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In this parable, the rich man died before he could use all that he had stored in his barns.
He mistakenly believed that the wealth he had amassed was his alone.
Jesus viewed his attitude as a form of greed.
When you concentrate your efforts on amassing wealth and material things and ignore God's plan for your resources, you violate one of His key principles stewardship of property and possessions.
Jesus illustrates to His listeners that if you plan only for this life, you are heading for eternity empty-handed.
!
I. GREED IS BASIC TO HUMAN NATURE
#. notice the warning
* Luke 12:15 /"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"/ NASB
#.
Jesus was striking out against one of the most common misconceptions that life equals possessions
#. or that the more possessions a man or woman has, the better life will be
#.
now, I already know what some of you are thinking . . .
#. /"Aw, preacher, you may have hit a little too close to home with those sermons on pride and envy, but I know for sure that I don't have a problem with greed."/
#. are you sure you don't have a problem with it?
#.
OK, so let me ask you some diagnostic questions that might help you evaluate where your are in regard to the morning's topic
#. you don't have to raise your hands on these!
#. how many of you have ever bought or continue to purchase Missouri lottery tickets?
#. if so, you might have a problem with greed
#. nawh, you probably just do it to insure our children's education, right?
#. the possibility of winning multi-millions of dollars doesn't even enter your mind
#. how many of you send back your Publisher's Clearing House entry form promising God that you'll tithe on that $10 million dollars, no questions asked?
#. if so, you might have a problem with greed
#. how many of you have ever made a trip to one of those lake-side developments because your letter said that you were one of three lucky contestants' who could win a car?
#. if so, you might have a problem with greed
#. how many of you do not give a tithe of your income to the church or Christian causes?
#. if not, you might have a problem with greed
!! A. JESUS' PARABLE ILLUSTRATES THAT MEN ARE SELDOM CONTENT WITH WHAT THEY HAVE AND WANT CONSIDERABLY MORE THAN THEY DESERVE
* ILLUS.
The German philosopher, Immanuel Kant once said, /"Give a man everything he desires and yet at this very moment he will feel that everything is not everything."?
* Luke 12:15 /"Then he said to them, "Watch out!
Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."? (NIV)
#. in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve knew true contentment
#.
God provided for their every need and they lived in perfect harmony with their Creator
#. then pride, the first deadly sin, entered the picture and Adam and Eve believed the devil's lie that God was holding out on them and they became envious
#. they wanted more than they had and greed was born
#.
Western literature abounds with fables and stories that teach us to be on guard against greed
#. such as the story of The Fisherman and His Wife I read to the children
#. the fisherman's wife reveals a common problem of attitude among many of America's citizens today
#. she felt she was owed prosperity
!! B. ENTITLEMENT HAS REPLACED INDUSTRY AND GREED HAS REPLACED BENEVOLENCE IN AMERICAN CULTURE
#. let me say, first of all, that achievement and accomplishment are inbred desires
#. our God is a successful God and He has engineered us for success
#. the desire for material gain and the accumulation of wealth is found in every culture on earth
#. the desire to be successful . . . the desire to achieve reputation and prosperity are not in and of themselves wrong
#.
money and wealth, while not evil in themselves, are capable of corrupting the human heart and diverting our attention from what is most important seeking the kingdom of God
#. what has changed in America is how many of our fellow citizens achieve their wealth it reveals a changing attitude about money and possessions
#. some of our citizens believe that they are entitled to prosperity
#. there was a time when industry that is, good ol fashioned hard work, imagination, ingenuity, and fairness were the means to success and prosperity
#. it was not uncommon to work a life-time in order to achieve it
#.
today, however, we are well into the third generation of citizens who believe that they are entitled to financial support whether they work for it or not
#.
many of our citizens are convinced that there is some person, or some cooperation, or some government agency up the line that has an abundance of wealth that rightly ought to be shared
#. their attitude is, /"I'm entitled to my fair share of the American pie whether I've worked for it or not.
It's not fair that others should have so much."/
#. folks let me tell you what that attitude really is it's greed
#. some of our citizens believe that they can borrow their way into prosperity
#. the good news this morning is that many people have finally realized that money can't buy happiness
#. the bad news is that now they're trying credit cards
#. charge it' has become part of the jargon of American culture
#. why work and save frugally for years or decades to acquire the things your parents worked a life-time for when you can have it all today by saying charge it?'
#. a goodly number of Americans are living substantially above their means because they've bought into the philosophy you can have it all now'
#. folks let me tell you something that's greed
#. some of our citizens believe that they can litigate their way into prosperity
#. spill hot coffee in your lap and you too can be a candidate for Forbes's magazine richest people in America!'
#. or smoke cigarettes for twenty years and then sue the tobacco company for addicting you even though for thirty years there has been a Surgeon General's warning on each package
#.
we are a sue-happy nation
* ILLUS.
I once heard a story about a grocer, who while delivering orders in his station wagon, ran down and injured an elderly lady.
The lady sued and was awarded an amount large enough to drive the man out of business.
After many difficult years, he managed to accumulate enough money to open his business again.
But after just a few months of business a gentleman slipped on the grocery store floor and injured his back.
Once again the grocer was sued and once again he was forced out of business.
One peaceful Sunday afternoon as the grocer was sitting in his living room, his teenage son came running into the house saying, "Dad, Dad.
Mom has been run over by a great big bus."
The grocer's eyes filled with tears, and in a voice trembling with emotion he cried, "Thank the Lord, my luck's changed at last."
#. some of our citizens believe that they can gamble their way into prosperity
#. the proliferation of states and communities that are actively encouraging their citizens to gamble is the most significant indicator that greed gripes the hearts of too many Americans
* ILLUS.
In the state of Mississippi last year 29.7 billion dollars was spent on gambling.
That was two billion dollars more than was spent on all other goods and services sold in the state.
Across the country, politicians are resigning in scandal after scandal related to gambling.
Government has become the ultimate bookie!
#. greed is destroying the soul of America
!
II.
GREED IS PROGRESSIVE AND SUBTLE
#. few there are among us who would describe themselves as Dickens described that bah, humbug' of a man, Ebenezer Scrooge:
#.
Dickens writes: /". . . he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind-stone, . . .
a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!"/
#. but if you've every read A Christmas Carol you'll remember that Scrooge wasn't always the covetous old sinner he had become
#.
ever so slowly did the passion for wealth infiltrate Ebenezer's life until it blinded him to all other cares
#. the name Scrooge is now synonymous with greed and avarice
#. greed is a trap that ensnares many believers, just as it ensnared Scrooge
#.
Dickens portrays a man whose life's aim is progressively altered by greed
!! A. THE GRADUAL NATURE OF GREED
#. the sin of greed may begin innocently enough
#. you may think that because God has blessed you, you are entitled to use your financial and spiritual gifts as you choose
#. slowly, you fall victim to Satan's snare of desire for more
#.
there are a number of words in both Old and New Testaments which we translate as greed
#. they refer to the gradually progressive nature of greed
#. the first of these words is found in Col. 3:5: /"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed,"/
#. the word greed here refers to a strong desire to acquire more and more material possessions or to possess more things than other people have, all irrespective of need
#. it's a greed that buys something on sale just because it is on sale whether you need it or not, because you think that some day you might need it
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