How are greed and deceit bedfellows? Jeremiah 8:10 – 11 seems to give us a clear answer. Jeremiah tells us that everyone, from the least to the greatest was greedy and the result was that they all practiced deceit.
Romans 15:4 tells us that what was written here was for our instruction. So I asked how could that work out today? How would greed and deceit work out in a spiritual dimension? For in truth that was what was happening in Judah.
Greed might be a desire for impact, growth, influence, acceptance, fame, recognition, or some other accolade. It seems that in the context that when a desire, greed, for something other than following God becomes the focus, the result is deceit. The message begins to serve greed rather than the Lord.
In the case of Judah the message of deceit is in Jeremiah 8:11. Those who were charged to shepherd God’s people only superficially engaged. They told the people they were at peace when in fact they were not at peace with God and further the Babylonian army was bearing down to lay them to siege.
But the message was popular. Earlier in Jeremiah 5:31, we are told that the people loved the message. It gave them comfort, false as it was.
There is pressure. Pressure not to confront. Pressure to say things that are positive, politically correct. More and more in the society there is radical resistance to any message that does not follow the latest version of tolerance. To speak truth is to be pilloried as a “hater” or one who “fears.” The best example of the last is the label “homophobe” for one who rejects perversion as normal. But there are far more subtle pressures.
We are called to resist greed and avoid deceit.
Greed might be a desire for impact, growth, influence, acceptance, fame, recognition, or some other accolade. It seems that in the context that when a desire, greed, for something other than following God becomes the focus, the result is deceit. The message begins to serve greed rather than the Lord.
In the case of Judah the message of deceit is in Jeremiah 8:11. Those who were charged to shepherd God’s people only superficially engaged. They told the people they were at peace when in fact they were not at peace with God and further the Babylonian army was bearing down to lay them to siege.
But the message was popular. Earlier in Jeremiah 5:31, we are told that the people loved the message. It gave them comfort, false as it was.
There is pressure. Pressure not to confront. Pressure to say things that are positive, politically correct. More and more in the society there is radical resistance to any message that does not follow the latest version of tolerance. To speak truth is to be pilloried as a “hater” or one who “fears.” The best example of the last is the label “homophobe” for one who rejects perversion as normal. But there are far more subtle pressures.
We are called to resist greed and avoid deceit.
No comments:
Post a Comment