Greed or Insecurity?
July 7, 2020
And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? Luke 12:28 NLT
Many times, people feel angry or misunderstood when giving is discussed because they feel they are being accused of greed. Make no mistake, Jesus does know our hearts, and He spoke definitively about the evil of greed and the terrible devastation greed will work on our hearts. But He also understands our needs. His words here, spoken to the huge crowd of varieties of people represented when He gave the Sermon on the Mount, are tender and understanding. He knows that many people are fearful to give, not greedy. They are NOT wanting to pile up resources. They are simply worried about the basics of life they feel they are struggling to meet—things like clothing, food, shelter, transportation.
Using flowers as an illustration—likely there were flowers on the hillside in plain sight for His listeners—Jesus said the flowers are so temporary, yet God cares for them. He also spoke about how He cares for the sparrows, and said if God cares for them, why not you?
Then He asked a very direct question, He didn’t say, “Why are you so greedy?” He asked, “Why do you have so little faith?” He was truly asking, “Why do you have so little faith in God, your Father?” That’s a question for us to ask ourselves when we start getting anxious and trying to figure out how and if we can meet our needs. How can we say we trust God and we have given Him our hearts and lives if we don’t trust that He will help us meet our basic needs? When we scramble to take control of handling those things alone, we are actually saying I trust myself more than I trust God. Now none of us would ever truly say that aloud. But our actions say that is what we really believe. We believed God has planned so poorly or is so undependable that we can’t count on Him to meet our needs when we obey Him. We LOVE Him, but we don’t trust Him to be our Source.
If you aren’t greedy, if you aren’t chasing the possessions of the world but you don’t give, if you truly do love Jesus, it’s a trust issue. You need to truly trust Him with your life to have the security you desire.
- Pray: Ask Jesus to help you with your worry and insecurity.
- Review your life so far. How has He provided for you up till now?
- List the things you are afraid you won’t have that you truly need. Pray about them every single day, and start making notes of what He does and how He comes through for you. If you keep a gratitude journal, your trust will automatically grow. Gratitude works with God to take what you have and make it enough.