BREAKING FREE Week 6

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Getting Over Greed

HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?

  Ecclesiastes 2:10-11
I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my labor, and this was the reward for all my toil. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.

             

WHY DO I ALWAYS WANT MORE?     3 Misconceptions

 

1.  Having more things will make me more Happy.

  Ecclesiastes 5:10-11 (LB)

He who loves money shall never have enough. The foolishness of thinking that wealth brings happiness! The more you have, the more you spend..."

 

2.  Having more things will make me more Important.

  Luke 12:15 (Ph)
"Be on your guard against greed in any shape or form.  For a man's real life in no way depends on the number of his possessions."

 

3.  Having more things will make me more Secure.

  Proverbs 18:11 (LB)
"The rich man thinks of his wealth as an impregnable defense, a high wall of safety.  What a dreamer!"

 

A. The cure for greed is open hands and obedient hearts.

 

B. God has called us to a different economy defined not by Greed but by Generosity.

  Acts 20:35 the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.

  Hebrews 13:5
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.

  Philippians 4:12-13
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

 

C. The Strength to be Content is only found in Christ.

 

Next Steps:

• I will get alone with God this week and honestly ask “How much is enough?”
• I will practice generosity this week by purposely giving to someone in need or to the church.
• I place my trust in Christ for the 1st time today to receive the strength I need for life.