Gold and Greed

Opening question — what is your most prized possession?

Today’s challenge is this — Be all in with your treasure.

The lesson this morning is going to drive home this point by presenting the opposite or negative reality of being all in with your treasure.

I believe that there are two specific areas that the devil uses to entice believers to sin — money and purity/sex/what they think about. If the devil can distract you with one of these two traps he will most certainly affect how you use your life for the Lord.

What’s difficult is that the ways in which we interact with money in a sinful way can be so subtle.

So today we’re going to look at a story in the Old Testament and apply it to our lives today.

Here’s the big picture where we’re going today — Our relationship to our treasure exposes our heart.

Are you all in for God? Let’s take a look at your treasure and we’ll see.

Turn with me to Joshua 6.

*give a little background to the story of Achan and the destruction of Jericho.

GOD’S OWNERSHIP

Joshua 6:18–19 KJV 1900

18 And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.

Here’s a blanket principle that will undergird our lesson today — God Owns Everything.

Everything belongs to God. From gold and silver, to orcas and orangutans, God owns everything.

The psalmist wrote…

Psalm 24:1 KJV 1900

1 The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; The world, and they that dwell therein.

This is a very foundational principle for a believer to operate on. Your life is not yours, it’s Gods. Your money is not yours, it’s Gods. Your time is not yours, it’s Gods. Nothing truly belongs to you. Yet everything belongs to God.

Why do you feel that we believe things belong to us? (both for good or for bad) — want to take responsibility, maybe we’re greedy and desire possessions, maybe we want to appear to be a certain way because of our possessions

PRAYER PROMPT:

“God, help us remember that everything we have is Yours—our money, our time, our stuff, and even our lives. Forgive us for acting like we own it all, and help us use it in a way that shows we’re all in for You.”

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

“What’s one thing in your life—your time, money, or possessions—that’s hardest for you to fully give to God, and why?”

GREED’S OFFENSE

Who do we harm when we’re greedy? (others, God)

GOD

Joshua 6:18–19 KJV 1900

18 And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.

These treasure that Achan stole belonged to who? God

Malachi writes that when we do not give to God we are robbing God. Why? Our money doesn’t belong to us!! We need to drill this into our heads.

Malachi 3:8 KJV 1900

8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.

Imagine robbing God…

Greed robs God.

Could it be that you don’t recognize greed for what it is, an offense against a holy God who made everything?

OTHERS

Joshua 7:1–5 KJV 1900

1 But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against the children of Israel. 2 And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Beth-aven, on the east side of Beth-el, and spake unto them, saying, Go up and view the country. And the men went up and viewed Ai. 3 And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; and make not all the people to labour thither; for they are but few. 4 So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai. 5 And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men: for they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.

Achan’s sin cost other’s their lives, cost Israel a defeat, and cost Joshua confidence.

Greed is not harmless. Greed may not be viewed as heinous as other sins, but it’s just as costly.

How can we today harm others with our greed? (lack of giving to missions, lack of concern for our brothers and sisters, spend time chasing money instead of things that truly matter)

DISCUSSION QUESTION

“Have you ever seen someone get hurt—spiritually, emotionally, or even physically—because of someone else’s greed? How could your choices with money or stuff either help or hurt others?”

PRAYER PROMPT

“God, forgive us for times we’ve been greedy and thought only about ourselves. Help us see that our choices can hurt You and others. Teach us to give generously and live in a way that honors You and blesses those around us.”

GREED’S IDOLS

Joshua 7:19–21 KJV 1900

19 And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me. 20 And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done: 21 When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.

Here’s the main problem with greed — Greed replaces God with money.

Achan had an idol problem. He loved gold, silver, etc. more than he loved and desired to obey God.

How do you know if you have a greed problem? look at your giving.

If you desire to get more than you desire to give, you might have a greed problem.

* i wish we could just see our idols clearly…

1 Timothy 6:9–10 KJV 1900

9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Greed is a heart idol that turns our love for God into a love for money.

DISCUSSION QUESTION

“How can you tell if money or stuff has become more important to you than loving and obeying God? What’s one area in your life where you might need to put God first instead of your desires?”

PRAYER PROMPT

“God, forgive us for times we’ve loved money or things more than we’ve loved You. Help us see the idols in our hearts and give us the strength to put You first in everything we do.”

GREED’S OUTCOME

Here’s where greed takes us…

Joshua 7:22–26 KJV 1900

22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it. 23 And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord. 24 And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. 25 And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the Lord turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.

The sin of greed has consequences…

What are some consequences of greed?

WORRY

Matthew 6

Money and it’s relationship to worry.

A love of money produces a lot of worry.

The psalmist wrote that he’s never seen the righteous forsaken nor his seed begging bread. Know what that means? Don’t worry. God’s got it.

God wants to grow our faith.

DISCONTENTMENT

Hebrews 13:5 KJV 1900

5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

You’ll never have more than you want. If you are a believer, you’ll never have less than you need.

God wants to grow our faith.

SELFISHNESS

Think about the lack of perspective that those who are greedy have.

*illustration about an American being greedy compared to a central american.

DISCUSSION QUESTION

“What are some ways that greed can mess up your life—like making you worry, be selfish, or feel discontent? Can you think of a time when choosing God over your own desires brought peace instead?”

PRAYER PROMPT

“God, help us see the real consequences of greed in our lives. Teach us to trust You, be content with what we have, and choose generosity over selfishness so our hearts stay focused on You.”

CONCLUSION

Our relationship to our treasure exposes our heart.

Specifically this month we’re focusing on missions. But I believe this is something that each of us battles every day.

Does our Greed crowd out what God wants to do in and through us? God wants to grow our faith.

*faith promise missions card