HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 151
page A149
• 2 C H R O NI C L E S 1 0 :1 5 | So the king paid no attention to the people. (See note on Pride on
page 391.)
Motivated by pride and greed, Rehoboam pressed too hard and his kingdom was divided.
Those who insist on having it all often wind up with little or nothing.
• PR O VE R B S 1 1 :2 4 | Be stingy and lose everything.
The more you accumulate, the greater your chance of losing everything.
How can I resist the temptation of greed?
• MA R K 1 0 :2 1 -2 2 | Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one
thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money
to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this the man’s
face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
Ask yourself: How tightly do I hold on to what I have? Jesus doesn’t ask most of us to give
up everything we have, but if he did, could you?
• 1 SA MU E L 8 :3 | But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They
accepted bribes and perverted justice.
• 2 PE T E R 2 :1 4 | They commit adultery with their eyes, and their desire for sin is never
satisfied. They lure unstable people into sin, and they are well trained in greed. They live
under God’s curse.
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• PR O VE R B S 2 8 :2 5 | Greed causes fighting.
• E PH E SI A NS 5 :5 | For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.
• L U K E 9 :2 3 -2 5 | Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you
must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to
your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what
do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?”
Ask yourself: How long do I want to enjoy “good things”? If you want to enjoy some good
things temporarily, just in this life, then you will have more of a struggle with greed. If you
want to enjoy good things for eternity, then you will invest in different things—truly good
things—now so that you can enjoy God’s rewards forever.
• 1 C O R I NT H I A NS 4 :7 | What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you
have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?
• J O B 1 :2 1 | “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The
Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!”
Ask yourself: Who really owns my things? Remind yourself that everything comes from
the hand of God and therefore everything is God’s. This changes your perspective on your
possessions.
• C O L O SS I A NS 3 :2 -3 | Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you
died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.
Ask yourself: What do I think most about? Redirect your focus from material things, which
don’t last, to things that last forever—your relationship with God and with others.
PROMISES FROM GOD
• PR O VE R B S 2 8 :2 7 | Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing.
• L U K E 6 :3 8 | “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down,
shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The
amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”
Giving Up See Quitting
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Ask yourself: Who do I know that is greedy and stingy? Do I really want to become like them?
• MAT T H E W 6 :1 9 -2 1 | “Don’t store up treasures here on earth. . . . Store your treasures in
heaven. . . . Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”