Chapter 5: Emptying “Greed”

Chapter 5: Emptying “Greed”

 

 

 

 

In the previous chapter, through emptying “pride,” we examined the heart that seeks to exalt itself above God and put its own will first.  Now, in Chapter 5, we will examine “greed,” which, together with pride, takes deep hold of our souls, prevents us from being satisfied with God, and causes us continually to grasp for the things of this world.  We must stand honestly before the Word of God, confront the true nature of the greed that has taken root within us, and learn how to empty ourselves of it.

 

Dr. Hee-dae Lee, who once served as director of the cancer center at a large general hospital, explained the physiological characteristics of cancer cells by comparing them with a spiritual principle.  According to medical principles, the normal cells of our bodies are supposed to grow and die repeatedly according to an established order.  But when abnormal genetic mutations occur, malformed cells can emerge that refuse to die or destroy themselves and instead continue growing without limit.  These are cancer cells.

What makes cancer cells truly frightening is that, in order to continue expanding and growing, they take for themselves even the precious nutrients that other normal cells need. Cancer cells spread throughout the body, aggressively intercepting and consuming the nutrients that should have been supplied to other cells.  When we consider this characteristic of cancer cells as a spiritual analogy, we are reminded of greed, which continually seeks to possess more and in the process destroys other things as well.

 

Regarding this relationship between the physiological characteristics of cancer cells and spiritual destruction, Scripture declares a very clear spiritual principle through the apostle James.  James 1:15 says:

“Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”

The truth we must honestly recognize is that the monster Scripture calls greed possesses an addictive nature that can never be satisfied by any amount of worldly possessions or wealth.

 

Greed Prevents Us from Being Satisfied with the Grace God Has Given

 

Through the record in Numbers, we must face the tragic condition of the Israelites in the wilderness, who failed to give thanks for the grace of manna given from above and instead became consumed by endless craving.  Numbers 11:4 and 20 says: “The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, ‘If only we had meat to eat!’ … You will eat it until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it—because you have rejected the LORD, who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, ‘Why did we ever leave Egypt?’”  The Israelites were influenced by the people living among them and began to crave what they craved. Greed can spread in this way through the worldly currents of society and penetrate deeply into the hearts of believers.  As a result, they were no longer satisfied with the glorious manna from heaven that God provided every day.  Eventually, they cried aloud like children, poured out complaints and resentment, and demanded meat from Moses, their spiritual leader.  As greed filled their hearts, their judgment became seriously distorted.  Eventually, they even began longing for Egypt, the land of sin where they had once lived miserably as abused slaves.  They remembered as “the good old days” the time when, in Egypt, they had eaten fish, cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic without cost.  They even claimed that their life in Egypt, a place of destruction, had been far better than their present life in the wilderness (vv. 5, 18).  Scripture solemnly describes their contempt for the grace of salvation and their longing for worldly abundance and fleshly desire as a sin of despising the LORD Almighty, the living God who dwelt among them.  God sent quail in response to their demand and allowed them to eat meat until they became sick of it.  Yet greed does not satisfy a person. It can ultimately lead a person into God’s judgment and destruction.  Before the meat had even been chewed between their teeth, the Lord struck them with a plague in His wrath.  Those who had despised the manna from heaven and refused to abandon their blind craving for meat were buried there.  For this reason, the place marked by that dreadful judgment was called Kibroth Hattaavah, meaning “graves of craving” (Num. 11:34).    Greed does not satisfy the human heart.  In the end, it becomes an idol that devours and destroys the person who serves it.

 

Greed Leads Us to Take Away Even the Rights of Others

 

Even more frightening is the fact that greed does not remain confined to an individual heart. It can harm the rights and lives of other people.  A person blinded by greed may encounter a righteous person who faithfully obeys God’s Word, yet if he cannot obtain the possession he wants, he can become bitterly angry and begin plotting evil.  We must confront this reality of greed clearly in the biblical account of King Ahab.

First Kings 21:3–4 says: “But Naboth replied, ‘The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors.’  So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, ‘I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.’ He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat.”  King Ahab of Israel coveted Naboth’s vineyard beside his palace because he wanted to turn it into a vegetable garden.  Naboth, however, firmly rejected the king’s request because he wanted to obey God’s law, which prohibited him from carelessly selling his ancestral inheritance.

What is truly pitiful is Ahab’s response to Naboth, who was faithfully obeying God’s command.  When his greed was denied, Ahab became deeply displeased and discouraged, returned to the palace, lay on his bed, turned his face away, and refused to eat.  A person controlled by greed can become deeply offended and pour out poisonous resentment when a Christian who keeps the Lord’s commands prevents him from gaining the worldly benefit he desires.  Therefore, if anger rises within us simply because we did not receive the income or benefit we wanted, we should examine ourselves to see whether we are already being ruled by greed.  The Lord gives a solemn warning concerning this dangerous condition of the human heart. Luke 12:15 says: “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”  We must examine our hearts every day and remain watchful so that we do not fall into any form of greed.  If we leave the greed within us untouched instead of emptying ourselves of it, that greed can eventually become the fuse that ignites tragedy and destroys the family.

 

Greed Destroys the Family and the Community

 

Jezebel, who should have restrained Ahab’s greed, instead joined him in his desire and promised that she would seize Naboth’s vineyard and give it to him (1 Kgs. 21:7).  She was a foolish wife who had no fear of the living God.  Proverbs 14:1 says: “The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.”  According to this principle, a foolish person who does not fear God and plots evil simply to satisfy material desires eventually walks the path of tearing down and destroying a precious family with his or her own hands.  Jezebel’s greed finally developed into the cruel sin of falsely accusing the faithful and righteous Naboth in order to accomplish her purpose.  First Kings 21:13–14 says that two scoundrels came and testified falsely before the people that Naboth had cursed God and the king. Naboth was then taken outside the city and stoned to death.  They recruited wicked men and fabricated false testimony that Naboth, who had actually been obeying God’s command, had cursed God and the king. In the end, they dragged him outside the city and stoned him to death (v. 15).  Greed does not end with the simple desire to “have more.”  Uncontrolled greed can eventually violate the rights and reputation of others and can even develop into sin that takes another person’s life.  The same is true in our lives and workplaces today.  If, because of greed for greater income or a more secure position, we slander or drive out a faithful colleague who follows principles, or unjustly wound another person, we must examine ourselves with fear and ask whether our hearts are already becoming stained with the greed of Ahab and Jezebel.

 

Greed Steals Contentment and Produces Complaint

 

We must also face how foolish and miserable greed can make the human soul and mind.  Ecclesiastes 7:7 warns: “Extortion turns a wise person into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart.”  Greed can cloud even the judgment of a wise person.  A person controlled by greed can easily become impatient and angry when he does not obtain what he wants.  Ecclesiastes 7:8–9 says: “The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.  Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.”  A person who forgets true emptying and is blinded by greed becomes impatient to satisfy his desires immediately rather than patiently waiting for the outcome of God’s sovereign work.  Because his heart has become proud, he cannot endure faithfully to the end.  Whenever things at work or at home do not go according to his wishes, he complains and quickly pours out anger.  Scripture clearly warns that such impulsive anger is not the mark of wisdom but something that resides in the heart of fools.  Furthermore, a person contaminated by greed and unable to be satisfied with the present becomes trapped in spiritual complaint.  Ecclesiastes 7:10 says: “Do not say, ‘Why were the old days better than these?’  For it is not wise to ask such questions.”  A person ruled by greed constantly laments, “Why are my circumstances now so much worse than they were before?”  Instead of giving thanks for the grace God has provided today in the workplace and home, such a person lives longing only for the season in the past when things seemed better.  But continually comparing the size of our possessions and pursuing past glory while failing to give thanks for the grace God has granted today is not the true wisdom of which Scripture speaks.

 

Greed Wearing the Mask of Religion

 

The ugliest and most subtle expression of greed in Christian faith occurs when a person outwardly wears the holy mask of serving God faithfully while inwardly practicing spiritual hypocrisy by worshiping money and material possessions.  We must examine this disguised greed through the Pharisees in Luke 16:14–15.  Scripture exposes their corrupt hearts by describing the Pharisees who heard the Lord’s teaching as people who loved money.  When they heard Jesus’ teaching, they actually ridiculed Him.  Their fundamental problem was that outwardly they behaved as though they strictly and piously observed the law, while inwardly they loved money and possessions.  Though they loved money, they tried to present themselves as righteous before people. Love of money and religious self-righteousness had taken root together in their hearts.  The same danger exists today when material success and abundance are too readily identified with God’s blessing and greed is justified in the name of faith.  The outward growth or financial abundance of a church does not automatically prove God’s favor.  Nor should a person with money or social status receive special spiritual authority within the community merely because of those things.  The church must value faith, character, and the fruit of service more highly than a person’s wealth or status.  If a church values wealth and social influence more highly than faithfulness, the community itself can fall into the temptation of greed. 

 

Therefore, before the Word we must examine ourselves to see whether desires for money and power are hiding behind spiritual expressions such as “God’s grace,” “answered prayer,” or “church growth.”  This warning applies equally to churches and Christians today because we too are not free from the temptation into which the Pharisees fell.  The fact that something follows legal procedures within a church does not necessarily mean that everything about it is right before God.  Sometimes human desires for money and power may be hidden behind spiritual expressions such as “God’s grace,” “a miraculous answer to prayer,” or “the remarkable growth of the church.”  The righteous God does not look only at outward success or legal procedures.  The Lord examines the human heart and the motives hidden within it.  Therefore, before judging others, we must stand before the mirror of this Word, discover the greed hidden in our own hearts, and empty ourselves of it.  Scripture gives an even more severe warning to spiritual leaders who are blinded by wealth and use their calling as a means of personal gain.  Isaiah 56:11 says: “They are dogs with mighty appetites; they never have enough. They are shepherds who lack understanding; they all turn to their own way, they seek their own gain.”  An important characteristic of greed rebuked here by the Lord is that it “never has enough.”  If pastors and church leaders, who have been entrusted with caring for and serving God’s flock, become preoccupied with increasing their own wealth and personal benefit, they depart from the mission God has entrusted to them.  When even pastoral ministry and Christian service become means for personal gain, the greed of one leader can deeply wound not only that leader but the entire community.  The Pharisees were the same.  They made their outward appearance clean so that they might appear godly before people.  But Jesus saw their hearts.  In Luke 11:39 the Lord rebuked them: “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.”  They appeared clean outwardly, but greed occupied the center of their hearts. 

 

The Meaning of Greed Contained in “Harpagē”

 

The Greek word translated “greed” in Luke 11:39 is harpagē (ἁρπαγή).  This word does not merely describe an inward desire to possess more.  It also carries the meaning of taking away or exploiting what belongs to another person and making it one’s own.  Therefore, the greed for which Jesus rebuked the Pharisees was not limited to the inward thought, “I want a little more.”  When greed grows, it can manifest itself in actions that violate another person’s share and take away the rights and possessions of others for one’s own benefit.  If a person outwardly appears godly but uses and sacrifices other people for personal gain, that is precisely the kind of religious greed against which the Lord warned.  For pastors and church leaders, therefore, greed is even more dangerous.    A person may say with his lips that he loves God while in actual life relying on money and possessions more than on God.  A pastor may proclaim from the pulpit, “I love you, LORD, my strength” (Ps. 18:1), yet if in daily life he clings to money as the source of his strength, security, and future, he must honestly examine his heart before the Word. 

 

True repentance does not end with a verbal confession.  Just as John the Baptist cried, “Produce fruit in keeping with repentance” (Mt. 3:8), repentance from greed must also appear as change in one’s life.  Instead of loving money while concealing that love behind religious language, repentance should appear in refusing unjust gain, using wealth honestly, and sharing with neighbors what God has entrusted to us.  Luke 16:14 calls the Pharisees “lovers of money.”  The expression comes from the Greek word philargyroi (φιλάργυροι), literally meaning “people who love money.”  Outwardly they appeared to be godly people serving God, but inwardly they loved money more than God.  This Word asks us an important question today:

 

Do I truly love God?

 

Or, while saying that I believe in God, am I actually relying more upon the security and power that money provides?  To empty ourselves of greed, our eyes must return to the Word of God.  Psalm 119:11 and 36–37 says: “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. … Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain; turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.”  This passage shows us an important path for emptying greed.  If our hearts are not directed toward God’s Word, our eyes easily turn toward worldly wealth and possessions.  But when we keep the Word in our hearts and examine ourselves before it, the Holy Spirit shows us what we truly love and what we truly trust.  Therefore, emptying greed is not simply a matter of possessing less money.  It is a matter of turning our hearts and eyes back toward God.  The apostle Paul also gives a solemn warning in 1 Timothy 6:10: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”  The problem is not money itself, but the love of money.  When we begin to love money, wealth ceases to be a tool entrusted to us by God and becomes a master ruling our hearts.  We may sacrifice faith and conscience in order to obtain more money and possessions and ultimately wander from the faith and pierce ourselves with many griefs.  Greed whispers, “If you have just a little more, you will finally be satisfied.”  But greed has no end.  The more we possess, the more we want to possess. The higher we rise, the higher we want to rise.  Therefore, unless we empty ourselves of greed, no amount of possessions can give us true contentment.

 

We Must Guard Against Greed Even in Abundance

 

When we encounter hardship and lack, we sometimes seek God more earnestly.  But our faith is also tested in times of abundance.  When our income increases and life becomes comfortable, it becomes easy to forget that everything was God’s grace and begin relying upon our own ability and possessions.  Psalm 73:7 describes those whose abundance exceeds the desires of their hearts.  Abundance itself is not sin. Material blessing from God is also something for which we should give thanks.  But if abundance causes our hearts to move away from God and awakens greed that makes us grasp for more, abundance can become a danger to our souls.  Money and possessions are not the purpose of life.  They are tools God has entrusted to us so that we may meet our needs, care for our families, love our neighbors, and fulfill the mission of the gospel.  The problem begins when money rises from the position of a tool to the position of a master.  Instead of our using money, money begins to control us.  When we are ruled by greed, greater possessions do not produce greater contentment.  Instead, they produce a desire for even more.  Greater possessions create greater desires, and those desires drive us to pursue still greater possessions.  Eventually, we become trapped in the bondage of greed.  For this reason, Jesus taught that how we use wealth is extremely important.  Luke 16:9 says: “Use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”  Wealth is not a master we are called to serve. It is a tool entrusted to us by God.  The important question is not how much we possess but for whom and for what purpose we are using what God has entrusted to us.   We must not allow wealth to rule our hearts.  We must use it to serve the kingdom of God and our neighbors.

 

We Must Empty Greed and Learn Contentment

 

How, then, should we live in a world filled with the temptation of wealth?  As those who confess Jesus as Savior, we must empty from our hearts the greed that the world continually encourages.  We must not surrender our hearts to the world’s message that we must possess more in order to be happy, have more than others in order to be secure, and accumulate more in order to guarantee our future.  Like Jesus, who showed us the example of emptying Himself and becoming obedient even unto death, we must daily empty ourselves of the desire to possess more and the desire to be our own masters.  Before the cross, we must examine ourselves so that protecting our own interests, possessions, and reputation does not become the most important purpose of life.  And the emptied heart must be filled with Christ.  We must learn the faith of contentment that is satisfied not by the abundance worldly wealth provides but by Jesus Christ alone.  We must remember the gift of eternal life that God freely gives us in Christ Jesus (Rom. 6:23) and the love of God from which nothing can separate us (8:38–39).

Therefore, even when circumstances at work or at home differ from our expectations, we should remember the grace God has already given and give thanks.  Conversely, when we enjoy material abundance, we should not grasp it as though it belonged absolutely to us but receive it as something entrusted to us by God.  Emptying greed does not mean throwing away money or avoiding possessions.  It means refusing to allow money to become the master of my heart and acknowledging that God is the Lord of my life.  Therefore, a person who empties himself of greed does not simply grasp wealth but uses it with gratitude, shares it with those in need, and willingly releases it for the mission God has entrusted to him.  He does not seek contentment in possessing more but learns to be satisfied with the grace already received in Christ  Greed continually says, “You need more.”  Faith confesses, “In Christ, I already have enough.”  This is the path of emptying greed that we must practice every day in our homes, workplaces, and churches.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Principles and Practical Guidelines

for Emptying “Greed”

 

 

 

 

Thus far, through the Word, we have seen how easily greed captures our hearts and causes us to depend upon wealth more than upon God.  How, then, can we empty ourselves of greed in everyday life?  Greed is not a sin that disappears through a single decision.  Every day we must examine our hearts, use rightly the wealth God has entrusted to us, and remain watchful so that the desire to possess more does not become the master of our hearts.  The principles and practical guidelines for emptying greed at home, in the church, and in the workplace can be summarized as follows.

 

1.      Learn the contentment that is satisfied with what God has given you.

 

Greed continually whispers, “If you have just a little more, you will be satisfied.”  But having more does not necessarily produce greater contentment. Indeed, the more we possess, the more easily we may fall into greed that wants still more.  Therefore, do not allow the amount of your possessions to determine your contentment.  Remember the grace God has already given you and learn true contentment in Jesus Christ.  Rather than first thinking, “What I have is not enough,” first ask, “How much grace has God already given me?”  Contentment is not a life in which we desire nothing.  It is the discipline of faith that gives thanks for what God has allowed us to have and refuses to permit the desire for more to rule us.

 

2.      Practice sharing and giving rather than grasping.

 

Greed closes the hand, but love opens it.  Do not use the wealth God has entrusted to you only for your own satisfaction and pleasure.  Willingly use it to care for your family, love your neighbors, and help those in need.  Tithing, giving to those in need, and sharing with others can become disciplines that train us in this way.  These practices should not end as religious acts of merely giving money.  Through them, we confess with our lives that everything we possess belongs to God and that we are stewards entrusted with its care.  We share wealth not because we hate money itself but because we refuse to allow money to become the master of our hearts.  When we open the hand that was grasping tightly, wealth ceases to be an idol that controls us and becomes a tool used for the mission God has entrusted to us.

 

3.      Examine your desires every day before the Word.

 

When our hearts move away from God’s Word, our eyes easily turn toward worldly wealth and success.  Therefore, every day we must examine our hearts before the Word.  “Why do I want more of this?”

“Do I truly need this, or do I simply want to have more than someone else?”  “Is this choice a wise use of what God has entrusted to me, or is it an attempt to satisfy my greed?”  Ask these questions honestly before the Word.  Train yourself to distinguish between needs and desires.  When you want to buy something, do not purchase it immediately; wait for a while.  Reduce unnecessary spending.  Lower your expectations for your lifestyle a little.  Use with gratitude what you already possess.  These too are practical disciplines for emptying greed.  The more our hearts are filled with the Word, the more the space occupied by worldly desires will gradually be emptied.

 

4.       Choose honesty in every matter involving money.

 

True repentance does not end in words. It appears as change in life.  Do not justify your love of money or your desires with religious expressions such as “God’s grace” or “answered prayer.”  In the workplace, do not abandon honesty in order to gain greater profit.  Do not take away another person’s share or obtain profit through unjust means.  Manage income and expenses honestly, and work and earn money in ways of which you need not be ashamed before God.  The same is true in the church and ministry.  Never use the work of God as a means of gaining personal benefit or honor.  Do not treat finances and resources entrusted by God as though they were your personal possessions.  Use them honestly and transparently.  Repentance that empties greed appears in a life that refuses unjust gain, works honestly, and respects the rights of others.

 

5.       Remember the grace you have already received and give thanks.

 

Greed and gratitude find it difficult to rule the same heart at the same time.  Greed causes us to look at what we do not have. Gratitude causes us to look at the grace we have already received.  Even when your financial situation does not develop according to your plans and life becomes difficult, remember the grace God has given you until now.  Conversely, when your circumstances improve and your income increases, do not think that you achieved it solely through your own ability. Remember that it is God’s grace.  At home, instead of comparing your circumstances with those of other families, give thanks for what God has given your family.  At work, instead of complaining while looking at someone else’s position or income, receive with gratitude the work and opportunities God has presently entrusted to you.  As gratitude deepens, the desire for more is emptied, and we begin to discover how abundant the grace we have already received truly is.   

 

Yet there is something we must remember in all these practices.  We cannot empty greed through our own willpower and effort alone.  Even the thought, “I will overcome greed by my own strength,” can become another form of self-righteousness.  Therefore, emptying greed also requires the grace of God and the help of the Holy Spirit.  This does not mean, however, that we need do nothing.  When the Holy Spirit reveals the greed within us through the Word, we must acknowledge it and repent.  We must open the hands that have been tightly closed.  We must reject unjust gain.  We must share what we have.  We must practice gratitude and contentment in actual daily life.  God’s grace does not make us passive. It enables us to obey willingly.  Therefore, emptying greed is not an attempt to transform ourselves through our own strength.  It is a process of discipleship in which we depend upon God’s grace and daily obey the leading of the Holy Spirit.  When God reveals the greed within us through His Word, we must repent and turn our eyes away from worldly wealth and back toward Christ. 

 

We can pray: “Lord, show me the greed within me and lead me to repentance.  Do not allow the desire to possess more to rule my heart, and empty me of the desire to be my own master.  Help me to give thanks for the grace You have already given and to be content.  Help me to use honestly the wealth You have entrusted to me and willingly share it with others.  The Holy Spirit, help me to love God more than money and to depend upon the Lord more than upon possessions.”  Entrusting our thoughts, emotions, and will to God in this way and obeying the leading of the Holy Spirit is the practical path of emptying greed.  Emptying greed does not simply mean distancing ourselves from money or possessing less.  It means returning to God the place in our hearts that money has occupied.  It means acknowledging that I am not the absolute owner of my wealth but a steward who manages what God has entrusted to me.  The purpose of emptying is not to become an empty person.  It is to empty the desire for more and fill that place with Christ.  It is to be content in Christ, to use with gratitude what God has entrusted to us, to share with those in need, and willingly to release our resources for the mission of God’s kingdom.  Greed continually says, “You must have more.”  Faith confesses, “In Christ, I already have enough.”  This is the path of emptying greed that we must practice every day at home, in the church, and in the workplace.