Luke 12:15 – Greed

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.” ~ Luke 12:15

Greed (noun) - Intense and selfish desire for something, esp. wealth, power, or food.

The above verse is the one that stood out for me while reading my Bible this morning.  We live in a greedy society.  People are selfish and think only of themselves and their wealth and their power.

We live in a society where people are looking for a get rich quick scheme, where people won’t do anything out of the goodness of their hearts.  People are always looking for a way to make money from something.

Jesus warned against greed of all kinds, because there is more to life than your possessions.  For all you know you could die from an aeroplane crashing into your house at 2am in the morning, or in a car accident on the way to work.  We don’t know when God is going to call us home.  What is left?  Your children may benefit from your possessions, but because they didn’t have to work for them like you did, will they appreciate them?

I think about the problems in South Africa.  People in government positions drive around in brand new BMW’s and Mercedes Benz, but their neighbours, the people they grew up with, still sit in the rural villages without indoor plumbing or electric lights.  That is greed.  Greed for wealth and greed for power.

How am I better than these people though?  What do I give back?  People point fingers at government officials, but what are we doing to help the community we live in?  How many of us will go down to the park and start picking up the litter, then use our own fuel to take it to the garbage dump or recycling centre?  How many of us will volunteer at a disadvantaged school and teach the children to knit, sew or do woodwork?  How many of us cannot do these things to help because we are greedy about our time, the one thing we all have?

I am strongly against just giving something for nothing, because if a person get’s something for nothing then it won’t be looked after.  So offer to repaint the rural school, but get the children to help.  Remember the old saying “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Remember that when you give back.

This is a challenge to myself and those reading this… don’t be greedy with what you have, because you don’t know when God will call you home.

The Good Samaritan

This week, while doing my bible study, I read the story of the Good Samaritan.  If you are not familiar with the story, please read it in Luke 10:25-37.

After reading this I realised something interesting about the story for the first time.  No history was given of the man who had been robbed and left at the roadside.  This man could have been a robber himself, or a beggar, regular Joe, Nobleman, or king.  Nothing is said about this man.

The Good Samaritan helped this man without knowing anything about him.

So often we think people are beneath our help, or we find excuses not to help the person…

“The hitchhiker could be a murderer”

“That beggar could waste the money on alcohol and cigarettes”

“Somebody else will help”

“She should go home to her parents”

“He should be in school”

“It’s none of my business”

True, it is dangerous to pick up hitchhikers, especially in certain countries, so this is something, for safety sake I wouldn’t recommend.  But what is stopping you from giving money/food to the beggar?  You don’t have to invite him into your home, you can hand him a home cooked meal through the window of your car.  You can buy him a pie from the corner cafe.  You can help in more ways than just giving money.

Then the question is, how many people in your immediate area, are in need of a good meal?  What about your children’s friends?  Do you assume that they go home to a delicious meal cooked by their mom every night?  What if they don’t?  What if their mom works all day and buys them MacDonald’s every evening?

What about the student living in the next door neighbour’s basement?  Or the widow at church?  Or the newly married couple with 2 young children and a third on the way?  When did that lady last have a meal she didn’t cook herself?

What about the couple going through marriage problems?  When last did they have an evening to themselves without needing to worry about the children?  Couldn’t you offer to babysit for an evening so they can have dinner together?

Being a good Samaritan doesn’t mean you need to pick people up off the street, take them to the hospital and then pay their medical bills too.  It can also be done in small ways.  Cooking a meal.  Babysitting.  Providing company to the elderly.

Ask yourself:

How can I be a good Samaritan today?

Readers, I want to hear from you.  In what small ways has somebody be a good Samaritan to you?  In what small ways can you be a good Samaritan to others?  Feel free to leave a comment with your good Samaritan idea's and stories.