PRAY HERE Devotion 🕊️ Does Greed Live in Your Heart?

Scripture: Matthew 26:14–16 KJV

“Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,

And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.

And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.”

Devotion

If I asked you right now:

“Are you a greedy person?”

Most people would probably answer:

“NO!”

😂

We hear the word greed and immediately picture somebody sitting on a pile of money refusing to give anybody a dime.

Or maybe we think about one of those villains in the movies who is greedy for power. 😂 You know the one! They want to control everything and everybody. They’ll lie, scheme, betray people, destroy relationships, and sometimes try to take over the whole world!

And we’re sitting there watching like:

“Look at this crazy person! All of this for POWER?!”

👀

But before we point at the villain…

Let’s examine ourselves.

Because greed isn’t always loud.

Sometimes it is subtle.

Sometimes it develops gradually.

Sometimes it hides behind ambition.

Sometimes it hides behind success.

Sometimes it hides behind “I’m just trying to get ahead.”

And sometimes greed has been living in somebody’s heart for so long that they don’t even recognize it anymore.

Whewww! 😮‍💨

GREED ISN’T ONLY ABOUT MONEY.

You can be greedy for attention.

Greedy for recognition.

Greedy for credit.

Greedy for clout.

Greedy for status.

Greedy for possessions.

Greedy for influence.

Greedy for power.

Greedy for control.

You can even become greedy for people’s praise.

And here’s where greed becomes dangerous:

WHEN YOU WANT SOMETHING SO BADLY THAT YOU’RE WILLING TO DO WRONG TO GET IT.

😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨

That’s when you better check your heart.

When you’ll lie to get it.

Scheme to get it.

Manipulate somebody to get it.

Step over somebody to get it.

Take somebody else’s credit to get it.

Destroy somebody’s reputation to get it.

Compromise your integrity to get it.

Betray somebody who trusted you to get it.

Something is wrong.

And today’s Scripture gives us one of the saddest examples of where unchecked greed can lead a person.

LET’S TALK ABOUT JUDAS.

Judas wasn’t somebody standing outside Jesus’ ministry trying to get in.

JUDAS WAS ONE OF THE TWELVE!

Whewww! 😮‍💨

He walked with Jesus.

He heard Jesus teach.

He witnessed miracles.

He saw people healed.

He saw lives changed.

He traveled with Him.

He ate with Him.

He was trusted with responsibility.

John 12:6 even tells us that Judas had charge of the money bag; and that he was stealing from it.

So when we arrive at Matthew 26, Judas’ relationship with money didn’t suddenly appear out of nowhere.

Something had already been growing in his heart.

My, my, my.

That’s why we need to deal with greed while it’s small!

Because sin doesn’t always announce:

🚨 “HELLO! I’M HERE TO DESTROY YOUR LIFE!” 🚨

Sometimes it starts with:

“It’s not that serious.”

“Nobody will know.”

“Everybody does it.”

“I deserve this.”

“They have enough.”

“Why shouldn’t I have it?”

Then what you tolerated…

You start feeding.

What you feed…

GROWS.

And eventually, you may find yourself doing something you once thought:

“I WOULD NEVER DO THAT.”

WHEWWWW! 😮‍💨🔥

Look at Judas.

Matthew 26:15 says he went to the chief priests and asked:

“WHAT WILL YE GIVE ME?”

There it is.

👀

What can I get out of this?

“What are you going to give ME?”

And they agreed on thirty pieces of silver.

Then verse 16 says something that really gets me:

“And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.”

😮‍💨

Judas didn’t merely have a greedy thought.

HE STARTED LOOKING FOR AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACT ON IT.

He was now watching.

Waiting.

Looking for the right moment…

TO BETRAY JESUS.

For money.

Whewwww, Lord!

Look at what greed can do to a heart.

Judas had been walking beside JESUS, yet something else had gained enough room in his heart that he was willing to betray Him for what he wanted.

And before we say:

“I would NEVER betray Jesus for money!”

Let’s slow down.

🙏🏽

Maybe nobody has offered you thirty pieces of silver.

But what have you been willing to compromise your relationship with God to obtain?

More money?

A promotion?

A relationship?

Popularity?

Sex?

A certain lifestyle?

Attention?

Followers?

Status?

Power?

CLOUT?

👀

Somebody wants attention so badly that they’ll manufacture drama just so everybody will look at them.

Somebody wants clout so badly that they’ll pretend to be somebody they’re not.

Somebody wants credit so badly that they’ll take credit for something they know somebody else did.

Somebody wants a promotion so badly that they’ll lie on their coworker.

Somebody wants money so badly that they’ll cheat people who trusted them.

Somebody wants influence so badly that they’ll attach themselves to whoever is popular, use people to climb, and forget them once they’re no longer useful.

Somebody wants to be seen as important so badly that they cannot even celebrate another person without finding a way to make the moment about THEM.

Whewww! 😮‍💨

GREED CAN HIDE IN PLAIN SIGHT.

And greed always whispers:

“MORE.”

What you have isn’t enough.

The attention you’re getting isn’t enough.

The money isn’t enough.

The recognition isn’t enough.

The followers aren’t enough.

The title isn’t enough.

The applause isn’t enough.

MORE. MORE. MORE.

And when your heart becomes obsessed with getting more, you can slowly stop caring about who gets hurt while you’re getting it.

That’s part of what makes greed so destructive.

WHEWWW! GREED IS ACTUALLY DESTROYING OUR WORLD!

Look around.

People exploit other human beings for profit.

People scam elderly people out of their savings.

Companies can become so consumed with profit that people become numbers instead of human beings.

People destroy families over inheritances.

People betray friendships over money.

People hurt and even kill over possessions.

People pursue power at the expense of everybody around them.

People lie, manipulate, and destroy reputations just to get ahead.

And when enough people decide:

“I DON’T CARE WHO GETS HURT AS LONG AS I GET WHAT I WANT…”

We get a very cruel world.

😢🙏🏽

But here’s where this devotion has to become personal.

Don’t spend all your time looking for greed in politicians, celebrities, corporations, church leaders, or rich people.

LOOK IN YOUR OWN HEART.

Because Judas teaches us something serious:

YOU CAN BE CLOSE TO JESUS AND STILL HAVE SOMETHING GROWING IN YOUR HEART THAT DOESN’T BELONG THERE.

WHEWWWWWW! 😮‍💨🔥

You can attend church.

Hear the Word.

Know Scripture.

Serve in ministry.

Sing.

Preach.

Pray.

Work on the prayer team.

And still need God to SEARCH YOUR HEART.

Being around holy things doesn’t automatically make every motive in our hearts holy.

That’s why we need God to examine us!

🙏🏽

Ask yourself:

Why do I want what I want?

That’s a GOOD question.

Do I want success so I can fulfill God’s purpose; or because I desperately need everybody to think I’m important?

Do I want more money so I can provide, give, and live responsibly; or has money become my identity?

Do I want ministry growth because I want more people to know Jesus; or because I want more people to know ME?

👀😮‍💨

WHEWWWW!

Do I want the position because God called me to it; or because I need the title?

Do I want recognition because something genuinely deserves acknowledgment; or have I become unable to serve unless somebody sees me serving?

CHECK YOUR HEART!

Because sometimes the difference between healthy desire and greed is revealed by what you’re willing to do to get what you want.

If getting it requires you to become dishonest…

Leave it.

If getting it requires you to hurt innocent people…

Leave it.

If getting it requires you to betray somebody…

Leave it.

If getting it requires you to compromise your relationship with God…

IT COSTS TOO MUCH!

👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽🔥

Judas got his thirty pieces of silver.

But was it worth it?

Matthew 27 tells us that after Jesus was condemned, Judas was filled with remorse. He returned the money and ultimately took his own life.

The thing he wanted so badly couldn’t give him peace once he had it.

😢

Whewww.

SOME THINGS ARE NOT WORTH WHAT THEY WILL COST YOUR SOUL, YOUR PEACE, YOUR CHARACTER, AND YOUR RELATIONSHIPS.

Don’t let greed convince you otherwise.

Money is not evil.

Success isn’t evil.

Having influence isn’t automatically evil.

Wanting to accomplish something isn’t evil.

There is nothing wrong with growing, prospering, achieving, or receiving recognition where it is appropriate.

But when the desire for something begins controlling your decisions…

When “more” is never enough…

When you’re willing to sin to obtain it…

When people become disposable on your way to it…

When obedience to God becomes secondary to getting it…

CHECK YOUR HEART.

🙏🏽

Greed may have found a place to live.

And don’t wait until greed grows large enough to make you do something you’ll regret.

DEAL WITH IT WHILE IT’S SMALL.

When you notice jealousy because somebody else received recognition…

PRAY.

When you feel yourself becoming obsessed with money…

PRAY.

When you can’t celebrate somebody because you wish the attention was on you…

PRAY.

When you’re tempted to manipulate something so you can get ahead…

STOP AND PRAY.

When you notice that you always need more, more, more…

Ask God:

“LORD, WHAT IS GOING ON IN MY HEART?”

Because I’d rather let God expose something in me NOW than let it quietly grow until it destroys something later.

WHEWWWW! 🙌🏽

Judas’ story should warn all of us.

Guard your heart.

Guard your motives.

Guard your desires.

And never become so greedy for anything that you’re willing to exchange your character, obedience, relationship with God, or love for people to get it.

Nothing this world can give you is worth betraying Jesus for.

🙌🏽🙏🏽

Reflect & Respond

Before you automatically answer “No!” to today’s title, sit with these questions:

Does greed live anywhere in my heart?

Is there something I constantly feel like I need more of?

Money?

Attention?

Recognition?

Credit?

Clout?

Power?

Control?

Possessions?

Success?

What happens inside me when somebody else gets what I wanted?

Can I genuinely celebrate other people?

And most importantly:

WHAT AM I WILLING TO DO TO GET WHAT I WANT?

That answer may reveal more than you think.

Ask God to show you anything hiding in your heart before it has an opportunity to grow.

Prayer :

Father God, thank You for Your Word and for loving me enough to show me things in my heart that could eventually destroy me.

Today, I ask You to search my heart.

If greed is hiding anywhere inside me, expose it.

If I have become greedy for money, deliver me.

If I have become greedy for attention, deliver me.

If I am greedy for recognition, credit, clout, possessions, influence, power, or control, deliver me.

Lord, never let me desire anything so badly that I am willing to disobey You to obtain it.

Protect me from the slow, subtle growth of greed.

Help me recognize it while it is small.

Teach me to be grateful.

Teach me to be content.

Teach me to celebrate other people without feeling like their blessing takes something away from me.

Purify my motives so that even the things I desire are submitted to You.

I don’t want anything that requires me to compromise my character.

I don’t want anything that pulls me away from You.

And I don’t ever want anything so badly that I would betray somebody, hurt somebody, deceive somebody, or betray my relationship with Jesus to have it.

Give me a clean heart.

Give me pure motives.

And remind me that if I have You, I already possess something this entire world cannot replace.

In Jesus’ name, Amen. 🙏🏽🔥💙