Now before I give him the message I'll just go ahead and explain the story that we just read quickly.
Of course this man Naaman, he's a very powerful man in Syria, he's the captain and the host,
but the one thing that he has against him is that he's got this disease of leprosy
and it couldn't be cured and so he has fame, prosperity, power, but because he has this disease
he's unhappy, he's probably going to die from it because leprosy is a horrible disease.
And he goes to his servant and she basically says that this man Elisha can heal you,
he's with the children of Israel and so forth and so the king of Syria sends Naaman
with this entourage and the president of money saying I'm giving you this money,
I'm sending you this man, I want you to heal him of his leprosy.
Well the king has no faith in God, he doesn't believe in the miracles of God
and so he thinks that the man is just trying to pick a fight with him
and he says, you know, my God, how am I going to heal this guy?
And of course Elisha does heal the man and he has him dip in the Jordan River seven times,
but what I want to preach about is the part where afterward,
Gehazi basically deceives and takes this money that didn't belong to him.
Now Naaman had offered Elisha all kinds of money because he had healed him of his sickness
and he would have been willing to pay any price to be healed of it
and so he offers him all this money and Elisha refuses to take it
and I think there's a little bit of a symbolism there too
because I think that this also pictures salvation.
This whole concept of wash and be clean.
You know, you don't have to do some great thing.
He said, you know, if he would have told you to do works or to do some great thing,
wouldn't you have done it in order to be healed?
But how much more when he just says wash and be clean?
And that lack of course pictures our sin, pictures our lost condition,
our terminal condition of being unsafe
and that, you know, just wash and be clean, we're washed in the blood
and I think the reason why he refused to take money is because God's trying to show us
it's not something that can be purchased, salvation's not something that can be earned and so forth.
So Elisha refuses the money for whatever reason, that's what I believe the reason was
and as these men are leaving Gehazi the servant is filled with lust and greed
and he wants to have that reward that was offered to Elisha.
So he runs after the man, let's pick up the story in 2 Kings 5 here.
He runs after the man and says in verse number 21,
So Gehazi followed after Naaman and when Naaman saw him running after him
he lighted down from the chariot to meet him and said,
Naaman said, Is all well? And he said, All is well.
My master had sent me saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from Mount Ephraim
two young men of the sons of the prophets. Give them, I pray, be a talent of silver
and two changes of garments.
So he basically lies and runs after him and says,
Oh you know what, actually Elisha just changed his mind
because these two young guys just showed up and they don't have anything
and so we're going to give him a talent of silver and some changes of raiment.
And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents.
I mean that was so much less than what he was offering anyway.
And he urged him and found two talents of silver in two bags.
So these are bags of silver, that's a lot of money.
With two changes of garments and laid them upon two of his servants and bare them before.
And when he came to the tower he took them from their hand and bestowed them in the house.
And he let the men go and they departed.
But he went in and stood before his master and Elisha said unto him,
Whence comest thou, Gehazi? Saying, Where did you just come from?
Gehazi. And he said, Thy servant went no whither.
So he begins to lie further to try to cover up what he's done.
And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee
when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee?
Is it a time to receive money and to receive garments and olive yards
and vineyards and sheep and oxen and men's servants and maid servants?
The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee
and unto thy seed forever.
And he went out from his presence at a leper as white as snow.
So basically Gehazi is cursed with the disease of Naaman.
He's filled with leprosy. White as snow.
That's in its most extreme condition.
And by the way, it's interesting in this story.
Isn't it funny how today's healers so called, they want to be paid to heal.
I'm talking about the faith healers on TV, the betting hands and so forth.
You send a donation.
You know, you give money, you put money in the plate
and you're going to be healed and so forth.
Here, that's not the case.
You'll never see Jesus charging someone money to be healed.
Ever. Never.
You'll always see him performing that miracle and wanting nothing in return
and that's exactly what happened in this case.
Gehazi, because of his greed, lied and stole
and then lied again to try to cover it up.
And because of that, he had this physical disease of leprosy attached to him.
Look at Ecclesiastes, chapter 5, because I want to...
Actually, Ecclesiastes 6 is where we'll start.
I want to preach about a disease today
and it's the disease that was in Gehazi's heart
which was later evidenced in his flesh when God cursed him
for his lying, covetousness, for his thievery.
Because today we're entering the season
when this disease seems to show its condition most vehemently.
You see, many people's disease is in remission today
but as we get into this season between Thanksgiving and Christmas
it seems that this disease rears its ugly head
of materialism, covetousness, the lust to have things and possessions.
And that's what we're going to talk about today.
It says in Ecclesiastes 6.1
There is an evil which I have seen under the sun
and it is common among men.
A man to whom God has given riches, wealth, and honor
so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth.
Yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof
but a stranger eateth.
This is vanity, and look at the last phrase there,
and it is an evil disease.
If a man beget a hundred children and live many years
so that the days of his years be many
and his soul be not filled with good
and also that he have no burial
I say that an untimely birth is better than he.
For he cometh in with vanity and departeth in darkness
and his name should be covered with darkness.
Moreover he hath not seen the sun nor known anything.
This hath more rest than the other.
Yea, though he live a thousand years twice told
yet had he seen no good.
Do not all go to one place?
Look at verse 7.
All the labor of man is for his mouth
and yet the appetite is not filled.
For what hath the wise more than the fool?
What hath the poor that knoweth to walk before the living?
Better is the sight of the eyes
than the wandering of the desire.
This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.
You see, God was explaining here an evil disease.
The man who treasures up wealth to himself
and yet he doesn't get to enjoy it.
He's not satisfied with it.
His appetite is never filled.
Look at Ecclesiastes 5, verse 10.
It says,
He that loveth silver
shall not be satisfied with silver.
Remember, that's what Gehazi had stolen.
Nor he that loveth abundance with increase.
This is also vanity.
He's saying it's empty, it's meaningless.
He's saying you love money, you love silver,
you love increase.
He's saying you can get all the goods you want,
all the silver you want, all the gold you want.
It's never going to satisfy you.
It's vanity, it's emptiness, it's vexation of spirit
and he said it's an evil disease.
He said it's not going to make you feel good,
it's going to make you feel bad.
It's a sickness with people.
The lust for constantly having something that they don't have.
More money, more things, more toys, more abundance.
And he explains in chapter 6,
I don't know if you caught it with all the poetic language,
but he's explaining here that if he has no burial,
if he has no good in his soul,
he's saying it's such a waste of his life.
What does it mean if he has no burial?
You say, well I don't really care what happens to my dead carcass after I'm gone.
But you see, the reason that people have a burial
is because they have someone burying them,
because they have someone who loves them,
because they have people who care about them.
And you see, the thing that we ought to realize has more value
is people, not things, not possessions, not silver, not gold,
but people make up the value and riches of our life.
Look at verse number 10 of Ecclesiastes 5 again, we just read it.
He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver,
nor he that loveth abundance with increase.
This is also vanity.
When goods increase, they are increased that eat them.
Now I know that's true in my house, okay.
I keep having more children and they keep eating more and more of what they get.
And so when goods increase, they are increased that eat them.
But I love this last phrase.
And what good is there to the owners thereof,
saving the beholding of them with their eyes.
You know, that's really what it is.
When you get that new shiny fancy car,
what good is it but to just behold it with your eyes.
And I've noticed this, no matter what car you have,
no matter how fancy it is, no matter how nice,
no matter how much it costs,
after a couple weeks you're just going to be used to it and it's just your car.
I remember I had friends in high school that lived in huge mansions.
I mean literally their parents were millionaires.
You know, you'd have friends like this in school
and you'd spend the night at their house
and kind of get to enjoy that luxury for a little while.
And I remember just the first time you go there, you're just in awe.
I mean the house is like a maze.
You get lost in it, literally.
I'm thinking of a friend in particular.
Tennis courts in the backyard, swimming pools, basketball courts,
gated community, fitness center, just massive mansion.
But yet after you've been to that guy's house a few times,
you weren't impressed and pretty soon it just became,
oh yeah, Ryan's house, you know?
And you just were used to it.
Because what good is it?
You know, your car gets you from point A to point B.
But yet people will spend tons of money on a car
and it gives them a momentary thrill when they first get it.
But eventually it's just what?
The beholding of it with your eyes.
You know, wow, you get to look at that car,
you get to look at that fancy house.
Really we all sleep in a bed at night,
we all sit in a chair at a table and eat breakfast
and eat lunch and eat dinner.
Why do you need this massive house
but just to behold it with your eyes, just to look at it?
And it's not going to satisfy you.
You're just going to want something else.
It's going to become old
and you're going to lust for the next thing,
the next toy, the next item.
If you talk to the richest people,
they're the most covetous people.
You'd think that the poor would be the ones
always desiring something that they don't have.
And many times they do.
But the rich always want more.
Because he that loves silver shall not be satisfied with silver.
Let's keep reading.
It says in verse 12,
the sleep of a laboring man is sweet.
See, when you work hard,
he says whether you're rich or poor,
whether he eat little or much, he says,
the sleep of a laboring man is sweet.
You go to bed at night,
you lay your head on the pillow,
and you sleep like a baby.
You see, people who work hard don't suffer from insomnia.
You know?
It's true.
It's very true.
Because I've taken people with me on some of my work trips.
I don't care what their sleep pattern was.
When we go to the hotel, they fall asleep.
Because we work hard.
And when you work hard,
you have no problem sleeping.
And I remember I used to suffer from insomnia as a teenager.
Horrible.
I'd lay in bed at night for half a night,
and then you're really tired in the morning
because you haven't gotten proper rest,
but you just laid in bed and couldn't fall asleep.
But then I figured it out.
The key to sleep is make yourself tired enough,
and you can fall asleep anywhere.
You can sleep on the floor.
You can sleep in a car.
You can sleep on an airplane.
You can sleep anywhere if you're tired enough, my friend.
I've fallen asleep standing up many times.
I remember walking into a Motel 6 on a work trip
just so tired that I was standing in line,
there were a couple other people in line,
and just fell to the floor.
Just fell asleep and just fell to the floor
because I was so tired I fell asleep standing up.
How many times have I fallen asleep in a red light?
You know, just when you're just about home?
Because your body, it's like your body knows
that you're almost home.
You know, when you can see your house?
You know how it is.
Because you're driving for hours and hours
and you're staying awake and you're staying awake.
But when you see home
and you're at that last red light,
you know, on Vineyard and 48th Street,
you know, at that last red light
and you know you're just about to go to bed
so your body just starts kind of winding down.
You know?
And then it's...
Or the policemen shine the flashlight next to you.
That's how many people.
And then you pull into your house.
Why?
Because if you work hard enough,
you can sleep just fine.
You know, and it feels good at night
to get in your bed and fall asleep
after a hard day's work.
But look what it says.
But the abundance of the rich
will not suffer him to sleep.
Why?
Because he has so much abundance
he's not working hard enough
as what would be healthy for him.
And he has to toss and turn
and worry about what the stock prices are doing.
And he has to wonder if his security system is enough.
And he has to wonder, you know,
if his riches are still going to be there
because that's what his life consists of.
It says in verse 13,
There is a sore evil
which I have seen under the sun,
namely riches kept for the owners thereof
to their hurt.
So is it always good for you to be rich
and to have all the things that money can buy?
But those riches perished by evil travail
that he could get at the sun
and there is nothing in his hand.
As he came forth of his mother's womb,
naked shall he return to go as he came
and shall take nothing of his labor
which he may carry away in his hand.
Go back to the book of Joshua chapter 7.
Joshua 7.
Joshua chapter 7.
Now in Joshua 7, while you're turning there,
I'll just explain to you what's going on in the story.
This is the story of Achan.
And if you remember, the children of Israel,
when they went into Jericho,
they were supposed to basically not take of any of the spoil.
It was all accursed unto the Lord.
And so it all belonged to God
and they weren't supposed to touch any of it.
Well, Achan had stolen
and because of his theft,
God had cursed the whole nation.
Look what it says in Joshua 7.20.
This is when Achan is basically finally confessing.
They found him out and he's confessing.
It says in Joshua 7.20.
And Achan answered Joshua and said,
Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel,
and thus and thus have I done.
When I saw among his foils
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.
What I want you to see here is the progression.
How Achan committed this horrible sin
ended up causing him to die,
his whole family to die,
he lost everything,
and his name became a curse and an execration
even to this day.
I've never met anybody who named their child Achan.
Okay, because it's a bad name.
Because he had a bad name.
He was Achan, the troubler of Israel.
They buried a big heap of stones on his dead body
just as a memorial to remind people
not to sin against God in the way that Achan had sinned.
What was the progression?
Well, it's a three-step process.
Look what he said in verse 21.
What was the first thing?
When I saw.
So step one, I saw.
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,
that's not his fault, right?
We all see things.
Can't help it.
But he said, then I coveted them.
So the second step is,
so first, I saw.
Second, I coveted.
And then what's the next thing?
And I took them.
And behold, they are hidden in the earth
in the midst of my tent
and the silver under it.
Go to Luke chapter 12.
And while you're turning there,
I'll quote to you from James chapter one
the same progression.
But every man is tempted
when he is drawn away of his own lust
lust and enticed.
Then when lust hath conceived
it bringeth forth sin
and sin when it is finished
bringeth forth death.
Isn't that the same thing
that happened with Aachen?
Do not earn my beloved brethren.
Every good gift
and every perfect gift
is from above
and cometh down from the shadow of lights
with whom is no variableness
neither shadow of turning.
God gives us what we need.
God will take care of us.
But we often lust after things
that do not belong to us,
covet things that don't belong to us,
and lust when it hath conceived
bringeth forth sin.
He's saying lust gives birth to sin
and sin when it is finished
bringeth forth death.
Look at Luke chapter 12 verse 13.
It says,
And one of the company said unto him,
Master, speak to my brother
that he divide the inheritance with me.
And he said unto him,
Man, who made me a judge
or a divider over you?
This is Jesus speaking.
And he said unto them,
Take heed and beware of covetousness
for a man's life consistent not
in the abundance of the things
which he possesses.
You see, we need to realize today
that there's more to life
than just the things that we possess.
It's not the one with the most toys wins.
And yet today,
as we come into this holiday season
of Thanksgiving,
Thanksgiving,
a time that supposedly should be
all about being thankful for the things
that we already have
and yet the way that our society
is designed,
some insidious plan hatched by someone
has decided that on the day
that we're supposed to be thankful
for what we already have,
we're sitting around and plotting
how we're going to,
at three in the morning,
go buy a bunch of stuff
that we don't have.
And so really,
because don't tell me that people
wake up on Friday after Thanksgiving
and just at that point decide,
oh, I think I'm going, you know,
for some reason I woke up
at three in the morning this morning.
You know, it's weird.
I usually get up at seven,
but I just happened to wake up
at three in the morning
and I just happened to get in my car
and drive down to whatever the store.
But it's funny because on Thanksgiving,
that's what they're thinking about.
Instead of thanking God,
instead of being thankful for what they have,
it's the planning of that
three in the morning
standing in line
to go get the iPod or the iPad
or whatever it is.
And, you know, I understand
if you want to buy something
that's on sale on Friday,
but my point, you know,
I don't even like to leave the house
on that day.
I hate crowds of people.
Like, crowds bother me.
I like a little more solitary life than that
than being in some crowd
and throng and traffic.
I hate it all.
But I'm talking about the attitude, though,
that that's the big thing
on everybody's mind
at this time of year,
starting with Thanksgiving,
which is supposed to be about
being thankful for what we already have
and the people that we love,
and then all the way to Christmas,
which is supposed to be about
the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's supposed to be all about
God and the Bible and Jesus,
and yet it just becomes a thing
of getting possessions,
buying things, and spending money.
That's what this time of year is about.
And let me tell you something.
I'm to the point where I don't really like
this time of year very much
for a couple reasons.
Part of the reason that I don't like it
is because our attendance at church
always goes down
between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Always.
And really, churches across America,
their attendance goes down,
really at a time that you'd think
people would come to church more, wouldn't you?
And you know, the Catholics,
they only show up at church twice a year,
Christmas and Easter,
but the Baptists,
that's when they don't show up at Christmas.
Seriously.
Across America.
You say, well, people are traveling.
Yeah, but if they're traveling,
wouldn't they go to church wherever they're at?
And wouldn't we have all kinds of people
visiting Phoenix coming to church with us
and other churches?
But yet every church in America is down.
Because I'm going to tell you something.
People get too busy
between Thanksgiving and Christmas
and they neglect God's house.
It's the first thing that goes out the window, honestly.
And look, I've been pastoring long enough
to see the pattern every year
to watch the attendances go down
between Thanksgiving and Christmas
every time November and December
are the lowest attendances of the year.
Because everybody is so busy
celebrating Jesus' birth
and they're so busy
celebrating how thankful they are
for everything that God has given them
that they don't come to church.
When the Bible says,
take no thought,
saying what shall we eat
or what shall we drink
or wherewithal shall we be clothed.
He said, after all these things
do the Gentiles seek?
For your heavenly Father,
knoweth that you have need
of all these things,
but seek ye first
the kingdom of God
and his righteousness,
and all these things
shall be added unto you.
What we ought to be thinking more about
this time of year
is the things of God.
The Bible, winning souls to Christ,
spending time with our family,
doing nice things for other people.
Remember the words of the Lord Jesus
which said it is more blessed
to give than to receive.
And yet today,
people are thinking about
receiving, receiving, receiving.
People today, their mentality
with gift giving,
it bothers me.
They have a mentality that says,
I want to make sure
that I don't give more than I get.
It's true.
People literally work this out.
Almost as important.
Like, well,
okay, how many kids do I have?
How many kids do they have?
You know,
do I get a gift for each child?
What are they going to give me in return?
I've got to make sure
there's balance.
You know this is true.
How much are they going to spend on me?
Okay, I've got to make sure
that I don't spend too much
more than that.
You know, I want to,
hey, I want to at least break even
this Christmas.
You know what I mean?
At least get as much as I get.
But really,
that's kind of perverse
if you think about it.
And today,
it's become the wish list.
And I don't like wish lists either.
Maybe I'm just preaching
my own opinion,
but I guess I'm not
because if God said
that we're of covetousness,
what is a wish list
for coveting things
that you don't have?
Okay, and that's what it means.
Thou shalt not covet.
You know,
always wishing that
you had something
that you don't have.
You ought to be,
and I'm talking to the children,
even the children,
even those that are
five and seven and nine,
you know what?
You ought to be able
to wake up on Christmas morning
and just,
if you got nothing,
you ought to just be able
to say praise God.
Amen.
Thank God.
I mean, just be happy
that you're going
to eat a great dinner.
Yeah, and my children
already have Christmas presents
that have been bought for them.
Don't worry, kids.
But the bottom line is,
you ought to be able
to just wake up
on Christmas morning
and just thank God
for the wonderful meal.
Thank God for a few days
off from work.
Thank God to see your family
and to spend time with friends.
Thank God for the gift
of the Lord Jesus Christ
that was given 2,000 years ago.
That's what we ought
to be thinking about,
and any gift that you receive
should be bonus.
It shouldn't be something
that you just expect,
like it's just your birthright
that you get.
All your electronic gadgets
and garbage is made in China.
You know,
all your little toys
and frills
and things that later
are going to be sold off
at a garage sale
you're not even
going to care about,
you're not even
going to use anymore,
and yet you just
have to have it now.
And then,
you know,
when you don't get it,
you're disappointed.
You're upset.
What we ought to do
is just be happy
and content.
The Bible says,
Let your conversation
be without cupid's-ness
and be content
with such things
as you have.
For he had said,
I will never leave thee
nor forsake thee.
Isn't that worth more
than your gadgets?
The fact is,
you have the eternal salvation
of Jesus Christ
who will never leave you
nor forsake you,
and yet you covet
some electronic,
you covet some toy,
you covet some...
You say,
Well, I need it.
You know,
you need food and raiment.
That's all you need
toward the Bible.
And so,
we need to be aware
of cupid's-ness
this time of year.
We need to keep
an eye out
and make sure that
this disease,
this leprosy of wishing
that we had money
for the rest of his life
and even his children
picked up the same disease.
And by the way,
your children will
pick up your disease too
if you're the materialistic,
covetous person.
Your children will
follow in your footsteps
and they'll pick up
that same mentality.
Any gift that I receive,
I don't expect anything
for Christmas
from anyone.
And you're like,
Well, good.
You know?
Honestly.
So, you know what?
Hey,
you know what?
I mean,
what's Gehazi?
You think Gehazi
was happy with his silver
and two changes of garments
when his skin is covered
You know what?
Hey, you're gonna make out
on this exchange,
on any exchange with me
because I expect nothing.
And anything that I receive,
I'm surprised.
And I'm thankful for it.
Oh, wow.
Cool.
Great.
You know?
Because that's the attitude
that we should have.
We have everything we need.
We're happy.
If someone,
now you say,
Are you a gift
of exchanging gifts?
Absolutely not.
Exchanging gifts
is a very biblical concept.
If you look in the Bible,
you'll see that
the decorations and feasts
and holidays
that they had
throughout the Old Testament,
they would exchange gifts.
In the book of Nehemiah,
he told them,
you know,
Send portions one to another.
Eat the fat.
Drink the sweet.
Send gifts one to another.
Send portions.
So exchanging gifts is great,
but I just feel like
it's degenerated today,
where it becomes more
about the receiving,
where it becomes more
about expecting something,
when it becomes more
about the wish list
and the gift registry,
instead of just,
Hey, if someone gives me a gift,
I'll praise God for it.
I'll just be thankful for it.
You see,
that's the mentality
that we have,
and let me tell you,
you'll be a lot happier
on Christmas
if you just are
considering everything,
you get a bonus,
instead of just expecting it,
like it's your God-given right.
Even if it's your job,
you know,
your job gives you a bonus.
Oh man,
a bonus isn't that big.
Well, it is a bonus.
You know, it's extra.
It's not your hourly pay
that you already received.
You know,
just thank God for it,
whatever it is,
and it came from God.
So thank Him for whatever bonus.
And you know,
God doesn't give you
more than you can handle,
because there are a lot of riches
kept to the owners thereof
for their hurt,
the Bible says.
Sometimes riches can be
the worst thing that can happen
to you.
God knows what you need.
God can take care of you.
Why don't you just be happy
with what you have
and not always
covet what you don't have?
Look at Luke chapter 12 here.
It says in verse 14,
He just finished telling him,
I'm sorry,
verse 15,
He just finished telling him
to beware of covetousness.
He said,
In verse 16,
He explains a parable
kind of illustrating this truth.
It says,
And he spake a parable unto them,
saying,
The ground of a certain rich man
brought forth plentically.
And he thought within himself,
saying,
What shall I do?
Because I have no room
where to bestow my fruits.
And he said,
This will I do.
I will pull down my barns
and build greater,
and there will I bestow
all my fruits and my goods.
And I will say to my soul,
Soul,
Don't talk to your own soul.
But anyway,
Soul,
Thou hast much goods laid up
for many years.
Take thine ease,
eat, drink, and be married.
But God said unto him,
Thou fool,
this night,
thy soul shall be required of thee.
Then whose shall those things be
which thou hast provided?
So is he that layeth up
treasures for himself,
and is not rich toward God.
We have to be rich toward God.
We have to think about other people,
and not just lay up
treasures for ourself.
Because that's what God's going to do.
He's going to make sure
that you don't enjoy it.
I mean, this guy
had been working his whole life,
said he would retire,
and pull his socks up to his knees,
and play golf all day,
and just take it easy.
And the day of his retirement,
the day that he retired,
he just sat back and said,
I'm finally done working.
I can finally take it easy.
And God
just looked down and said,
Okay, if that's how you are,
if that's how you're going
to live your life,
you're a fool.
Because tonight,
your soul is going to be
required of you,
and everything you've worked for
is gone.
Isn't that a tragic story
about a man who wasted his life?
I mean, how would you like
to work and work and work
and save up your money,
save up your money,
you know, get your gold and silver,
and hide it under your tent,
and then it's gone.
Wouldn't that be depressing?
Because you see, money
sometimes represents our life.
Because we get paid
by the hour, usually.
You know, the money represents
the time that we spent
to earn that money.
That's what money represents.
And your money can be
taken from you in a moment.
If God could take
this guy's money away,
don't you think
he could take your money away?
He took his life away
so he could enjoy it.
But, if we serve God
with our lives,
no one can ever
take that away from us.
I mean, do you think
that I'll ever look back
and say, wow,
I wasted my life
all the time I spent stolen?
Or I wasted my life
all that time
I spent reading my Bible.
You're never going to think that.
But you may think,
wow, I worked so hard
to buy that house
and I lost my house.
People have lost their house.
People have lost their vehicles.
People have lost everything.
People have been robbed.
People have lost
their money in the banks.
Look at the people
in the 1930s, you know.
And you say,
well, I'm just going to
store it all up
and I'm going to put it
in the mattress.
Well, you know,
you could lose it that way too
because thieves can
break through and steal.
God wants you
to be rich toward him.
God wants you to spend
more than him.
Not just laboring
to fill your mouth
as Solomon said
in the Ecclesiastes.
Let's keep reading.
It says in verse 21,
So is he to lay up
treasure for himself
and is not rich toward God.
And he said unto his disciples,
Therefore I say,
if you take no thought
for your life,
what ye shall eat,
neither for the body,
what ye shall put on,
the life is more than meat,
and the body
is more than raiment.
Consider the ravens,
for they neither sow nor reap,
which neither have
storehouse nor barn,
and God feedeth them.
How much more are ye
better than the fowls?
And which of you,
with taking thought,
can add to his stature
one cubit?
If ye then be not able
to do the thing
which is least,
why take ye thought
for the rest?
Consider the lilies,
how they grow.
They toil not,
they spin not,
and yet I say unto you
that Solomon,
in all his glory,
was not arrayed
like one of these.
If then God so
clothed the grass,
which is today in the field
and tomorrow is cast
into the oven,
how much more will he
clothe you,
O ye of little faith?
And seek not ye
what ye shall eat
and what ye shall drink,
neither be ye of
a doubtful mind.
For all these things
do the nations of the world
seek after,
and your father knoweth
that ye have need
of these things.
But rather seek ye
the kingdom of God,
and all these things
shall be added unto you.
Fear not, little flock,
for it is your father's
good pleasure
to give you the kingdom.
Sell that ye have
and give alms.
Provide yourselves
bags which wax not old,
a treasure in the heavens
that faileth not,
where no thief
approacheth,
neither moth corrupteth,
for where your treasure
is,
there will your heart
be also.
Look at 2 Peter 3.
2 Peter 3.
But we live in a materialistic
world, don't we?
We live in a world where
people constantly desire
more things,
more possessions.
They can't sleep at night
because of their abundance.
It says in 2 Peter 3 verse 10,
that the day of the Lord
will come as a thief
in the night,
in the which the heavens
shall pass away
with a great noise,
and the elements shall melt
with fervent heat,
the earth also and the works
that are therein
shall be burned up.
Seeing then that all these
things shall be dissolved,
what manner of persons
ought ye to be
in all holy conversation
and godliness,
looking for and acing
unto the day of God,
wherein the heavens being
on fire shall be dissolved,
and the elements
shall melt with fervent heat?
He's saying in light
of the fact
that everything you own
is going to be burned up
and dissolved someday,
what type of person
ought you to be?
A person who lives
their life for things?
A person who amasses wealth?
A person who lays up
for themselves
treasures upon the earth?
A person who just cares
about getting more
and more and more?
He's saying,
look, if it's all
going to be burned up,
you might as well
be generous.
You might as well
live for others.
You might as well
spend more time
soul winning
and reading your Bible
and serving God
than to just always,
always be in pursuit
of money and things.
And look,
I know that today
you just make a living
and support your family sometimes
and feed your children
and feed your family.
And you've got to do
a lot of work to do that.
But you've got to make sure
that that doesn't become
the emphasis of your life,
that you keep
the spiritual first,
that you seek first
the kingdom of God.
And we as men,
we work six days a week.
We strive to put food
on the table,
to put a roof
over our children's head,
to keep our children
in clothes
as they grow out of them.
But you know what?
We need to seek first
the kingdom of God.
We need to put
church first.
We need to put
the soul in first.
We need to put the Bible
reading first
and prayer first.
Those should be the things
that our life
is really about.
You know,
yes, we have to work.
Yes, we have to do
other things.
But that's not the focus.
That's not what
our life is all about.
And as we get into
this season,
what is the focus?
Is the focus shopping?
Is the focus on
making my wish list?
You know,
is the focus on
buying things
and saving money
and doing all this?
And a lot of people
make a lot of dumb decisions
at this time of year.
You know,
they spend more money
than they have
because they give them
the holiday spirit.
You know,
and it's not
the Holy Spirit,
my friend.
This holiday spirit
is a spirit of covetousness.
It's a spirit.
I mean,
and by the way,
retail stores,
they live for
this time of year.
Literally,
if stores are not open
this time of year,
they cannot make it.
This is what
carries the whole year.
I know I've talked
to a lot of business owners
in construction for years
and we've been working
on a building,
they'd say,
hey, if this place
doesn't open,
if we don't get
the permits
and get this place
open by the day
after Thanksgiving,
he said,
we might as well
not even open at all
because that's what
carries us through the year.
Why?
Because everybody
just blows huge
amounts of money.
It doesn't matter
what the economy's like.
It doesn't matter
what kind of money
they have.
And everything
in our world today
is geared toward
getting you
these things.
They literally study
the effects that advertising
will have on you.
TV commercials,
I don't have a TV,
thank God,
but TV commercials,
radio, billboards,
newspaper ads,
coupons that are
going to come in the mail,
advertisements,
it's all been planned
and geared.
When you walk in,
the music will be planned.
You know,
the price with
the line through it
and then the other price.
You know,
the high low pricing.
The creation of urgency.
You know,
not think about it,
come back,
no,
it's the two hour sale.
The five hour sale.
I mean,
you must buy it now.
You must buy now.
And it's just
all about getting you
to just impulsively
to spend a bunch of money
and waste a bunch of money
on stuff that you don't have,
that you don't need,
that you don't want.
You say,
are you against Christmas?
I'm not against Christmas at all.
And a lot of people
are against Christmas.
You know,
people will be,
you know,
the Jehovah's false witnesses,
for example.
You know,
they're against Christmas,
they're against
Thanksgiving,
they're against
celebrating your own birthday.
You know,
they're against
every holiday,
everything I have.
Now,
I don't believe that
because the Bible
talks a lot about holidays
and he tells us
not to celebrate
the ones from the old,
I mean,
we shouldn't be celebrating
these ones where we're
killing a lamb and all this.
You know,
and Yom Kippur
and the Feast of Tabernacles.
You know,
is there anything wrong
with celebrating,
you know,
the freedom of our country
on July 4th?
Is there anything wrong
with being thankful to God
in November?
Is there anything wrong
with celebrating
the birth of Christ?
Everybody tries to make
everything pagan.
Every symbol is pagan.
You know,
somebody said,
you know,
the Christmas ornaments
on the tree,
because they're round,
that's a pagan symbol.
What?
A circle?
You know,
if a circle is pagan,
I'd give up.
You know,
I mean,
I guess I'm just totally
pagan down here.
I got circular buttons on.
You know,
the wheels on my car.
You know,
they get a little bit overboard.
Like,
you know,
a circle is a pagan.
You know,
that swirl is a pagan.
It's like,
are triangles pagan?
I thought so.
Square is a pagan.
I mean,
look,
if you really want
to get down to the
brass taxi,
you know,
the days of the week
are pagan.
Sunday,
Saturday,
Friday Day,
which is named...
By the way,
the days of the week
and then moon day
is where Monday comes from,
and then Tuesday,
Wednesday,
Thursday,
Friday are all named
after Scandinavian gods.
Thor's day,
and those four,
Tuesday,
Wednesday,
Thursday,
and Friday are named
after four Scandinavian gods
that came into our language
from Norwegian,
Old Norse,
and then the other three
are named after the sun,
the moon,
and Saturn,
because they were
worshiping them as gods as well.
I mean,
you could look at the
months of the year,
you could look at
the days of the week
and all this stuff.
Look,
the world's a wicked place.
Get over it.
Does that mean
we should stop?
You know,
I will not refer
to today as Sunday.
I'm sick of it.
You know,
I will not...
Don't say Friday to me.
I'm not worshiping
some pagan god.
You know,
we live in a day
where obviously
we're in the world,
okay?
The world is wicked.
Everybody's a sinner.
You know,
it doesn't mean
that we just can't even
have the weeks
of Monday, Tuesday,
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
because they have
a pagan origin.
You know,
and people will say
the same thing
about Christmas,
and they'll say
Christmas is a
wicked holiday.
You know,
it's pagan.
Look,
what in the world
is pagan
about just
celebrating the birth
of Christ?
Jesus was born.
Let's give gifts
one to another
and let's eat
a ham dinner.
Thank God
we're not in the
Old Testament.
You know,
the New Testament,
exchange some gifts,
read the Bible story
about Jesus being born.
Can you,
can somebody tell me
what's wrong with that?
And people don't
compare it to Halloween.
Halloween,
you're out dressing
as a ghoul and goblin
threatening people
at their door
to get candy from them.
Trick or treat.
That's the two choices.
I mean,
what in the world?
You know,
and they say,
oh, you know,
it's pagan,
it's wicked.
You're committing sin
if you commit,
if you celebrate
and you say,
well,
if you celebrate
Christmas,
you know,
I don't believe that
or that,
you know,
they'll find something
wrong with Thanksgiving.
You know,
the Indians didn't
have enough clothes on.
You know,
they probably didn't.
The pilgrims were
a bunch of Calvinists.
Okay,
but you know,
there's nothing wrong
with celebrating a holiday
where you just be thankful
for what you have.
And so I'm not against
Christmas and Thanksgiving.
I don't think
that they're bad at all,
but I think
it can become bad
if it becomes
all about money
and lusting
and coveting things
that you don't have
and it all becomes
about materialism
and the mall
and shopping.
You know,
the mall shouldn't be
the focus.
It should be
the church house.
That should be
the focus this time of year,
not the people.
And people tried to say,
oh yeah,
by the way,
people tried to say
that Christmas trees
are condemned in the Bible
and what they do
is they take this verse
in Jeremiah out of context
where it talks about
cutting down a tree,
carving it into an idol
and then overlaying
that idol with gold
and silver.
I've shown this
in the Bible
before.
I'm not going to do it
now for the sake of time.
And they'll say,
see that's a Christmas tree
putting gold and silver
on a tree.
No,
it's talking about
carving the tree
into a graven image.
There's nothing
wicked about trees, okay?
God created millions
of billions of them, okay?
There's nothing
pagan about
having a house plant,
okay?
You know,
cutting down a pine tree.
Oh,
you decorated that tree.
That's wicked.
That's idolatry.
No,
it's not a human being
or an animal.
That's what
the Bible teaches.
Trees are not
graven images.
They were created by God.
They're not carved
by man.
You know,
I'm not carving
my Christmas tree
into a jack-o'-lantern.
I mean,
it's basically just a tree
and my tree's
fake anyway.
It's made
out of stinking plastic,
right?
You know,
a house plant
is pagan.
No,
it isn't.
You know,
what's pagan,
though,
is our lust
for all these things
do the Gentiles seek.
The nations of this world
love to amass wealth
and things and poit,
but seek ye first
the kingdom of God
and his righteousness
and all these things
shall be added unto you.
One more place to turn.
1 Timothy 6.
1 Timothy chapter 6
says in verse 6,
But godliness with contentment
is great gain,
for we brought nothing
into this world
and it is certain
we could carry nothing out
and having food
and raiment,
let us be there
with content.
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.
For the love of money
is the root of all people,
which while some
covet it after
they have erred
from the faith
and pierced themselves
through with many sorrows.
But thou, O man of God,
flee these things
and follow after righteousness.
How much does righteousness
cost?
Where is that being sold?
Where is that on sale?
Where can I buy righteousness?
He said,
No,
the things that we
follow after,
righteousness,
none of them can be
purchased with money.
You know,
can you purchase a child?
Can you purchase a wife?
Don't try it guys.
Can you purchase a wife?
Can you purchase children?
Can you purchase love?
Can you purchase,
can't buy any love?
The point is,
you can't purchase
the things that really
matter in life the most.
And he said,
that is what we should
be following after.
That is what we should
be seeking for.
Knowledge,
understanding,
wisdom.
Solomon was offered everything.
He said,
give me knowledge,
give me wisdom,
give me understanding.
The things that are
the most valuable in this world
cannot be purchased with money.
The gift of God
cannot be purchased with money.
And so we need to
get our emphasis right
this time of year
and focus upon
the things of God,
spiritual things.
Hey,
let's just make,
just to make a point,
let's just be more faithful
to church than ever
this time of year.
Just to prove
Pastor Anderson wrong.
Prove me wrong.
You know,
this is the fifth year
let's make it be
the first year
when we have
the best attendances ever.
The best soul winning ever.
You know,
instead of everybody
being too busy
to serve God
because we're too busy
celebrating being
thankful to God
and the birth
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We should focus on
the things of God
at this time of year
and be content
and happy with
what you have.
And I'm talking to you,
children, too.
Don't expect,
and you know,
times are tough
right now anyway.
The economy is bad,
people have
a lot less money
than they might have had
in the last few years
or whatever.
But you know what,
you can have just as good
at Christmas
without spending money.
I mean,
if you have little kids,
you can buy stuff
with the dollar tree.
They won't even know
the difference.
No, I'm just kidding.
Actually, I'm not.
But anyway,
you know,
I talk to my wife.
You know,
it's the same junk
at the dollar tree
that's going to break
a few weeks later
if you can get it right.
But I talk to my wife
about it
and my wife and I,
you know,
we decided that we're not
going to buy each other
expensive gifts this year.
That we're just going to
give things that are,
you know,
just homemade and personal
between the two of us.
You know,
something creative,
something that doesn't
cost a bunch of money.
You know,
we don't need everything
that the commercialism
has sent.
And I know that
my wife also made
a lot of nice things
for the children.
You know,
we don't,
I hope I'm not giving
too many hints, honey.
I'm not spoiling the gifts.
But the point is,
you know,
why just blow money
right now
when we don't have
a lot of money?
Why just blow money
right now?
Why not just enjoy
the people that we love?
Why not focus on giving
and give from the heart?
It doesn't have to be
spending a lot of money.
And so don't fall
into the trap.
All I have to say is
don't get this disease.
Don't pick up this disease,
this leprosy of materialism
and being materialistic
this time of year
where the emphasis
is on all the little fliers
and the ads
and writing the calculator
and the alarm clock
and, you know,
getting up
and getting out there
for the 27-minute sale
and so forth.
You know,
just sit back and relax
and ask yourself,
you know,
do we really need all this?
Why don't we just enjoy
the people that we love?
Why don't we just make this
a time to get together
with family,
see people that we
haven't seen in a while,
you know,
get to know the Bible stories
that pertain
to this time of year
and not be caught up
in the diseased leprosy
of materialism.
Materialism that has
taken over our country
in this time of year.
Let's go ahead
and have a word of prayer.
Father, thank you so much
for all the wonderful
blessings you've given us.
Thank you that we have
food and clothing,
that we have places
to live, dear God,
that we have a church
that we can go to
and most of all
that you'll never leave us
nor forsake us.
I mean, that's the big thing
that we should be
thankful for.
And help us, Father,
not to pick up this disease
that Gehazi had,
that Aiken had,
that King Solomon had,
where it was just
all about a lust
for money and things
and toys and gadgets
and electronics.
Help us to just be content
and make do with what we've got
and to seek after
other things like
godliness, righteousness,
faith, love, patience,
meekness, help,
those things to be
our pursuit this year,
not the pursuit
of the ultimate sale item.
And in Jesus' name
we pray, amen.
Amen.