The Greedy Bunch

Greed! One dictionary states “An excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth”. Bible calls it covetousness which means – extortion. When you combine both definitions, greed is definitely not a good thing. Yet greed is the basic dark side of the human makeup.
When you are greedy, you are vulnerable. When you are greedy, you are prone to deception and loss.

I am amused with the behavior of Christians when it comes to greed. Back in the 80’s and early part of 90’s, prosperity gospel was a hit in our country. Prosperity preachers were imported for meetings both in churches and in public meeting halls. The meetings were usually packed. Christians just love to hear about prosperity. I remember once a preacher from USA. He commented that on his way from the airport to his hotel he was excited about the number of banks enroute. He said our country is prosperous and as Christians we just have to reach our faith out and grap a hold of the wealth of this nation. Crowd got excited. Preacher got excited. But here’s the trick. In order for us Christians to get a hold on the wealth, we must “Give God the best and you haven’t given your best unless you give till it hurts.” In fact, we were challenged, “The more you give the more you’ll get.”

Many in the meetings emptied their wallets. The audiences were told to bring their cheque books earlier (I leave this to your imagination). Those who did not bring their cheque books were told to write on paper IOU’s (I Owe You)the amount with their phone numbers and address written on it so the organization could collect from them later. The gist of the message was, “You are a King’s kid. God did not intend for you to be poor. It is not God’s will that a King’s kid live like a pauper. Get out of your bondage of lack and start claiming what is yours. Give your best to God and He will bless you a hundred fold. Live the best. Enjoy the best. After all, you are the King’s kid.” Hmmm... sounds very Scriptural, doesn't it?

After the meetings were over and the preacher flies back home first class with the offerings collected from the meetings, reality hits. One guy from our church came to me asking that our church reimburse him for the money he gave away at the meetings because he said “it didn’t work for him”. The meetings he attended were not our church program. Neither did we ask him to attend the meetings. Neither did we know how much he gave. Yet for some strange reason, he wants us to give him back the money!

Today there are still remnants of prosperity teachings. Don’t get me wrong. I believe in God and I believe in His blessings both spiritually, physically and materially. But I don’t think “Give and it shall be given to you” ought to be taken literally or made to be a formula. The whole idea of giving to God is not about getting from God. Giving is borne out of love towards God and His Kingdom. It is also “need-driven”. Give because you love God and you have His blessings. Give because you see a need that you can fill, not because you can get back a hundred fold. When Scriptures teach us “Give and it shall be given to you,” it simply means in principle (not formula) if you live a life of generosity, you will be happier, not necessarily richer! And we can be generous in many, many ways, not just in terms of dollars and cents.

So many Christians give because they believe God is obligated to give back. They thought the more they give then they can live the life of prosperity they so coveted. This form of giving is actually an expression of inner GREED … not love. They give because it’s a ticket for them to get wealth. It’s all about what they can get from God!

I want to continue this line of thought next week. But for now, let me just say this. 1. Giving is a necessity whether you are a Christian or not. When you cease to give, you start to die. Kill giving and you’ll kill joy. When you give to somebody because you love, that’s a joyful experience isn’t it? We are made to give. Live the opposite and you’ll live the opposite. And very importantly, 2. When you give, give with a cheerful heart because in the Scriptures, “God loves a cheerful giver.” In other words, your giving is not about getting back. It’s about gratitude. It's about recognizing that God has bless us with much and in His blessings we want to bless others too. God has given us so much. In gratitude to His love and blessings, we want to bless others too. Remember, “For God so LOVED the world that He GAVE His only begotten son …” Is love involved in your giving. Or perhaps .... just obligatory? Hmmm ...

Blessings.