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Let us know, no other fount I know, nothing of the blood of Jesus. And along the hills of life, ye Christian soldiers rise, and press the battle in the night, shall build the glowing skies. Against the bow and bales below, let all our strength be heard. Faith is the victory, we know, where comes the world. Faith is the victory, faith is the victory. Oh, glorious victory, that overcomes the world. Over us is love, our sword, the word of God. We tread the road that saves the world, and shout the triumphs of God. By faith they lie the world, with friends trapped on for everything. But if by grace they conquer death, it's still our shining shield. Faith is the victory, faith is the victory. Oh, glorious victory, that overcomes the world. On every hill of gold we find, drawn up in dread array. Let tests of each be left behind, and onward to the fray. Salvation's held in on each hand, with truth over the path. The earth shall tremble, heave our shout, and echo with a shout. Faith is the victory, faith is the victory. Oh, glorious victory, that overcomes the world. On the last to him that overcomes the full, white raven shall begin. Before the angels he shall know, his name confessed in them. Then onward from the hills of life, our hearts in love aflame. We'll make wish of the wholesome night, in Jesus' concrete name. Faith is the victory, faith is the victory. Oh, glorious victory, that overcomes the world. We're warming up tonight, lift up that chorus a cappella, let your voices be heard tonight. Faith is the victory. Faith is the victory, faith is the victory. Oh, glorious victory, that overcomes the world. There's a royal banner, driven for display to the soldiers of the King. As an ensign, there we lift it up today, while the transom ones we sing. Marching on, marching on, for Christ held everything but us. Tension proud with gain, we'll toil and sing, make the banner of the cross. Though the fold may raise and gather as the flood, let the standard be displayed. And beneath its folds as soldiers of the Lord, for the truth be not displayed. Marching on, marching on, for Christ held everything but us. Tension proud with gain, we'll toil and sing, make the banner of the cross. Over land and sea, wherever men may dwell, make the glorious tidings known. Of the crimson banner, now his story tell, while the Lord shall claim his own. Marching on, marching on, for Christ held everything but us. Tension proud with gain, we'll toil and sing, make the banner of the cross. When the glory dawns, his drawing very near, it is facing day by day. Then before our king, the force shall disappear, and the cross the world shall sway. Marching on, marching on, for Christ held everything but us. Tension proud with gain, we'll toil and sing, make the banner of the cross. Moral expressions we bring. Glorious Pharaoh we sing. Wonderful Word of the King. Jesus is coming again, coming again, coming again. Good afternoon, everybody, and welcome to Steadfast Baptist Church. It's great to see everybody here tonight. If we can go ahead and find our seats, we will get started. Once you find a seat, go ahead and find song number 423. Song number 423, Joy to the World. Song 423, everybody sing it out together on the first. Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let earth receive her King. Let every heart repair him through. And heaven and nature sing. And heaven and nature sing. And heaven, heaven, and nature sing. Joy to the world, the Savior reigns. Let men their songs employ. While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains repeat the sounding joy, repeat the sounding joy, repeat, repeat the sounding joy. No more the sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground. He comes to make his blessings flow, far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found, far as, far as the curse is found. He rules the world with truth and grace, and makes the nations prove the glories of his righteousness, and wonders of his love, and wonders of his love, and for wonders, wonders of his love. Great singing, everybody. Let's open up the service now with a word of prayer. Lord, we love you. We thank you for this church. Thank you for just the ability to gather and sing unto you, Lord, and hear preaching. And Lord, we just thank you so much for everything you do for us, Lord. We just ask that you bless this church and bless this service. And it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. All right, for our next song, let's go to song number 424. O come, all ye faithful. Song 424, just a song over. Everybody sing it out together on first. O come, all ye faithful. O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant. O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem. Come and behold Him, born the King of Angels. O come, let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him. Christ the Lord, sing choirs of angels, sing in exaltation. O sing, all ye pride, host of heaven above. Glory to God, all glory in the highest. O come, let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him. Christ the Lord, stay, Lord, we greet Thee. Lorn this happy morning, Jesus to Thee, O glory give. Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing. O come, let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him. Christ the Lord. Good evening. Thank you for being at Steadfast Baptist Church. If you did not already get a bulletin or you need one, just lift your hand up real quick. One of our ushers can come by and get you guys a bulletin. On the front, we have our Bible memory passage. We're working through Matthew 28. On the inside is our service time, soul winning times. Make sure you're keeping up with your stats. And of course, our baptism challenge is still going on all the way to the end of the year. And so, if you are able to bring someone and get baptized, whatever tribe has the most at the end of the year, we're going to have a special prize for the entire tribe, actually. So, on the right, we have the list of the expecting ladies. Also, we have our prayer list. Please update us via email if you'd like to add anything to our prayer list. Our turkey bowl was rescheduled because of the rain. And so, we're shooting for this Saturday, 9 to 11 a.m. If you'd like to participate, the address is there. See Brother Marcel. He's helping us lead this. Also, December 22nd, after the morning service, there is a cleaning volunteer luncheon. So, if you have been volunteering to clean the church, we'd like to feed you. As well as if you are interested in just participating in that and finding out more, you can join us for the free luncheon. Also, we have cookies for caroling. If you didn't already get one and you'd like to help out, we're going to try and make a cookie bag for all the houses that we go caroling tomorrow. And so, if you'd like to participate. Also, we'll be singing the two songs that we just sang, Joy to the World and I'll Come All Ye Faithful. Just that first verse of both of them if you wanted to practice, but we'll have sheets as well for you to hand to look at if you need. But we'll be singing both of those tomorrow night, handing out some cookies and also offering some of our church invitations. Caroling is honestly a lot of fun. We've always really enjoyed it. And so, if you can participate. Is anybody planning on participating that did not already like the post that I had made in the group? Was there anybody? They're not sure? Okay. Just FYI, I just wanted to make sure. Also, the only other really upcoming events, December 25th, is our Christmas Cookie Bake Off. It'll also be a candlelight service if you would like to participate. Also, January 1st is going to be our men's preaching and pizza night. Inside, we had the special mention of the congratulations to the Milsteads on the birth of their son Preston Phillip. He was born on the 3rd at 1.41 p.m., 7 pounds, 4 ounces, and 19 and 3 quarters inches long. Also, on the back is a note about the Smiths. Congratulations to their son, Peter Johannes, who was born on the 5th, 4.54 a.m., 8 pounds, 6 ounces, 20 and a quarter inches long. So, congratulations to both of them. And so that's pretty much all. I have the only other friendly reminder. We're going to be trying to clean out all of our fridges and freezer space. So if you did put anything in there, please make sure to grab it. And we'll be handing out all of the ice cream indiscriminately. So if your parents are okay with it, we'll give it to you. Also, it's for adults. You didn't even have to quote a verse of the Bible. You just showed up. And so we're just going to hand out whatever we got left over and try to get in a fresh, fresh store. So if it's got a little bit of freezer burn, it was free. All right. We'll sing our third song, Where the Spirit Blows. Where the Spirit Blows in our special handouts. You'll sing nice and loud. All right. That was Where the Spirit Blows in your laminated handouts. Where the Spirit Blows. Jesus told me, over land and sea, red, black and white, sweet in His sight, Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, go, go, go. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, yellow and brown to every town. Not just the Jews. Let's go and choose. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, go, go, go. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, Father, Spirit, Son, these three are one. Holy Trinity, always with me. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, go, go, go. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, we vice and fell, send Christ to hell. But He arose, crushing our foes. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, go, go, go. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go. He heals the lame, call on His name. Faith alone saves, empties the graves. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go, go, go, go. Where the Spirit Blows, we will go. Great job, everybody. Now as offering plates are being passed around, go ahead and turn in your Bibles to Proverbs chapter 15. That's the book of Proverbs, chapter number 15. Proverbs, chapter number 15. Proverbs, chapter 15. The Bible says, A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright, but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit. A fool despiseth his father's instruction, but he that regardeth reproof is prudent. In the house of the righteous is much treasure, but in the revenues of the wicked is trouble. The lips of the wise disperse knowledge, but the heart of the foolish doeth not so. The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is his delight. The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the Lord, but he loveth him that followeth after righteousness. Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way, and he that hateth reproof shall die. Hell and destruction are before the Lord, how much more then the hearts of the children of men. A scourner loveth not one that reproveth him, neither will he go unto the wise. A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken. The heart of him that hath understanding seeketh knowledge, but the mouth of fools feedeth on foolishness. All the days of the afflicted are evil, but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast. Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith. Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a stalled ox and hatred therewith. A wrathful man stirreth up strife, but he that is slow to anger appeaseth strife. The way of the slothful man is an hedge of thorns, but the way of the righteous is made plain. A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish man despiseth his mother. Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom, but a man of understanding walketh uprightly. Without counsel purposes are disappointed, but in the multitude of counsels they are established. A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth, and a word spoken in due season, how good is it? The way of life is above to the wise that he may depart from hell beneath. The Lord will destroy the house of the proud, but he will establish the border of the widow. The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, but the words of the pure are pleasant words. He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house, but he that hateth gifts shall live. The heart of the righteous studieth to answer, but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things. The Lord is far from the wicked, but he heareth the prayer of the righteous. The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart, and a good report maketh the bones fat. The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise. He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul, but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility. Let us pray. Dear Heavenly Father, I want to thank you for this day. Thank you for all the souls that were saved today, and I thank you for the gospel. Thank you for the eternal security we have in Jesus Christ. Please bless the message and give us ears to hear in Jesus' name. Amen. Sorry. Verse 27, I'll read it one more time. He that is greedy of gain troubleeth his own house, but he that hateth gifts shall live. And I'm titling my sermon this evening on this phrase found here, greedy of gain, greedy of gain. And I think when we talk about a few different words in the Bible, sometimes it's not always immediately obvious what we're talking about. And sometimes it's good to kind of pay attention to some of the other uses to get a better sense of what these words are meaning. But I want to talk about just being greedy in general and what that means in the Bible. Now, you have a few different things that the Bible talks about that are all kind of related. They have some similarities. They have same concepts that are being brought up. You have greediness or being greedy. You have covetousness is mentioned in the Bible. And, of course, I spoke last week about having a poverty mindset where people are kind of excusing their laziness by essentially pretending like, well, at least I'm not covetous or greedy, when really they're just actually just lazy. So the Bible makes it clear that we should work hard. We should work hard, and whatever our hand finds to do, we should do with all our might. But God also tells us not to be covetous. God also tells us to not be greedy. And so it's important to kind of understand all these words and how they balance out and what they actually are meaning. There's nothing telling you to work less hard. You know, being covetous or being greedy has nothing to do with how hard you're working. It's actually different concepts. I'm not going to really explain covetous in great detail, but I want you to understand what it means quickly. I look at it as kind of two A's whenever I think of covetousness. When it's bad, it's having either a bad attitude or it's having bad actions. So coveting is just desiring. It can actually be in a positive sense. In 1 Corinthians, chapter 12, the Bible says to covet the best gifts. So the word covet just simply means desire. But when the Bible preaches against covetousness, what it's saying is don't allow that desire for something that you don't have to cause you to either have a bad attitude or to have bad actions. What would be the bad attitude? Not being content with the things that you have. So there's nothing wrong with wanting a new car. If you have a car and you're happy with the car, hey, I like my car, it's fine, but I'd like a newer car. I need a car that can have better gas mileage, is more reliable, or whatever. There's nothing wrong with that as long as you're not then having a bad attitude for what God has given you. And that's where you show that you're not content. Being covetous often can lead people to not being content with the things that they have. Instead of being content with the house they have, the wife they have, the kids they have, the job they have, the money they have, or whatever things they have, they look at what someone else has and they end up having a bad attitude. They hate their brother, they're mad at their brother, or simply they're not content with the things they have. That is covetousness, and the Bible says that's wrong. Additionally, covetousness can lead to bad actions. What would be bad actions? Acquiring wealth or acquiring goods in a sinful way. Maybe you covet something like Achan and you take the Babylonian garment that wasn't yours. Well, that was a bad action. Or you maybe do something to gain money through a bad means. And really that's important when we're kind of understanding these things. Covetousness is having a desire for something that leads to either a bad action or a bad attitude. So as long as you don't have a bad attitude or a bad action, there's nothing wrong with desiring more though. And so I want us to make sure that we understand that if you want to have nicer things in your life, there's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong with desiring to have new things, having stuff, buying a house, buying another house, buying a car, buying whatever the things that you need. And as life progresses, there's nothing wrong with desiring a wife when you don't have a wife. There's nothing wrong with desiring a better job when you have a job. But what you should do is you should thank God for the job you have now. You should thank God for the car that you have now. You should thank God for the house you have now. That's where you show contentment. There's nothing wrong with desiring something new or having more. But how should you get there? By working hard, not by being greedy. Now, greediness is what we're going to talk about this evening. Greediness is essentially gaining wealth or finances through sinful means. That is greediness. Greedy is very specific in the Bible, and I want to show you kind of three ways that the Bible talks about being greedy. The first one is taking bribes. Now, in the Bible, it uses the word gift here, and in our vernacular, we only think of gifts as being like a good thing. But gift here is actually referring to a bribe. So when it says here, but he that hateth gifts shall live, it's not saying that on Christmas you cannot accept a gift. We're not talking about that. The Lord Jesus Christ accepted gold, frankincense, and myrrh, didn't he? So there's nothing wrong with gifts in and of themselves. But what's being explained here is someone who's taking gifts to pervert judgment, which would be a bribe. And I'm going to prove that. Go to Exodus 23. The Bible says he that is greedy have gained trouble in his own house. We should not be greedy, meaning we should not take money to pervert judgment. We shouldn't take money to do things that are sinful. And this is happening in our world and in our society on a regular basis where people that are in a position of authority get to make decisions. They allow money to corrupt their thinking, corrupt their judgment, and they make bad decisions based on that. Exodus 23, look at verse 7. Heed thee far from a false matter, and the innocent and righteous slay thou not, for I will not justify the wicked. And thou shalt take no gift, for the gift blinded the wise and perverted the words of the righteous. So in Exodus 23, it's talking about setting up judges, setting up rulers, setting up princes, giving people the position of authority. And when they're judging civil matters, judging criminal matters, that they're supposed to justify the righteous and condemn the wicked. And he's saying a judge, a person in a position of authority, should not take a gift. And in fact, in America and throughout history, there has been rules and regulations on judges taking gifts or bribes when it comes to making some kind of a legal proceeding. Because that wouldn't be fair if you have a problem with someone and they can just pay more money to the judge than you can so then they win the case. You know, that's not good judgment. That would be perverted judgment and it'll ruin a society. It'll ruin a country when judges are being paid bribes. Now, go to Deuteronomy 16. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes, chapter number 7, Surely oppression maketh a wise man mad, and a gift destroyeth the heart. The Bible says that a gift can destroy the heart, meaning instead of someone judging a matter based on what's right or wrong, instead of a person making a good decision based on what's right, they simply allow gifts to say, Well, basically I'm for sale and to the highest bidder. That is someone that's greedy. A greedy person perverts judgment for money or takes bribes, specifically. And the word greed or greedy is not used a ton of times in the Bible. And honestly, we're going to look at all the mentions that have a definition attached to them. There's a couple mentions that are just vaguely mentioned. I'm not going to go to those. But all the ones that actually give us an idea and a sense of the word, we're going to look at. And this first one is really about taking bribes. Deuteronomy 16, look at verse 18. Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee throughout thy tribes, and they shall judge the people just judgment. Thou shalt not rest judgment, thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift, for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise and pervert the words of the righteous. So the Bible actually hammers this point over and over that taking bribes, taking gifts, will cause you to make a bad judgment. Now, this is what's interesting. In our world today, we have so many judges and lawmakers and people in political office who are taking gifts. And it's called lobbying. Now, go to Proverbs 21. I was just kind of looking this up. I guess in theory, you could correct me. I've only done a minimal amount of research on this. But basically, on my understanding, they're trying to say that lobbying was something that was not really mentioned legally at the beginning and the founding of our nation. So a lot of people were practicing, quote, lobbying. It's really just giving bribes to political figures for a long period of time. But it was kind of on the hush-hush. There wasn't really anything about it. Nobody knew how legal it was or wasn't or if it was right. Obviously, it was unethical, but they didn't really know where the law stood. So in 1946, that's an interesting year. That was right after World War II. In 1946, there was a new comprehensive law that was, I guess, voted on or coming into existence. I was just going to read this so I get it right. Following immediately in the footsteps of World War II, Congress also approved the nation's first comprehensive lobbying disclosure law for domestic lobbyists. The Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act of 1946, the primary objective of the 1946 Act, was to establish a system of lobbyist registration and disclosure. So in 1946, they finally just said, well, lobbying, we're going to still allow that. We just want people to tell you that you're doing it. So you just say, like, hey, I gave this guy, you know, $100,000 or whatever, and so they have to register all the money that they're giving in theory. I looked up more recently, the lobbying business in America in 1998 was $1.45 billion. So that, you know, and most people don't understand what lobbying is exactly, but I'll just try to explain it to you. Obviously, our government buys things. Well, they have to buy things from somebody, right? I mean, they build roads, they build hospitals, they build all kinds, they have a military that buys all kinds of tanks and guns and they buy websites and they buy all kinds of merchandise, right? Well, who are they going to buy that from? Well, that's their discretion. So what happens is companies know, hey, the government's going to buy a lot of stuff. I'm going to pay this particular person that's going to choose who's going to buy stuff from. I'm going to pay him a bunch of money and then he's going to buy my product, right? So you have, or you have another situation where the lawmakers could potentially outlaw a product that's being sold or put regulations on a product that's being sold. Like, I don't know, maybe vaccines. And a particular vaccine manufacturer could have two things happen. They could mandate everybody has to take a particular vaccine or they could tell everybody that it's forbidden to take a particular vaccine. Both will dramatically affect the sales of that particular industry. These big pharma companies will literally pay all kinds of officials hundreds of thousands of dollars as an individual, millions, if not billions collectively. And then they will pass laws that are basically favorable to that particular business, that particular entity. This is called lobbying. Do you think that our lawmakers might have a perverted sense of right and wrong when they're literally being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars based on, you know, the laws that they're going to make? Yeah, there's no way that that's ever going to be good. There's no way that's ever going to be right. That's perverted. And it shows that those politicians are greedy. Our politicians that take lobbying money are greedy by biblical definition. By biblical definition, by taking gifts, they are greedy. It should be illegal. Lobbying should be illegal. It's not right. It's not going to create a positive system. It makes bad laws. And you know who likes to do things that are greedy? Lazy people. Look at Proverbs 21 verse 25. So notice someone that's coveting greedily. What would be a covetousness that's coupled with greediness? It's desiring something that you don't have and you're willing to do things that are sinful in order to get it. So the politician who covets his neighbor's house, covets his neighbor's car, covets his neighbor's bank account, like Nancy Pelosi, who had virtually no net worth prior to becoming a politician, now she's a multi-millionaire. That's someone that's coveting greedily. And it's not like Nancy Pelosi said, you know what? I'm going to roll up my sleeves. I'm going to work really hard. I'm going to invent some product. I'm going to start a business. I'm going to by legitimate means work really hard to acquire wealth. No, no, no, no. I'm just going to take bribes and I'm going to take information about companies and do insider trading, which is a whole other sermon, and then make a bunch of money that way. That is someone that's greedy. Someone that's not working hard to make money. They're taking bribes to make money. That is wicked. That is destroying our nation. So that's the first one I'm going to mention. Go to 1 Timothy 3. So the first way the Bible mentions people being greedy is taking bribes. Super wicked, super wrong, always going to pervert judgment. It's always been a huge problem with governments and corrupting governments is how they take bribes. Typically it's only going to be people that are in positions of authority because otherwise there's no point in bribing anybody. The reason why you're bribing someone is because they have authority, whether that be a cop, whether that be some kind of local law maker or federal law maker, judge, somebody that has a position of authority and rule. They should be the people that should not take any kind of bribes. And the Bible even said specifically when Moses was appointing leaders that they were supposed to be hating covetousness. Why? Because he didn't want to put people in that would easily take bribes or easily be led astray with money. They were going to simply rule and do what was right, period. And it's sad that our world doesn't have a lot of people like that. Here's a second way that people are greedy, though. According to the Bible, it's people who preach lies. Now it says in 1 Timothy 3, verse 3, talking about a pastor not given to wine, no striker, not greedy, a filthy lucre. So according to the Bible, a pastor is not to be greedy, a filthy lucre. Lucre, according to the dictionary, is money gained in a dishonorable way. Biblically speaking, that's exactly how it's used every single time. The Bible says in Samuel 8, Samuel's sons went after lucre and took bribes and perverted judgment. Now what's a bribe? Again, to persuade someone to act in one's favor, typically illegally or dishonestly by a gift of money or other inducement. So again, Samuel's sons are in a position of authority. They're preachers. They're going to follow in dad's footsteps. But Samuel doesn't feel right with them leading because they were wicked. The children of Israel didn't see them as being people they wanted to lead them. And so they went for Saul. They didn't want Samuel's sons. Why? Because they went after lucre and they took bribes. And the Bible literally says that lucre is bribes in 1 Samuel 8. You can look that up yourself. But the Bible makes it clear that a pastor is not someone that's greedy, a filthy lucre. Meaning what? He wouldn't take a bribe. Meaning that whatever the pastor's decision-making is in the church, let's say he had to actually throw someone out of church, or he had to deal with an uncomfortable situation, or he had to do something, he wouldn't allow money to influence his decision-making. Now I would go a step further because a pastor could not only be bribed, like literally, with someone just offering the money to pervert their judgment. It could be that maybe that particular member is like a high tithing member or something, right? And they just recognize this could financially cause the church a little bit of a detriment. So they don't want to deal with that person the same way they would deal with maybe a poorer person in the church. That would be possibly a little bit of greediness there. A little bit of inappropriate action. You know, we should judge people equally as pastors, as leaders in the church. Obviously taking a bribe would be super wicked. Look at verse 8. It says the same thing here. Likewise, must the deacons be grave, not double-tongued, not given too much wine, not greedy, a filthy lucre. We see men in the Bible taking money, and they're taking that money as a way to pervert judgment. Go to Titus chapter 1, Titus chapter 1, and we're going to see it kind of expanded. Because the bribe overlaps here with the pastor, not just judges that are civil and criminal judges, but also a spiritual judge taking bribes. But another aspect is actually just preaching lies for money as another form of greediness. It says in Titus 1.7, for a bishop must be blameless as a steward of God, not self-willed, not so angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre. Now, if you kind of skip ahead, it'll give us a better explanation. Look at verse 11. Whose mouths must be stopped to subvert houses, teaching things which they ought not for filthy lucre's sake. So the Bible says not only can you be greedy by taking a bribe, you could be greedy by preaching things or teaching things that you ought not for filthy lucre's sake. And this is what we see in America and we see in a lot of places in the world today where there are preachers preaching lies on purpose for money. They are preaching a prosperity-only gospel, a positive-only message, they're preaching things that people just want to hear simply just to get paid. And that is being greedy. So if we were to criticize someone for being greedy, number one, it would be because they're taking bribes. Number two, it could be because they're simply just preaching things that are simply not true or in an attempt to gain more money. They're not preaching what the Bible says, they're preaching things which they ought not. That's what the Bible says. Kind of somewhere in the middle would be also, in my mind, perverting judgment, treating rich members better than poor members could be a loose form of greediness here. But if we go strictly by what the Bible's teaching, so far we see taking bribes, preaching lies. Now this is a big point that's mentioned in the Bible. Go to 1 Peter chapter 5, go to 1 Peter chapter number 5. Proverbs 28, I'm just going to read for you. The prince that wanteth understanding is also a great oppressor, but he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days. We should not be covetous in the sense that desiring things that are not ours and allowing that to give us either a bad attitude, no contentment, hating our brother, and or causing us to have bad actions of specifically by sinful means acquiring wealth. We should never by sinful means acquire wealth, that would be a love of filthy lucre. Because lucre is basically money that you shouldn't be getting legitimately. There are businesses, adult themed businesses, that is essentially lucre. We talk about interest and usury, the Bible says that is unjust gain. Taking money from drugs, nefarious actions, criminal activity. There are ways that people are getting money that are not legitimate, and according to the Bible, that person is greedy of filthy lucre. Exodus, I already mentioned this, but just men of truth, hating, covetousness is what we want when we talk about leaders. Notice what it says in 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 2, Feed the flock of God which is among you, talking to elders, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind. Now this is an interesting verse. Think about how he's pairing this verse. Taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly. What is those two things? They're opposites. Constraint is force. If you understand the word constraint, force and it are synonyms. So the Bible uses the word force in the Bible to mean certain things, but constrain is a synonym. In fact, the Bible says about the Lord Jesus Christ that he constrained the disciples to get in the boat. Which means what? He forced them to get in the boat. So if we're talking about not by force, meaning we don't want a pastor to feel forced to pastor. And a pastor shouldn't be in a position where they're just forced to do so. I've heard of an example of this that may be among some Amish circles or Puritan circles. That they literally as the men they get together and they just draw straws and then whoever draws the short straws the pastor. It's like, I mean it's pretty rough sometimes, I get it, but I'm just saying like that would be kind of by force. That's kind of weird that you're just like, who's the pastor? Alright, let's all put our names in a hat. Today you're the pastor. I don't know how it works, but that would be weird. Or think about, this is probably more common, how there's some men out there who almost groom their son to become a pastor. And it's almost like an expectation that the son would follow in his father's footsteps. I'm not saying that a son can't. If a son wants to be a pastor and his dad is a pastor, that's great. But it shouldn't be constrained. It shouldn't be forced. It shouldn't be obligatory or anything like that. I also don't think that the ordination should be done by the father. You should probably have other people involved or other people judging that matter. Because there's a little bit of bias when it comes to your own children. So I think it's better, it's cleaner if it's coming from someone that's from an outside perspective looking in. But you see nepotism a little bit even in the Bible, considering that the priesthood was literally father-son, father-son, father-son. Kingdoms were father-son, father-son, father-son. But often that can lead to some bad, bad leaders. And so it's better if the pastors are not constrained in any way, not forced in any way, but willing. He that desired the office of a bishop. We want people that desire the office of a bishop, not someone that's kind of being forced to do so. Additionally, the opposite, though, would be willingly. Right? I mean, if you're being forced versus willingly, we're talking about opposite. That's interesting when we think about this next phrasing, because it says specifically, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind. And I would suggest to you that it's doing the exact same thing. It's using opposites. Okay? So what is the filthy lucre? This is someone that's taking bribes, so they're doing what? They're perverting judgment. So their mind has been perverted, has been affected, and they're not going to judge rightly. What is the ready mind? The ready mind is one who's ready to deliver just judgment, the right judgment. He's going to do what's good, men of truth, whereas the guy that's taking filthy lucre, he has a perverted outlook on life, and he's not going to make the right judgments. He's not going to make the right decisions. So it's kind of in the same way talking about this concept of having a perverted judgment. Go over to Deuteronomy 25, and I'll show you this more. Think about Jude. I'm going to read this for you. Woe unto them, for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Kor." So Balaam is an example of a preacher who is seeking after reward, and he ran greedily. Meaning what? The only reason he was preaching what he was preaching, the only goal he had, was to get money. Now he limited himself to only saying whatever God would say, but at the end of the day, he was hoping that he would be able to curse the children of Israel for money. And he was going to do it by any means possible, and he tried it over and over and over again. And there are many preachers today that have no problem cursing God's people, cursing children of Israel, cursing sons of God, cursing saved Christians, speaking evil of Christians, if they think it will give them some kind of gain. It will give them some kind of advantage. And you know what? That's running greedily after the error of Balaam. We should not seek to destroy God's people just because it might benefit us personally, or help us somehow personally. We should never preach lies. It's the pillar and ground of the truth. This should be the one institution in the world that you can come to, and it's a sanctuary for your brain of truth. It's the one place where you're going to hear what the Bible actually says. It's the one place where you're going to be challenged with the truth, not lies. And yeah, that'll make you uncomfortable. It all makes us uncomfortable when we're challenged with the truth. But you know what? We need to go to a place where we can actually hear it. I don't need more lies. I don't need more deception. I don't need to just hear things that feel good about myself. I don't need some self-help guru. I don't need a pep talk. I don't need a psychotherapist to tell me about my childhood. You know what? I just want to hear what the Bible has to say. And I want someone to have read the Bible, and I want someone to have thought about the Bible and prayed, and allowed God and the Holy Spirit to lead them to think about words that are acceptable words, and words of truth, and words that are going to help edify people, and for it to be preached and thundered forth. And you know what? Sometimes I just like to hear God's words screamed a little bit. You know what I mean? This world is just so weird and so wicked sometimes. It's just nice to hear the truth and hear that other people believe it. I mean, sometimes it can feel so isolating in this world. You're just thinking, like, is everyone crazy? And you're like, man, it's just nice to be around sane people for a little bit. It's nice to be around some normal people. It's nice to be around some people that actually love the Bible. And so, of course, we come to church and we want pastors and leaders to preach what the Bible says and not really be focused on money, not preaching things that are going to get them money, not trying to just make decisions between church members based on money, but basing on truth, basing on who's right. And you know what? Rich people won't like that because they usually can buy their way out of everything. They can buy their way out of judgments. They can buy their way and get all kinds of favor and special privileges. But you know what? In church, it should be an equal opportunity for the poorest person and the richest person. You're on the same playing field. You know what? We're going to justify the righteous and we're going to condemn the wicked. That's what we're going to do. And if there's a controversy, look at verse 1. And if there be a controversy between men and they come unto judgment that the judges may judge them, then they shall justify the righteous and condemn the wicked. And it shall be, if the wicked man be worthy to be beaten, that the judge shall cause him to lie down and to be beaten before his face, according to his fault by a certain number. Forty stripes he may give him and not exceed, lest he should exceed and beat him above these many, I'm sorry, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee. Thou shall not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. Now, why it's important to get all of these different concepts in your mind in the right lane is so that you don't ever kind of drift off and then get a weird idea or get the wrong idea. We have all kinds of different topics that we're talking about. And this is why it's important to do sermons on them. Covetousness. Covetousness has to be defined by context. And again, when we talk about the negative covetousness, I tried to help you by saying it's either a bad attitude or a bad action. When we talk about greediness, what have we learned so far? Taking bribes and preaching lies. So what if a pastor is not preaching lies and taking bribes? Can he still get paid as being a pastor? And the answer is obviously yes. There's nothing wrong with pastors being paid. But then you'll hear some people say, oh, this pastor is being paid? He must be greedy of gain, greedy of filthy lucre, which is a horrible false accusation if you actually understand what that means. And it's not what the Bible is teaching at all. And in fact, in this passage, it's talking about judges justifying the righteous and condemning the wicked. And then it says specifically in verse 4, thou shall not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. What does that mean? Well, first of all, feed your cows. There's always carnal truth. If you want to have your cow do its work, you've got to feed it. But go to 1 Corinthians 9, and we'll learn that that's also a euphemism or a metaphor for the judge, that the judge should essentially be paid for his work. We wouldn't want the judge to not get paid. Does he get paid because of a bribe? No, he gets paid for doing his job, for working hard. In the same way, pastors should get paid for their job, but they shouldn't get paid bribes. They shouldn't get paid when they're preaching lies. But should they get paid? Well, let's ask the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 9, look at verse 1. Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are not ye my work and the Lord? If I be not an apostle unto others, yet doubtless I am to you, for the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord. Mine answer to them that do examine me in this, Have we not power to eat and to drink? Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord and Cephas, or I only in Barnabas? Have not we power to forbear working? Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? Who planteth the vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? Or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? Say I these things as a man, or sayeth not the law the same also? No, for it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Does God take care for oxen? So what is being alluded to here is people that are in the ministry getting paid to what? Eat, drink, lead about a sister, and specifically forbear working. So it's not even saying, if you think about it, it's not just saying like a few bucks. It's not just saying like a meal. It's escalating. It's not just a meal or two. It's also paying for dependents. A wife and children are dependents. Not only that, forbear working. To forbear working means every single one of your bills being paid by the ministry, in a sense is what he's trying to bring up. And then he says, doesn't the Bible tell us this? Isn't this a concept taught in Mosaic law about the ox treading out the corn? And then he makes this kind of rhetorical question of, Does God care for oxen? Meaning like, you really think that God, in all the divine law that he's giving to the children of Israel, he was just like, I want to really make sure you're taking care of cows, though. Or is he saying it for our sake? What does he say? In verse 10. Or saith he it all together for our sakes. For our sakes, no doubt that this is written. He wanted to make it clear. Just FYI, I'm not saying this is my opinion. This is no doubt was written for us specifically. And he says, That he that plows should plow in hope, and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things? If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless, we have not used this power, but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ. Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple, and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar, even so at the Lord ordained, that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel? So according to the Bible, a spiritual leader, a spiritual minister, is entitled to taking some carnal things in order to be paid for their services. Now that's to their discretion. The apostle Paul decided not to, because he just didn't want any kind of accusation to be made for him specifically. I mean, he's like spearheading the beginnings of Christianity. So for him, he wants to make it just so clear he's not doing this for any ulterior motive. There's nothing shady going on. So he just personally decided to not even take money generally. He did not never take money. I mean, he says explicitly in the Bible, I robbed other churches to do you service. Now he's using hyperbole. He didn't actually hold them at gunpoint or something like that. He's just simply saying that he took wages from some churches and didn't take wages from other churches. Now that would make sense. Maybe a big church that has lots of money and is in abundance, you could take money from that church, but then a small church plant or a smaller group, you may not ever take any money from that particular church because you don't want to hurt them or harm them or cause them to have any kind of financial burden that they don't need. And so it's all discretionary. It's all based on practicality. And of course the Apostle Paul is saying they have the power. They have the authority. It makes sense. It's what the Bible teaches. And if you want church to be successful, that's the model you're going to follow. But you know what is not going to be successful is when the pastor is greedy, when he's taking bribes or when he's preaching lies. That is going to cause lots of problems, not that he's getting paid, not getting paid legitimately, that he's getting paid bribes, that he's preaching things which he ought not for filthy lucre's sake. That is a major, major problem. Go to 1 Timothy 5. Let's see this again. And I'm not even preaching something that's barely mentioned in the Bible. This is something that we've already seen a lot of verses on and I'm showing you even more. It's important that we understand what these words mean in their biblical context. And of course we want to make sure that we're keeping a proper balance because the Bible wants us to work hard and I want people to work hard and I want people to do a good job and we should always do a good job and we shouldn't fear being greedy or covetous when we're not being greedy or we're not being covetous. And then we need to make sure that we are careful that we're not being covetous and we're not being greedy when those temptations come into play. So if someone's offering a bribe, we need to stay away from that. When someone's offering you a gift, make sure they're not doing that to pervert your judgment. And we ought to never preach lies or say things that are not true in an effort to keep money. At your job, don't lie for money. Talk about greedy salesmen. Talk about greedy used car salesmen that will lie about the car that they're selling you in order to get money. That's the same as a preacher preaching lies. But I'll argue the preacher's worse because he's supposed to be a man of truth. Even worse, even more scummy is the guy that's taking the advantage of the house of God. But you know, someone that's doing a good job in the house of God, what does the Bible say? Verse 17, Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially they who labor in the word of doctrine. For the Scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn, and the laborer is worthy of his reward. There it's mentioned again. The apostle Paul's bringing it up again. Hey, pastors, preachers, evangelists, missionaries, we should pay them. And you know what the Bible says? We should pay them well if they're doing a good job. That's what the Bible says. And they should be counted worthy, meaning you shouldn't attack their character, attack who they are, or speak negatively about them for getting paid because they should be counted worthy of double honor. So it's not only that you're doing it, you're doing it with a cheerful heart. And it's so weird to me how people that love God and love the Bible would be mad at good preachers, pastors, evangelists, or anybody in the ministry getting paid well. That's a red flag to me. It's like, why would you not want that person to be paid well or taken care of? That seems weird to me. It seems like you kind of despise the things of God, and you don't want the things of God to go well. You know, a lot of people take pride whenever they have a particular player on their team that finally gets a big contract because they think, okay, now this guy's gonna do a good job. I'm glad that we've secured this particular quarterback, wide receiver, baseball player, batter, whatever. I'm glad that he's on our team. I'm glad that we're paying him well. We would feel bad if you got the best player and we're not gonna pay him well and we're making him disgruntled, dissatisfied, unhappy, wanting to leave. You'd be like, man, what are we doing? Let's lock this guy down. You know what I mean? Let's get him the big contract. And I'm not saying pastors get big contracts because they don't. They're not getting 100 honor here. They're not getting 50 honor, Joel Osteen, okay? They're getting double honor. But you know what, we shouldn't be criticizing men of God for double honor. That doesn't even make sense. It's basically like they're getting a double paycheck and if that were to happen for somebody, I'm not gonna be mad at them. I'm not gonna attack them. I'm certainly not gonna call them greedy because that's just not what the Bible's saying, okay? Now go to Isaiah chapter 56, Isaiah chapter 56. Now you can make any accusation you want but it doesn't mean it's true. It doesn't mean it's what the Bible says. And we need to be careful that when we are talking about these words that we're understanding them in their proper context. None of us should ever though be covetous. None of us should ever be greedy. Isaiah 56 also talks about this, especially in the context of prophets because they just really abuse their power. People really abuse their authority. Look at verse 10. His watchmen are blind. They are all ignorant. They are all dumb dogs. They cannot bark, sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber. Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough. And they are shepherds that cannot understand. They all look to their own way, everyone for his gain from his quarter. We learned so much in these two verses. But notice one thing initially. Greedy dogs which can never have enough. Is this person ever content? No. And of course the Bible uses a dog because a dog can literally eat until it dies. It's a very unique animal. Some animals that maybe you leave for a while, like a cat, you can just fill up its food and it will just nip at it when it needs and it can just satisfy itself and move on. A dog, if you put out a week's worth of food, it will eat a week's worth of food. It's not going to think like, I need to ration this. I ate a lot, I'm pretty good right now. It will eat its last meal ever. Every single time. It can never have enough. That's why God is using this particular animal to describe this. They're implacable. Incapable being placated. That's why they're often pictured as a reprobate or as a sodomite because they can't be placated. Dogs are an evil animal in the Bible. Sorry if you like dogs, all right? But they serve one purpose. Biblically. To bark. That's what they serve. They serve as a protector in the sense that they're supposed to alert and supposed to warn. And think about it. A dog could be a sheepdog to guard the sheep. What does the sheepdog do? He barks when the wolf is coming. So what would be a dumb dog? It's not talking about stupid. It's talking about silent. The word dumb means silent. So think about, instead of a dumb dog, think about a silent sheepdog. That's what it's trying to say here. And notice some of its attributes. Number one, it's blind. So we know these people are not saved. That's kind of the implication. They're ignorant, so they're unaware of things in the Bible. Number three, they're dumb, meaning that they don't say anything. So we put this in the context of a pastor or a preacher, which is exactly what he's saying. His watchmen are blind, meaning that they're unsaved. We look at America. Most preachers today are unsaved. They're blind. Not only are they blind, they're ignorant. They don't even know what the Bible says. You could quote to them Leviticus 2013, and they would think you're quoting the Koran. You could quote all kinds of verses, like the word hate, like the hate's never found in the Bible. And it's like, do not, I hate them. They're like, where'd you get that? Psalms, do you want me to show you? They're like, Jesus never would have said anything mean. Jesus never preached about hell. Oh, what about Mark chapter number nine? It's like they're just ignorant of the Bible, actually. Not only are they ignorant, then they're dumb, meaning what? That they don't say anything. And let me tell you something. The epidemic of preachers in America today is how they can speak and say nothing at the same time. They get up, and they just speak all this nonsense and hot air, and they never communicate anything effectively. They have no clear message. They make just noises. Oh, ra, ra, ra, ra. That's why Pentecostals went to that, because that's what it's like anyways. Their preaching is just nonsense. It's just speaking in the air. It's vain clattering with symbols. It just has no benefit. They're not warning. They're not saying anything. They're not preaching the hard truths. They're not warning against the wolves. And boy, it just irritates the fire out of me when I notice a pastor or preacher, and it's like they never preach against wolves. I'm thinking like, oh, you're dedicating all your sermons to saved pastors you don't like? Like, the hardest sermon you've ever preached is against a saved pastor that you have a personal beef with. Not a sodomite, not a pedophile, not a corrupt politician, not communists, not false prophets, not Catholic priests, other saved pastors. It sounds like you're a dumb dog. What a dumb dog to sit here and to get so mad about the wrong people. I mean, if you're going to get mad, I'm fine with you getting mad, but get mad at the wolves. Can you get mad at somebody Maybe you're too busy destroying sheep. I don't know. Notice it's sleeping, lying down, they're just lazy. Lazy preachers today, greedy, meaning they can never have enough, they're not content, they're not satisfied, and they cannot understand, meaning that they're foolish. Boy, that is a problem in America today. You know, that person is a bad pastor, is the bad preacher, who's speaking things which they ought not for filthy lucre's sake, meaning that they won't preach the Bible, they preach lies, they preach things that they shouldn't, and they won't say the hard truths of the Bible. What? Because they care more about money than preaching the truth. We need pastors and preachers that'll preach the truth no matter what happens to the wallet. Good or bad, it doesn't matter. Preach things that are in season and not in season. Go over to Proverbs chapter 1. So point one is this. Being greedy of gain is taking bribes. Number two, it's preaching lies. And we're going to see the third mention of greediness in the Bible as defined as a specific thing. And what I want to show you clearly is that greediness is acquiring wealth through sinful means. It would be wrong to take a bribe. It's wrong to preach lies for money. And here's the third thing that the Bible brings up, is people that are greedy, is they're willing to kill for money. Proverbs chapter 1, look at verse 10, my son, if sinners entice thee can send thou not. If they say, come with us, let us lay wait for blood. Let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause. Let us swallow them up alive as the grave and whole, as those that go down into the pit. We shall find all precious substance. We shall fill our houses with spoil. Cast in thy lot among us. Let us all have one purse, my son. Walk not thou on the way with them. Refrain thy foot from their path. For their feet run to evil and make haste to shed blood. Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. And they lay wait for their own blood. They lurk privily for their own lives. So are the ways of everyone that is greedy of gain, which taketh away the life of the owners thereof. The verse that we started with was, he that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house. When you become greedy, to the point where you're willing to do anything for money, including all kinds of sinful and criminal activity, often you're going to put your own life in risk. Your own life in jeopardy. And so many people that are greedy are willing to kill, are willing to slay innocent blood for money, and it's going to haunt them. It's going to come back upon them. That's what the Bible is bringing up. Go to Ezekiel chapter 22. Go to Ezekiel chapter 22. So we talk about being greedy. You know, I'm not saying that it's limited to the Bible's definitions or of examples. I do think it is limited to the scope of acquiring wealth through sinful means. I think that's what it's very clearly meaning. Through dishonest, through inappropriate activity to gain money. That's what greediness is, specifically. And the three mentions that we have in the Bible are pretty much categorized in taking bribes, preaching lies, or killing people. Murder, literally, murder for that particular greediness. So if you're going to accuse somebody of being greedy, it should fit in one of those categories. It should have a clear delineation of, here's the exact sinful action that this person's taking. Here's what they're doing wrong for money. That would be greediness. Ezekiel 22, look at verse 6. Behold, the princes of Israel, every one, were in thee to their power to shed blood. So I'm using this verse to kind of give us the context. He's talking to the judges, the rulers of Israel, and he's saying that they had power to shed blood. This is why he's judging them. It's because they're shedding all this blood. Verse 7. In thee have they set light by father and mother. So I'm jumping straight into this context, and maybe it doesn't make sense. He's saying, I'm going to judge all of you princes of Israel because of these things. Why? Because you shed innocent blood. And secondly, because you set light by father and mother. Meaning what? You're not honoring your father and mother. You're making light of it. You're not taking it seriously. And this generation today, they don't take their parents seriously. They don't take honoring their father and mother seriously. God's saying he's going to judge the nation of Israel harshly, and Jerusalem specifically, very harshly, for not honoring their father and their mother. He says, In the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger. In thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow. Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my Sabbaths. In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood. And in thee they eat upon the mountains. In the midst of thee they commit lewdness. In thee have they discovered their father's nakedness. In thee they humbled her that was set apart for pollution. And one hath committed abomination with his neighbor's wife. And another hath lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law. And another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter. In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood. Thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbors by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God. So notice, they took gifts to do what? To shed blood. And then he explains that, usury, increase, and extortion. So they're using extortion, usury, increase, and gifts, and they're killing people because of their greediness. So just like in Proverbs chapter number one, which in my mind most aptly fits gangs, cartels, that kind of enterprise, where they're going and killing people for gain, they're in some kind of a club, they're gaining spoil by murdering people, killing people, and doing these type of things, is similar here in this context where the children of Israel are being judged because the princes are greedily gaining through extortion, and that extortion, and in these contexts, these gifts, are to shed blood. They're taking bribes, they're taking money, and they're just looking the other way and just allowing all kinds of bloodshed and innocent people to be killed. That is what's wrong with America. He says, Behold, therefore, I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee. So he's saying basically you're getting dishonest gain, and it's causing all of this bloodshed in the city. That is what's happening in America. America's politicians are greedy because of Big Pharma. Big Pharma is constantly slaying people through vaccine injury, yet because they're lining their pockets, the politicians look the other way and say, You're not allowed to sue pharmaceutical companies. You're not allowed to go after them criminally, even if they kill people with bad products. Why? Because they're too greedy of money to take accountability for the blood that they shed. Abortion doctors who are literally shedding blood, but because of the greediness of the money that's flowing in from our government and from other institutions to literally slay children, they just turn a blind eye to abortion. People don't realize how much money there is in abortion, and how much federal funds are going and being leaked into these abortion clinics. The military industrial complex, who is just getting all kinds of money hand over fist for all the innocent and shed blood all over this world. You don't think that tons of people made money on the guns that were manufactured to go in the Middle East and to kill about a million people? After 2001, after the war in Iraq, I mean, we killed like a million people over there. A million people died because of George W. Bush and his kahunis, you know, cohorts, destroying the World Trade Center and then blaming it on Osama bin Laden. Sorry if you don't believe the official story. That's a different sermon. I mean, it's garbage. A 47-story skyscraper did not fall in seven seconds flat due to office fires. It just didn't happen, and it didn't happen to just also be an insurance policy taken out six months prior to by Larry Silverstein, who's the luckiest Jew ever. He even admits it. He's like, I'm just a lucky Jew. I just happened to take out the first policy on terrorist insurance right before three buildings of mine were destroyed by terrorists. That's convenient. And then he just happened, I can't remember, his wife called in for him to go see a doctor or something. What was it? Dermatologist. Dermatologist. Oh, yeah, I just need a dermatology appointment just randomly. What a lucky Jew. And then he just wasn't killed. And then, of course, it happened to be the world's largest gold reserve underneath the World Trade Center. I bet you didn't know that either, huh? And then it's like almost all of it was just missing. Oh, man, I wonder what happened to all the gold and all the insurance. And then they just shipped all of the steel beams to China? What? Like, hey, they just knocked down our building. Let's just send it to China. Like, that's not normal. This isn't normal behavior. Why did all the, I mean, think about it. There's 3,000 Americans killed in 9-11. Why? For insurance money. For the gold reserve. For the war in Iraq. For the Patriot Act. For the investigations into the Clintons and other people that were going on in Building 7. Lots of reasons. There wasn't one. But one reason. Greediness. The love of money is the root of all evil. Not only the military industrial complex manufacturers of unsafe products. People are making products today. They know we're unsafe. We're going to kill people. Whether it be the automobile industry. Whether it be Boeing. Hmm. It's like anybody that's a whistleblower at Boeing is about to kill themselves. Okay? There's a reason why. Hey, the CEO of United Healthcare was literally just shot by an assassin. Like, a few days ago. Why? Greediness. I guarantee there's money somewhere there. Gangs and cartels constantly killing people. Hitman. Hit jobs. Human trafficking. All kinds of people just turning a blind eye for money. And they're willing to kill. Thieves. Politicians. How about the Titanic? I know your beloved love story. Your beloved love story. Where a woman who's engaged sleeps with a homeless guy. That's called adultery in the Bible. And then throws money off of a boat. You women. Man. It's like you lead all of these people out to find something that you already had. She's like Rachel. She's got the hidden idols or something underneath her. And she's just got this thing. Hey, have we found it? No. Because it's in the whore's hand. Okay? Sorry if you haven't seen this stupid movie. There's a stupid movie called Titanic. But if you really want to understand Titanic, it's like there was all the rich people that didn't want the Federal Reserve to come into power because they realized how corrupt and evil that was. All got on a boat and died. And then immediately afterwards the Federal Reserve was created. Interesting coincidences, you know? Insurance scams. Here's one that's a recent movie that came out. It's called The Killers of the Flower Moon. Who's even heard about this? Anybody ever heard about this? It's actually from Oklahoma. So in Oklahoma, there was the Osage tribe of Indians who some land underneath them had been discovered to have a lot of oil reserves. And so all of these Indians ended up getting all these mineral rights because it was their land, so they ended up becoming filthy rich. Just like tons and tons of money. And of course, greedy people came along and wanted to marry these Indians just so they could marry into the money. Well, these men were coming in just marrying the Indian women and just killing them. Because they just simply wanted to get married, then they would kill one, then marry another one and kill her and just kept stacking all of this money. And so that's why they're called the Killers of the Flower Moon, because their tribe was called this Flower Moon or something tribe. Well, it was in the early 1920s, after there had been so many different murders, the Bureau of Investigation was created pretty shortly around that time. And this was one of the biggest cases that they ever had, one of the first big cases that they ever had to solve, which ended up becoming the Federal Bureau of Investigation. So the FBI was originally the Bureau of Investigation, one of their first big cases was into this Killers of the Flower Moon particular story. And it was to try and investigate and find out that there was all these guys kind of committing fraud, they're poisoning. They basically marry these Indian women, poison them to death, and then just marry another one, kill her, and just kind of repeat the scam over and over, just to steal all of their mineral rights and steal their money. Why did they do that? It's not like they just really wanted to marry an Indian lady or a Native American lady. They simply just wanted the money. And they were willing to kill to get that money. And so that is an example of someone that is greedy. Just go to 1 Timothy 6 and we'll finish there. Go to 1 Timothy chapter 6. We want to make sure that we are not going to be greedy of gain, though, because it will destroy the life of the owners thereof. Men that did this get caught, they go to prison, they had all kinds of problems and issues. It never works out for the people that are greedy. You know, God wants us to have wealth and prosperity and blessing if done correctly. But God does not want us to have any kind of wealth, any kind of prosperity financially by illegal means, by improper means, by dishonest gain. And for some of us, He may never want us to have very much. And that's okay. You don't have to have much. I mean, the apostles and many of them had nothing. Peter said, silver and gold have I none. And he was a great man of God. John the Baptist didn't have any money, great man of God. Jesus Christ had nowhere to lay his head, great man of God. But those of us that work really hard and acquire wealth properly, there's nothing wrong with that. But what is wrong is coveting. What is wrong is desiring things that are not yours to where you have a bad attitude about what you have or you're willing to do things that are sinful in order to get them. And that is a form of greediness, coveting with greediness, where you're willing to go beyond what the Bible says to acquire things, where you're going to lie, steal, cheat, do all kinds of evil, wicked things, take bribes in order to gain wealth. Don't do this. Avoid these industries. Avoid these businesses. If your boss wants you to take a shortcut at work for money, don't do it. I worked at Wells Fargo, and they had these unrealistic sales goals. I always felt like it was designed just so they could fire us whenever they wanted. They had these unrealistic sales goals, and they would constantly want us to do things that were unethical and wrong in order to meet these sales goals, including at one point they wanted us to order hundreds of debit cards for our clients to the bank and then shred them. How would you like it if people were just ordering debit cards for you at the bank just so they could meet their sales goals? That's pretty shady. People would come in and just need to... They would want online access to their bank account or something, and a banker would lie to them and say, Oh, we need to shut down all your accounts and open new ones just so you can get access, when all they were doing was trying to game the system so they could get a sale for opening a new checking account. All kinds of just shady, weird, garbage things. Just Wells Fargo in general, whenever you would use and spend your money, instead of it going in chronological order, all the transactions that were pending over a period of a weekend, Wells Fargo would reverse that chronology based on the amount so the highest item gets paid first and the lowest gets paid last, and it was designed specifically to give you more overdraft fees. Because think about it. You spend $50 that you didn't have over the weekend, and your mortgage hits on Monday. Well, that mortgage that's a couple thousand bucks, they decide to put that one first. So you only overdrafted once for $50 because of your mortgage. But actually, over the weekend, you bought ten things that were under $50. So now they can hit you with ten overdraft fees instead of the one. And then when you come in and complain about it, they'll say, We're doing this for your protection. You didn't want your mortgage to go unpaid, did you? You paid both. It didn't matter what order. You paid it. Why don't I just get the one fee? They're just a bunch of liars and greedy bloodsuckers, and they're, I mean, I could go on a whole sermon at Wells Fargo. I'm mad. I'm still mad. And you know what? All the managers at Wells Fargo, you know how they get paid? They get paid bonuses based on the percentage of overdraft fees they collect. Do you think that that perverts their judgement on whether the overdraft system is legitimate or not? Not only did they get paid a bonus on that, they had to meet a threshold of 92% just to not get fired. They only got paid on the percentage above 92% that they collected. So basically, every manager refused to show up at work. You know why? Because people came in complaining about overdraft fees every second. And it's really hard to look at this poor person that's living paycheck to paycheck that you ripped off because of our corrupt overdraft policy in the face and say, no, because I need to get an extra $500 bonus this month. So they just didn't show up, and they restricted access, and they were the only ones allowed to do it. And there was one lady I worked with. She found a back door and just did it for people. I was like, I can't blame her. I was just like, this is evil. I wanted to leave. I was being groomed to work in management. I'm like, I don't want to get into that position. I don't want to work in an industry where my paycheck is based on me tricking people with overdraft policy. Not only that, I was trying to help some customers, and I remember I could print out this report. You could make your own reports because they have all this capability. I said, I want to find the worst overdraft offender. And I found someone that was paying tens of thousands of dollars a year in overdrafts. And I was like, I want to call this person and help them, because it was actually doctors that made way too much money. They should have never even paid an overdraft fee, but they were just stupid with their money. And I was like, hey, I can really help these people. And my manager said they would fire me if I talked to that customer. That's perverted judgment. That doesn't even make any sense. And they tried to convince me, well, just because they're dumb with their money isn't your problem. And I'm like, yeah, but we're taking advantage of them. And it's like they just have people in that company, and they just deaden their morals and deaden their ethics to the point where eventually they just start believing the same lies, and it perverts their heart and their mind. And what did the Bible say? The person that's taking gifts, it destroys their heart. So after they get that one bonus check, and then they get the next one, and then they get the next one, pretty soon they're just hard. And now they don't care anymore. So we can all get to that point where we're so greedy that we don't feel anything anymore. When we lie, when we steal, when we cheat. The used car salesman gets to the point where he can just lie to someone and rip them off, and it doesn't even hurt him. Where the investment banker can lie to a poor widow and take all of her money on a scam, and it doesn't even bother him whatsoever. And that's why it's dangerous. We should never take money sinfully. Don't take money sinfully because you go down a dark road, and you start working at Wells Fargo. If you work there, sorry, this sermon was not directed at you personally. I don't even know if anybody works there. But I'm just saying, be careful how you make money, and let us not be greedy of gain. What does the Bible say in 1 Timothy 6? It says, the love of money is the root of all evil. Let me turn there to make sure I get it quoted correctly. 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, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith. Let's not worry about money so much that we're willing to sin to get it. That's an inappropriate covetousness and desire. We should stay far, far away from it. Never take a bribe. Don't preach lies. Hopefully no one in here is willing to kill for money. But at the end of the day, don't even get close to taking money by sinful means. Let's close in prayer. Thank you Heavenly Father so much for giving us the word of God and giving us this counsel. I pray that you would help us to not have covetous attitudes, covetous actions, that we wouldn't fall in the trap of greediness, which can start out small and end in some kind of a big evil scheme. I pray that you would help us to be staying away from those individuals. I pray that you would help us to be motivated by the truth and righteousness, to fight the good fight of faith. And I pray that you would just help, if possible, just help our nation to recognize all the greediness that's going on, and for us to try and rid ourselves of some of the evils that are going on in this nation, and for people to actually want the truth again. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. All right, in closing, let's go to song number 421. Song number 421, The First Noel. Song number 421. Everybody sing it out together on the first. What a cold winter's night that was so deep Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel And by the light of that same star Three wise men came from country far To seek for a king was their intent And to bow the star wherever it fits Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel This star drew nigh to the northwest O'er Bethlehem they took its rest And there it did most of it stayed Right o'er the place where Jesus lay Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel Then entered in those wise men three Forever in Thee upon their knee And offered there in His presence Their bold and current frankincense Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel Great singing everybody. You were all dismissed.