The Subtle Temptation of Greed - Charles R. Swindoll

I had just become the academic dean when David Edwards was our associate academic dean I had taken the place of dr. ken dangle and so I was new in my role a totally dependent upon David Edwards to keep me out of the ditch and God saw fit to deliver him from me and took him to heaven and in an unexpected way in an unexpected time but we loved him and he meant a lot to us 17 years ago I pulled into the parking lot and at 7:40 6:47 heard the news 9/11 changed our generation forever and I would like to bow and pray today before we introduce our speaker for those families who for today is a difficult day and the aftermath of all of that let's bow for prayer shall we father there's a few events in our lives that mark our generation that remind us of human tragedy at times human sinfulness human frailty the sights and sounds of 17 years ago are indelibly impressed in so many of our memories I thank you we haven't had another event like that since we pray we never will especially on this day we ask another Tuesday morning 17 years later that you would be with these families comfort them and Lord we especially pray that they would be thinking about life and eternity and maybe in your Sovereign Grace you would draw more to yourself as a result of a different way of thinking today may the testimonies those who stood for you and in the aftermath gave testimony to you may those find entrance into ears and hearts as well so we pray for those who have lost loved ones friends and we ask that you would be a wonderful counselor and use this for your glory we are comforted by the fact that you're never unloving in your ways you can't be you're never unjust in your decisions they're always right you cover all of your acts with kindness even when we don't understand your timing your will is mysterious and it causes us to worship you and about before you as a result so Lord we thank you for this day and thank you for our speaker thank you for his life his love for you his love for your word the worldwide ministry that you have opened up to him we're so grateful for the way you have used him and how he has blessed all of us and we bask in the shadow of his life his ministry his encouragement especially here at Dallas seminary and we give you thanks for him in Jesus name Amen dr. Chuck Swindoll was a student he left and became a pastor in a very few series of pastor it's he ended up on our board served on our board until he became the fourth president of Dallas seminary while he was still pastoring the leaf reach in Fullerton then he had ideas of moving to Nashville which we were all jealous of and God landed him in Frisco for which we're very very very grateful he serves as our Chancellor he is the voice of obviously insight for living ministries the pastor of the Stonebriar Community Church a friend a mentor and encourage your prolific writer just a lot of fun Chuck thank you for spending time with us in these semesters thank you for ministering to us would you welcome dr. Chuck Swindoll [Applause] we all remember where we were on 9/11 it's doubtful anyone remembers where you were a 910 the day before 9/11 it's sort of the way life is since we don't know what's coming around the corner and that's even true today things happen in an unguarded moment that a day or two later if we're not careful will haunt us for the rest of our days if only we had known ahead of time who knows what could have been done at least in part to stave off what became the worst tragedy of an attack on our own country by the savages who took the lives of over 3,000 people serious thought I realize but I stand before you today to talk about one of the subtle one of the insidious temptations in ministry that you may not realize right now is finding root in your life but may some day in an unguarded moment explode and from that day on you will live in the sadness of his impact on your life now having said that in a rather dramatic way I want to turn back to the subject we were thinking of earlier which is far more pleasant and that is the role of a servant and I commend Elliot for winning this award you are deserving of it we were here at the same time back when the Earth's crust was cooling and to my right my grandchildren surprised they had ketchup back when we were younger I tell them they also had a wheel and they just can't believe it so it was a long time ago I came on the campus 60 years ago this summer so coming back is always a wonderful reminder of the grace of God because I can tell you without hesitation in my opinion I was the least deserving of a place to sit as a student at Dallas seminary not trying to look humble looking humble stinks I'm just telling you the truth I never dreamed there would be the kind of future God has made possible for us because I truly did believe having been raised as I was that the best I could ever say for myself is that I'm a servant of God and I think that's one of the greatest titles in the world Paul writes of it in the fourth chapter of 1st Corinthians if you would like to check that with me the very first verse let others regard us in this manner as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God first as servants and then as stewards they're not the same we'll take the words apart for the next few moments and I think you'll appreciate the unusual nature of the first word it's a term Paul uses nowhere else in all of his writings and it's a surprising term because when he refers to servants on other occasions even in the previous chapter he doesn't use this word this is a one-time-only term used by the Apostle it means under rower strange sound isn't it because it referred to a time when ships were built differently than today and when they were moved through the water in a different manner than ships moved today in the larger longer ships called the Tri reen vessels there were three layers three decks down below of those who rode and they were called by this word under rowers a classmate friend of mine named David Roper in a great little book you you need to have in your library titled a burden shared rights of this word and because he says it better than I could I want to read some things David says about this word literally the word means under rowers originally referred to the slaves who pull the sweeps in ancient seagoing vessels it was slave labor that kept the galleys going if I follow Paul's analogy right Roper he's saying that we leaders who make the galley go so to speak are mere under rowers what we're just part of the crew don't miss any of this you who are greatly gifted you who have promised you whom I worry about the most you who are highly intelligent who a stir courses who will sail through this school with hardly a blip on your academic record I fear most for you because waiting at the gate of your future will be this insidious temptation called envy that leads to greed but continuing they are the ones seated down below decks in the lower seats pulling on each one on his own or with all the other rowers we're not up on top that's the captain's place we set neither the course nor the cadence it is his task to determine the heading and to call the stroke this is something quite different from the usual picture of the pastor on the main deck resplendent in full regalia telescope in one hand killer in the other the only one who knows where the church is going with everyone else down below no no no the Apostle wanted to be regarded in a much different way as one of God's galley slaves down in the hold with the rest of God's people pulling on an oar like everyone else that's what we are if it was good enough for Paul it's good enough for us in fact we just read it let others regard us in this manner as under rowers would that we all had the spirit of an Elliot Johnson would that every faculty member understood humility like that man whom we all admire but it isn't so much about him he would be the first to tell you it's about the one he and we pattern our lives after who had every reason to strut his stuff but never did he came humbled himself and became obedient into even unto a cross kind of death says Philippians 2 that's the that's the that's the servant notice the other word is the word steward let others see us are know us as stewards as best time I were able to understand this original term that's of a word for someone who works on the house behind the scenes fusses around in the kitchen with the bread and the wine preparing it for the meal the one who puts together the recipes and prepares that food for those they will be serving often unseen you will frequently go to a restaurant serving the delicious food never knowing who the chef is never seeing her face or his face so it is in ministry the one who works deeply in the realm of God's mysteries fussing around in the book that we all love that intrigues us and holds our attention like no other literature on earth so that we might have prepared well the meal that will be served whether to a class or a congregation or a small group of those living in the bush we call it are those in the military or wherever God calls us your training for that so learn it well that's why the school emphasizes day after day month after month semester after semester learn the book learn your way around it so that you don't say stupid things about it pulling verses from contexts saying what you want it to say which does not help anybody but making sure you are representing what the writer wanted the reader to understand that's what we want to know that's what God has inspired and so we are stewards of the Magnificent mysteries of God in the same context the Apostle speaks against boasting it has no place in our lives no place whatsoever not even little subtle hints toward ourselves little self-serving remarks little unguarded moments we take the credit none of that inappropriate out of place not good servants that is under rowers and people who serve behind the scenes whether Butler's are servants in the house cooks people who wash the dishes clean the pots and pans we are those who work in the mysteries and secrets of God and what a privilege it is to keep doing that year after year take it from me the privilege only intensifies the longer you live the more you do it the more grateful you are for a book that is infallible inerrant inexhaustible that will feed souls in every context in which you find yourself as a steward of the mysteries now then while serving a down on the third-lowest deck way below the main deck your mind can play tricks on you there are days especially when you get fairly good at working the recipes and serving fairly edible meals but before long you you can be tempted and I you can start thinking beyond the realm of under rowers and seward's by the way I should have gone on to read that second a verse where it says it is required of us that we that wiii be found faithful trustworthy that that is the word it suggests a dogged refusal to jump ship a determination to stay in it the roll roll roll our boat to stay at it year after year place after place in season and out of season you know the text whatever the setting stay at it faithfully doing what you do doesn't even say fruitfully says faithfully staying at it through hardship through criticism through hate mail through boredom through sickness through ingratitude through sacrifice it's all part of the role of a steward and an under ruler as part of being faithful that's what's in front of us that's our calling so subtle it in your mind this is our future this is what we do now back to this little ornery temptation that begins to take our attention off our work I've been rowing a long time you you will one day say and I I'm not complained about being down here I've got the blisters to show for it with this or I've been pulling my part on this great ship ministry a long time seems only right that I cash in on some of the perks that others seem to be enjoying seem like my classmate from seminary back in the class of whatever way I'll see what's happened in his life and man it hasn't happened in mine and I see the church he serves and I see all the people that are there and a steel have it same punch hey you know it's it's not that great shakes about three blocks off Main Street shoot I even ought to be making a lot more money then it starts it's a thought it's an alien thought it happens so easily it's sort of the not the 911 in our lives it's the 9/10 it's it's before it breaks out into the open it's not shared with anybody even your own partner in life you just start getting a little greedy it happened to a servant whose life is mentioned in 2nd Kings chapter 5 so if you will turn from 1st Corinthians 4 back to 2nd Kings 5 the last 8 verses of the chapter you will you'll meet the man I've often thought how good it is that the Lord stopped writing his word I mean aren't you grateful that your life isn't in a book that preachers will be speaking to seminary students about in 20 years from now 30 years from now 200 years from now 600 years from now they'll still be referring to you and what you did and what you thought and how stupid you were what you did in your life here's an interesting story for the first 19 verses of second Kings 5 there's a man who at least to begin with is suffering from leprosy I don't know if you've ever seen leprosy I had when our Marine Corps outfit had the opportunity on the island of Okinawa to go to the North End and I happened to be in the third division band and they invited us to come we had long bout to our trip and we got there and we came to a leper colony probably you have never been to a leper colony I've never been to one and we got out of the back of this big vehicle and we got our instruments ready and and they were so grateful to see us because nobody ever ever came to entertain them and we had a chance to see people who had no lips who had no ears whose nose was no longer on their faces all of them grotesque-looking when they applauded they applauded on stops most of them had only stubs for fingers and they just loved our music and they just wanted us to play and play and play it was great we did a couple of encores even but the best part was seeing with our own eyes people with leprosy it is the most pathetic heartbreaking scene you can imagine he's dear people living in her own colony unclean and especially in biblical days outside the camp stay out of the wall away from the gate and of all things this high-ranking officer gets leprosy I mean he's in a world of hurt he also happens to be rich or at least has riches available to him through us chain of events he's told about a about a prophet Jewish prophet so he puts his pride in his pocket and decides it's worth a try and he went and attempted to get a hold of that prophet and the Prophet sent a messenger to the door and said go down to the river here and and wash dip into it a few times and when you come out you'll be cleansed so he was in sea was incensed so he realized my rank you know who he's talking to I mean his he is so great that he's got to send a messenger to the door I mean at least I thought he would come and talk to me there's no way I'm gonna do that I got rivers in my own country that I can dip in how stupid an idea is that he gets back and somebody prompts him it might be worth a try as you haven't done that before so he goes yeah and you know the story comes up cleansed well just like now when something great happens to an individual and it's in the category of what one would call a miracle most people in the world want to pay for it so trust me on this about three million dollars worth of stuff he brings with him and and and he wants Elijah to take it as a thank you he comes genuinely he comes in all and in all the gratitude now and and he says here this is there are suits of clothes here and and there's silver and there's gold and just take it all you just look I'm cleanse them I don't have that terrible disease anymore and the Elijah makes it clear I don't want your money by the way it's a nice line to remember think before you take money for a funeral please think before you plan a wedding knowing it'll it'll really pay nicely I think seriously about giving yourself as a under order and a steward you'll know Li not only shocked the recipient they'll never forget to act of grace but Elijah was just built like that because he's called the servant of the Living God he was truly a servant so he turns him away in the man I'm sure amazed that he wouldn't at least take something for the miracle but Elijah says to him verse 16 of second Kings 5 I will take nothing and he refused it ok now the problem with this whole thing is that Elijah has a servant mingi has a gauzy who's hearing all of this may very well have been the messenger that went at the door and turned him away or at least he turned away because of that so Ghazis been in the middle of all of this and has watched the possibility of the transfer of the money and he doesn't have the attitude that Elijah has so we read in verse 20 about what happened on September the 10th 2001 an alien thought is implanted in his brain Gazi the servant of Elijah thought don't go too quickly past that it all begins in the brain in the mind in the imagination thinking well I'd like to have a couple of nice new suits I mean I don't need three million dollars but half a million wouldn't be bad I don't wanna be greedy about this but I mean the guy's probably offended you see when you begin to rationalize you could talk yourself into anything even another woman who isn't your wife or another man who is it your husband or another church that isn't God's call for you or another role that he hasn't had for you to fill in Ghazis place it's uh he thought behold my master has spared this name and the aramean by not receiving from his hands what he brought as the Lord lifts and look how he bets us always a great line to use would you want to justify it you before God as the Lord lives I will run after him and I'll take something from him the thought is now already in action I'll find him I know which way he went and so look at what he does watch closely verse 21 so Gavazzi pursued Naaman he pursued him when a omen saw one running after him now what's the what's the lies as they unfold in the life of this man on his own 911 he saw one running after him he came down from his chariot to meet him he said is all well you okay everything okay back there - at the shack where were you in the Elijah hangout he said all as well that's a lie it's not well with him he's in the middle of deceiving himself my master has sent me that's a lie but of course when you want to get something from a rich guy and you got to build a case then you got to build it out of lies since it's not based on truth and ma'am I could see through it if he didn't word it this way and he's not true to lying he says behold just now two young seminary students from Dallas sons of the prophets have come to me from the hill country of Ephraim give them a Talon so that's a lie but it makes it sound better if you're gonna get it for a couple of seminary students you're always poor they always need something so let me raise little money for them they even put a new suit on their honor cutbacks all right and two changes of clothes it's all a lie Mammon said it won't be pleased to take two talents and the urge to many bound two talents of silver and two bags with two changes of clothing and gave them to two of his servants and they carried the they carried them before and it all looks so good and named and left feeling great at least they took something I feel better about it and and and gauzy thinks now I got to get that from those guys because they're not gonna they're not going to touch it look at the next line when he came to the hill he took it all from their hand it's all for him lying scritch he he acted so pious and and he says he deposited them in the house and he sent them anyway see you later guys they departed he went in and stood before his master is word it gets gets pretty ugly be sure your sins will find you out you mess secretly with pornography it's going to catch up with you it ain't a secret and if you're doing that it's only a matter of time so either deal with why you're doing it and stop it or get out of Dallas seminary don't live a lie don't let us help you cultivate a habit that's gonna ruin the very thing we're trying to prepare you for don't go there tell yourself the truth but see this is the moment of truth for you for it gauzy and Elijah says to gazebo where've you been are you ready for another bold-faced lie Yama's he said your servant went nowhere she would you lie to yourself and then would you lie to someone else you'll have no problem lying to your master I didn't go anywhere your servant went nowhere and he said to him did not my heart go with you when the man turned from his chariot to meet you how do you know that he is a man of God God speaks to Elijah is it time to receive money and to receive clothing and olive groves and vineyards sheep and oxen and male and female servants what are you thinking there for the leprosy of Mammon shall cling to you and to your descendants forever so he went out from his presence white a leper as white as snow okay you've listened very carefully and I appreciate it obviously I feel passionate about this because I've seen this details are different greed is the same and don't think for a moment that I don't know what it is to be tempted because I fight the temptations just like you fight them that's why it turned out so ugly I've been fighting them all these years and and thank goodness I've yielded to just the ones that I've been able to handle and deal with none of them scandalous thank God but some of them have scared me to death when I thought about him let me tell you my story now you're all really listening what I graduated it was my privilege to have opportunity to go one of four places one was Dayton Ohio one was Chattanooga Tennessee one was Castro Valley California and one was to stay right here and remain on in the most enviable position one can imagine as a graduate from Dallas seminary in 1963 I could serve as the assistant to dr. J Dwight Pentecost I've been serving at Grace Bible Church for two two and a half years and dr. Pentecost felt he needed an assistant he had no one to help him at Grace Bible Church and he said to me if you're willing I'm willing to have you and we would love to have you interviewed and and we'd love to have you be our assistant pastor I I thought about the opportunities and and Cynthia was carrying our second child we had lost a baby between our first and this pregnancy so we were sort of afraid she was bleeding from a car accident we had had and we were afraid of losing our sweet second baby as we had lost the first one in a miscarriage and we talked over it at length I knew the people in Grace and they knew me and it wouldn't involve a long move and I could serve there and I wasn't ready for a pastor it I knew I wasn't and I thought if you're willing dr. Pentecost to help me and train me I'd consider it an absolute honor and I really was honored they amazingly said yes voted me in and I became his assistant pastor now dr. Pentecost at that time was the voice especially in the realm of Biblical prophecy if there was a conference held and he was on that subject if you didn't invite dr. Dwight Pentecost you were missing something very important unless you brought in John Wahlberg if you had them both you had a packed house and they all want to hear what either one of them said about future things and our church at Grace grew we built a new building and it became a little about a little full and it's not fold with two services and a Sunday evening surface and what of joy to serve in a situation that is just if you've ever been in one like that or will be you'll know that what it is to feel the thrill of such growth and excitement and never once said I watch dr. Pentecost call attention to himself he in fact was a painfully shy in fact he said to me on one occasion Chuck after the service I don't always know what I've never told him this but I'm telling you today he said he's gone so he won't corner me afterwards and and he said I don't know what to say people bring their babies and I think oh nice baby and I he said you kind of have this gift of gab oh is this a compliment or is it so he said you know what to say could you stand near me and I said don't you pity cost I would be honored to stand near you and as a matter of fact maybe it'll rub off so I I was there with him following service after service he just year after year it was a marvelous experience now when he travelled to speak of all things he asked me to preach in his place and the church was packed of course because they thought he was preaching on that Sunday that I was going to be there but how easy for me to think hmm Wow and how few guys as young as I was and as an experience had such a captive audience then I had a visit from an elder and grace never forget it love the band name is Jim Jim said to me one day Chuck you got a few minutes I said sure he said something I want to I want to say to you it's kind of a warning and I said sure and I quickly went back thinking have I done something if I said something you know how you'll do and and he said no no don't nothing nothing's out of line yet we said I just want to tell you you're in an enviable place and we on an elder team know that maybe even more than you do and we just want you to realize that oldest popularity for you I'll never forget the words is a borrowed popularity isn't that a good line I said I know it yeah he said don't ever forget that you don't deserve these crowds it's not your flock and he said no nobody said to me that they think you're trying to think like that but they they know you're human he said if you're not careful before long you will start to think a Liam thoughts what he was doing was wanting to guard me against the gay hazy gehazi semi syndrome so glad I thought of that word I didn't couldn't think of it for a moment don't get caught up in it yours is a borrowed popularity then they could come to hear you they thought the man was on and he was gone you don't know how many of them went oh brother that helped me so much and I still remember it to this day when I stepped into the role as president this school was the least likely candidate but you know why it worked because I followed great men and I stood on their shoulders and they hadn't made a mess of things and they were men of integrity and there was nothing I had to clean up I just had to build on what was already established and to keep my eyes on the role of an under roller and a steward that's what I'm good at now much more but I'm good at that I can I can grab that second or apprenticeship is that sucking or but I mean I can grab that or and I can I can pull that thing and I've been pulling that thing now for over 55 years and I love it and I sometimes think you're too good god thank you for a book that just preaches itself if I just get out of the way thank you for saying these great things and revealing this about gauzy and not telling them all about me thank you that I can go after kaha Zi and to remember that most of the success is a borrowed success Jesus is the one that drew them in he's the one they worship for goodness and Jim left and turned around and soon at the door and he said just remember you got one man calling just love the flock and get out of the way and every time I see Gemma thank you it's been all these years when the greatest contributions he made in my life he made that quiet morning so that I wouldn't experience the nine eleven in my ministry that's bowed together please Lord if we had one single prayer to offer it would be glorify yourself in my life in our lives be glorified lord help us in the process of learning all these great truths so that we can read the recipe and serve the meal so that we can roll better and more faithfully Lord God may we remember we wouldn't even have a ship if it weren't for you there'd be no meal if it weren't for your word thank you for blessing us often in spite of ourselves but remind us that you share your glory with no one else all of it belongs to you in the name of Jesus we pray everybody said [Music]

Channel: Dallas Theological Seminary

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Length: 52min 23sec (3143 seconds)

Published: Thu Sep 13 2018