Daily Manna: From Greed To Disgrace Aug 07 0 Wednesday 07, August 2013 TEXT: 2 KINGS 5:15-27 KEY VERSE: “...Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants?” (2 Kings 5:26). Howard Hughes was the famous American billionaire who amassed great wealth that he did not enjoy. At death in Texas, United States of America in April, 1976, he was worth 1.5 billion US dollars, making him one of the wealthiest in the world. But alas, he died in ‘extremely poor physical condition’. One account says Hughes ‘suffered from malnutrition’. What happened to his colossal fortune? Several centuries before him, a man called Gehazi, an aide of Elisha, a great man of God, who by virtue of that position ought to know better, caved into acquiring wealth he could not enjoy. While his master aimed at turning a Gentile away from his idol to the true God through healing of his leprosy, Gehazi sought to make merchandise of the whole show. Elisha turned down the juicy offer from Naaman, the leprous leader of the Syrian army because it was not “a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep and oxen and menservants and maidservants”. Driven by greed, Gehazi grabbed the gifts - a dreadful misadventure that made him to become a leper “as white as snow” while the soldier’s skin returned to normal “again like unto the flesh of a little child and he was clean.” Believers must watch against the tendency for greed in God’s service. Christ our Lord says, “Freely ye have received, freely give.” He also warns: “For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world and lose himself or be cast away?” Our consolation does not lie with filthy lucre and material gratifications. Instead, it lies in our faithfulness and obedience to the Master who will faithfully reward us in time and eternity. THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Material things cannot adequately reward our selfless service for God.
Posted on: Wed, 07 Aug 2013 13:21:51 +0000
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