Daily Devotional For Friday, April 4, 2025
Well, it is a fabulous Friday. We live in a world where people say, “Money talks!” In many circles it does. We all are vulnerable to pondering, wondering and believing that our self-esteem is determined by how much money and possession we have. The issues of greed drives many to want more and more and often at a huge cost to them and others. And individuals are not the only ones with this struggle. Corporations are as well. Every year and several times in each year Apple has a highly publicized campaign for the next Apple electronics. New laptops, tablets, watches, earpods, Desktop computers,etc. Apple is so addicted to itself that they live-stream these events, hoping to cause us to drool so much that we trade in our ones for the new ones.
Now in case you are wondering, I am an Apple person. My laptop, tablet, watch and phone are all Apple. I no longer watch these live-stream events by Apple. Why? So I don’t feel my old ones are too old. And besides that, Apple is one of the most expensive companies making digitals devices. In my opinion, you don’t just pay an “arm and a leg” to buy an Apple product, you pay “two arms and two legs.” Are they good? Yes! Are they reliable? Yes! And are they expensive? Yes!
Where am I going with this? I am so glad you asked. Jesus said this in Luke 12:15, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own” (NLT). I have known people who trade every year for the next car, phone, computer, etc. Here is what I know – death is the common equalizer. We come into this world with nothing and we leave with nothing. I have said many times I have never seen a U-haul in a funeral procession. Oh you can be buried with your stuff but your stuff is going to rot just like your body. And what you acquire of money and possessions through your lifetime through hard work will be passed on to others, who neither worked for it or appreciate how hard you worked for it.
Greed is something we all battle in one way or another. The Greek New Testament word is [πλεονεξία, pleonexia]. What does this word mean? Greed is the excessive and consuming desire to have more possessions or wealth. I mean, how many owned cars are enough? How many owned houses are enough? How many pairs of shoes or outfits are enough? Yet, I don't believe this description covers everything. I believe we can be greedy with our time, our talents, skills, abilities, our minds, our availability, our attitudes, etc.
In our culture advertisers spend millions of dollars to entice people to think that if they buy more and more products, they will be happier, more fulfilled, and more comfortable. But sometimes having more only increases our stress, our worry, and puts stress on our ability to maintain and keep up with what we already have. Meaning – what we eventually own ends up owning us.
Jesus began this teaching with the word “beware.” This is the Greek New Testament word [ὁράω; horaō]. It means “be on alert, be perceptive, use your powers of observation and deduction” when it comes to having more and more. Jesus warns us against avarice or an insatiable desire for more. Chuck Swindoll tells this story below in his commentary on Luke:
“From times when men were iron and ships were wood comes an old story about a group of men on a boat who made their way to an island supposedly full of gold. They were divided into two groups, those who would dig for gold and those who would plant seeds, cook, and make arrangements for the sustenance of life on the island. But as they began to find the gold, they got more of the men who were involved in planting seeds to start digging for gold. As time progressed, there were fewer cooks and planters, and more men hauling gold.
Eventually, they began to use parts of the ship to reinforce the shaft so they could dig deeper and find more gold. And, as the story concludes, others arrived on the island years later only to find a group of skeletons draped over great treasures of gold. There’s nothing wrong with having. There’s nothing wrong with having much. Jesus never attacked wealth; He always addressed motives” (Source: Charles R. Swindoll, Swindoll’s Living Insights New Testament Commentary, Vol. 3, “Luke,” p. 360).
To me the moral of this story is beware and be careful what you’re digging for in life that is “buried,” because once you find it, it may eventually bury you. Jesus says that our lives are worth more than all the possessions we have. We may know this, but we do not always believe this. I think that pastor and author John MacArthur says in right about this passage:
“How people view money is thus an effective barometer of their spirituality. Money is neither good nor bad in itself; corrupt people can put it to evil uses, while good people can put it to righteous uses. Though it is morally neutral, what people do with their money reflects their life priorities” (Source: John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Bible Commentary, “Luke,” p. 128).
Jesus put it this way in Luke 12:34, “Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be” (NLT). If you want to know what people treasure, including yourself, and where the desires of your heart are, just look around your residence. Look in your closets. And while many of us may rebuke that we are greedy, if we are honest before the Lord, we can find some form of greed in our lives.
Contrary to some preachers, nowhere does the Bible or God condemn being rich and having many possessions. If you look through the Scriptures, God made many very wealthy – David, Solomon, Abraham, Jacob, Barnabas, Joseph of Arimathea, Job, Joseph (Old Testament). The Bible repeatedly warns us about the dangers of wealth and possessions. Paul wrote this to the young Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows” (NLT). It's not money, but the love or lust of money that is the problem.
Later in the same chapter Paul gave a warning to the rich in 1 Timothy 6:17, “Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment” (NLT). People with money, wealth and possession can be prideful, arrogant, snobbish, and greedy, but so can those without these. God inspired Solomon to warn us about pursuing wealth in Proverbs 23:4-5, “Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit. (5) In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle” (NLT). God inspired Solomon again to warn us again about pursuing money and wealth in Ecclesiastes 5:10, “Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness!” (NLT).
Pastor and author John MacArthur reminds us of the destruction money brought to certain people in the Bible:
“Loving money leads to all kinds of problems. Achan’s love of money brought disaster to himself, his family, and his people (Josh. 7:1–25). Balaam’s love of money prompted his foolish attempt to curse God’s people (Num. 22–24), which in turn cost him his life (Num. 31:8). Delilah’s love of money led her to betray Samson (Judg. 16:4–6), which ultimately led to the death of thousands (Judg. 16:27–30). Judas’ love of money caused him to betray the Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 26:14–16) and suffer eternal torment in hell (Matt. 26:24; Acts 1:25). Ananias and Saphira’s love of money led them to lie to God (Acts 5:1–2), and brought about their executions through instant divine judgment (Acts 5:5, 10) – (Source: John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Bible Commentary, “Luke,” p. 129).
To me the biggest danger and trap I see when people have money is they no longer feel or believe they need God. Their money, wealth and possessions become their idols and they put their trust in these rather than in the Lord. Loving money causes us to be self-deceived (Mark 4:19). The love of money causes people to steal, cheat, lie and kill for it ((Matt. 6:25–34; Phil. 4:19).
The love of money causes pride to swell up in us (Deut. 8:11-14). The love of money motivates us to obtain money illegitimately, such as by stealing (whether directly [Ex. 20:15; Eph. 4:28], or by fraud [Ps. 37:21; Hos. 12:7; Amos 8:5; Mic. 6:11]), charging exorbitant interest (Ex. 22:25; Lev. 25:36–37; Neh. 5:7, 10; Ps. 15:5; Prov. 28:8) or gambling, which foolishly and wastefully trusts in chance rather than in the providence of God.
Questions To Consider
- Look at all you own and have, where is your treasure, your heart?
- Have you worked hard to get what you have and through all of that, showed a dependency on the Lord that proves you were not greedy to get it all?
- How generous are you with your time, talents, skills, abilities, money, possessions, income, your home and etc for the Lord’s work?
- If you lost everything you have – everything – your health, your wealth, your family and your friends, do you think you would say as Job said, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes, blessed be the name of the Lord?” If yes, why? If no, why not?
Scripture To Meditate On: Proverbs 30:8-9, “First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. (9) For if I grow rich, I may deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?” And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name” (NLT).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, Your word says in Psalm 24:1 that the earth is Yours and everything in it. That includes all the money I have, all the possessions I have, the savings/checking and even my retirement accounts I have. They are all Yours. You could take all of them from me in a second if You desired. Please forgive me when I act as if all of this is mine. Even the talents, skills and abilities I used to get these are Your gifts to me. I would have nothing without you. Help me to use all you have given me to build Your kingdom, not mine. Help me to share Your gifts with others. Help me to love you and not love money. I love You Lord, in Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside!--Pastor Kelly