard. His standard is His Own love for those He created. That's why Jesus said, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16. The word "world" should be translated "mankind." God loves rich and poor alike. He loves both the greedy and the generous. Instead of greed, we need to put God first, seek to produce enough to share with others not so blessed, open our hearts to them, and close our eyes where judging them is concerned. Greed is not good. Jesus asked the rich young man why he called Him good? Jesus said only God is good. He is the One we need to be like!

Musings:03/12/09,The Greatest Sin? by John.

The Greatest Sin?

1. Do you know what the greatest sin is? If you do, share it with all of us who don't know!
2. The Bible doesn't state definitely what the greatest sin is, and people always seem to classify sins according to their own concept of right and wrong.
3. The Catholic Church labeled sins as either venial or mortal. The seven mortal sins listed many, many years ago are lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride.
4. Venial sins refer to sins that could be forgiven by almost any sacrament according to the Catholic Church.
5. Mortal sins were those considered likely to destroy a Christian's life of grace and were thus deadly to Christian life if not properly handled.
6. Among evangelicals, it would seem almost every minister and almost surely every other Christian holds some sin to be most importantly sinful, perhaps unforgivable. (Yes. The New Testament does speak of a sin that will not be forgiven. We will get to that presently.)
7. I don't suppose we can pinpoint the beginning of human consciousness of sin beyond Genesis 3. Satan tempted Eve, and she and Adam ate the fruit of the tree God told them not to use for food.
8. God is the one authority Who states what sin is. The Bible gives us numerous instances of sin, but God seems to prefer using what we now claim as a human concept, the positive approach.
9. Instead of lists of sin, although there are some, more space in the Bible is devoted to what righteousness is. Simply put, righteousness is being right with God, and the Bible does spend a lot of time telling us how to achieve a right relationship with Him.
9. So, what does God consider the greatest sin? I'm sure there are many people in many denominations who will state vehemently their concept of the greatest sin, but that doesn't mean their idea came from God. I don't know what the greatest sin is, but bear with me for a few moments.
10. I do know what the Bible says about sin. It says every one of us has committed sin, and we are not what God wants us to be. Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
11. Romans also says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23).
12. Many classify sins as being either of commission or omission.
(1) "Commission" refers to things we know we shouldn't do, but we do anyway.
(2) "Omission" refers to things we should do, and we don't. James 4: 17 says, "Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it sins."
(3) Christians as well as non-Christians commit both kinds of sins. I think we Christians probably commit more sins of omission than commission.
13. Some say that if we don't know something is wrong, and we do it, it is not sin. God may take ignorance into consideration at the judgment, but with as many Bibles, sermons, studies and other available sources for knowledge as there are; ignorance is a lame excuse, no better than none.
14. God gave Moses The Ten Commandments, and they were the standard for living from Moses' day until now, and they are still good.
15. The Hebrew way of listing things was to put the most important item first, then the lesser items in descending order of importance.
(1) The commandments are given in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. The language differs somewhat in the two lists, but they agree in meaning.
(2) When a lawyer asked Jesus which commandment was greatest, He said, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matthew 22: 38). To hate God is certainly a sin of great magnitude, but we don't know that it is the greatest.
16. When men accused Jesus of casting out evil spirits by Beelzebub, Jesus showed them the error in their logic and concluded in Matthew 12:31,32, "And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." Obviously, God does not tolerate someone attributing the works and words of the Spirit to Satan. I don't believe a Christian can commit that sin because the Holy Spirit indwells and seals him to the day of redemption (Ephesians 1:13 & 4:30).
(A SIDE NOTE) People have come to me in fear thinking they have committed the unpardonable sin. When I ascertained they believed in God, I was able to say with assurance they had not. I believe any desire for God would be gone if they had, and I believe when God gives eternal life, it is eternal.)
17. The opposite of this sin would seem to be attributing the works of Satan to God, wouldn't it? I've been present when people did that. I don't think that is unpardonable, but knowing God makes me think such a thing shows a lack of knowledge about God, and I believe it is blasphemy. It scares me for the person who blasphemes God!
18. When I started this I planned to write more, but this is long enough. If you would like to ask questions, I will listen and write answers in the future.
19. Right now, let me say that I don't think the greatest sin is as important as the fact we have a character of sin and sin all the time no matter how hard we try to live Godly lives. We need to remember I John 1:8-10, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." These are the truths we need for both our daily life, and our eternal destiny. Knowledge is great, "But out of faith the righteous shall be living." (My translation of Romans 1:17) It is both a statement and a command.