Jesus had a definition for greed. He called it the practice of measuring life by possessions. Greed equates a person’s worth with a person’s purse. You got a lot equals you are a lot. You got a little equals you are little. The consequence of such a philosophy is predictable. If you’re the sum of what you own, then by all means own it all. No price is too high. No payment is too much.
God’s foremost rule of finance is: we own nothing. We are managers, not owners. Stewards, not landlords. Maintenance people, not proprietors. Our money is not ours; it is his. It’s not as if God kept the future a secret. One glance at a cemetery should remind us; everyone dies. The Bible says, “The Lord owns the world and everything in it—the heavens, even the highest heavens, are his” (Deuteronomy 10:14 NCV). And that includes our money.
