Greed and Deception

Greed and deception. They seem to go hand in hand today just like they did several thousand years ago. No, there is nothing new under the sun. In 2 Kings 5: 20-27 we read the story of the prophet Elisha's servant, Gehazi. Elisha had just healed Naaman of leprosy and took no money for it even though Naaman was prepared to pay him handsomely. Gehazi, thinking he would be sly, decided to run after Naaman and ask for money and clothes. Naaman thought this was a request from Elisha and obliged by giving more than was asked, 2 talents of silver and clothes. This was no small amount of money. In today's money it was well over $34,000.

And now enters deception. Gehazi stashed his goods and stood in front of Elisha. Elisha asked him where he went. Gehazi, of course, lied and said, nowhere. Gehazi was foolish enough to lie straight to the face of a prophet of God. Elisha had seen, in the spirit, what his servant had done. Elisha pointed out that seeking gain from Naaman would devalue the lesson that God had healed him. Gehazi had already planned in his mind the many possessions he would purchase with the money. So since he wanted the wealth of Naaman, Elisha promised he would be cursed with the leprosy of Naaman. And not just Gehazi but all his generations forever.

We are provided a second example of greed and deception in the New Testament. The ones who lied suffered an even worse fate than Gehazi. In Acts 5: 1-11 we read the story of Ananias and Sapphira. A very sobering story it is. Just previous to this we read in Acts 4 that Barnabas had sold his land and given the money to the Apostles. Now Ananias comes in to do the same.

Ananias probably wanted to be as respected as Barnabas, he wanted to be considered as generous as Barnabas but his greed caused him to withhold a portion of the proceeds for himself. As he laid the money at the feet of Peter, he appeared to have brought the full amount, but Peter, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, knew better.

Peter informed Ananias that it was Satan himself who tempted Ananias to lie to the Holy Spirit. Peter reminded Ananias that it wasn't required to give the whole amount but what was required was honesty. Even more frightening Peter tells Ananias that it wasn't to men that he was lying but to God Himself! At this Ananias fell down dead.

Some little while later, Ananias's wife came in, not knowing Ananias's fate but very aware of the deception they agreed to, she lied to Peter as well. At this she also fell down dead. In the Bible's understated way it says that, "Great fear fell upon all the church." Deception, greed and lying would not be tolerated by God in the church. There would be punishment for those foolish enough to try.

In Proverbs 6: 16-19 we are told that one of the six things God hates is a lying tongue. Revelation 21: 8 says that liars will find themselves in the lake of fire. And in Proverbs 19: 5 it says that lying will not go unpunished.

Greed also has its punishment. In I Corinthians 6: 9-11 it tells us that greedy people (along with other sins) will not inherit the Kingdom of God. I Timothy 6: 10 says that the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil. We have an expression, "Follow the money.", in regards to uncovering political corruption. But it seems that we could use the expression for almost any corruption. I Timothy 6: 9 says that desiring wealth causes us to fall into temptation, to be snared by it, which leads to destruction.

One interesting thing about both of these stories is who these people were around, who should have influenced them. Gehazi was the servant of the great prophet Elisha. He had seen miracles performed. He supposedly knew the God of Israel, but that didn't stop him from lying to seek gain. Ananias and Sapphira sat at the feet of the Apostles. They had probably seen first hand many of the miracles of the early church. All of that didn't stop them from allowing the Devil to creep in and tempt them to make terrible choices.

You and I may be in a great church, we may have loving Christian friends, we may study the word, but we can still be influenced by the Devil. We still need to guard against the wiles of the enemy. Satan succeeded in infiltrating the congregation of the apostles themselves, but those who yielded to temptation paid a heavy price.

The disobedience of Gehazi was in stark contrast to his obedient master, Elisha. The disobedience of Ananias and Saphira also was totally opposite of the apostles they followed. Normally people who are in direct contact with those of great faith, people who experience miracles, would be expected to be more obedient to God, but these examples show us that is not always the case. We would expect them to be true believers.

Were they true believers? Almost certainly not. We know this because Peter says to Ananias that Satan had filled his heart. Satan cannot fill the heart of a believer because the Holy Spirit lives there. Also, earlier in Acts 4:32 we are told that the congregation was of one heart and soul. So Ananias and Sapphira couldn't have truly been part of the congregation. There are often two kinds of people in the church. We may not be able to distinguish them but God certainly can. We can't hide from Him. They may say, "Jesus is Lord" but God knows if there is truth in it.

Proverbs 4: 23 warns us to guard our hearts. The NIV translation says we do this because everything we do flows from our heart. Some of us might think we are never tempted to do anything like what these people did. But are we sure? Does cheating on income taxes and insurance claims tempt you?

We should be careful how we present our offerings. When we tell people we tithe, are we really tithing? Do we give for show or out of love? Are we greedy for things of this world? Are we jealous of our neighbors who have more than we do? Are we fully aware that God knows our heart in all things? Perhaps we should have just a little more of that fear of the early church. Fear of the Lord is a good thing. As Christians, the separation that unrepentant sin causes in the life of a believer is a sad and damaging thing.

"For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil." Ecclesiastes 12: 14