eBay

This post might not be in line with the previous posts on this blog, but I have to share some of the crazy stuff I've discovered in the last twelve hours or so. Once it's written out I'll see what to do with it from there.

I've done some bidding on ebay in the past, not much recently, but it came in really handy in college when I was trying to get text books for my gen-ed classes. I've had a couple other really good finds, like the Perfect Push-up, when it was first out I bought them on ebay for $0.99, not bad for something that got me in great shape.

Over the years there have a been a couple of things I've really wanted, a few I've bought, a few are possible thoughts for the future, and some have been totally scrapped. But usually the first place I look is ebay. Such was the case with the Bowie knife (aka. future daughter's boyfriend deterrent), or the Camelbak backpack I bought for camping. I got great deals on stuff that will come in handy in my life.

However, ebay also has it's down side, you can get great deals on stuff you don't need and end up wasting money. Such is the case with the Jedi outfit I bought during college (Yes I used to be a bit of a nerd). I had two or three great Halloweens with it, and bits of it have been useful for some sermons, but overall, I wish I would have saved the money. (If anyone is interested in, or has use for, a full Jedi outfit, boots/belt/robe/pants/tunic, let me know).

One of those things I used to want, but never purchased, and at this point in my life won't because I've grown up and realized I don't need it, is a bull whip like Indiana Jones'. Occasionally I get on ebay and look just to see what's out there. And yesterday I found something that blew my mind.

There is a post on ebay for a bull whip that Harrison Ford used as Indiana Jones in the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark. It comes with the proper certification so you know you're getting the real item, and if you've got an extra $47,500 laying around why not make a small investment.

I was curious to see what I could find on eBay that would cost more than that. One guy is selling his entire video game and video game console collection and asking $100,000 for it. Each item is listed, and there are more games than I knew existed. But that price tag is just scratching the surface of the stuff you can find for sale on eBay.

I began to type in words that I thought would yield high price items. I typed in "Presidents", and wasn't disappointed. I found books from John Adam's personal library that are signed by him. There are things bearing signatures from several American presidents, but most of them don't come close to Harrison Ford's whip. However, one item under this category greatly exceeded the iconic movie item, and at the moment was the most expensive item I'd found. There is a Short Snorter, (not totally clear on what it is), but it belonged to FDR in the early '40s and contains the signatures of several world leaders at the time. The description mentions that it would have been present at the Cairo Conference and then to The Big Three Conference in Tehran with Churchill and Stalin, which planned the Normandy Invasion. The asking price, $1,000,000.

But it doesn't stop there. I did a few more searches just to see if that could be beaten, and it was. I typed in "Stamps", and found the largest price tag I've ever seen. There is a bank note from India issued by King George V for 1,000 Rupees. According to the post it is the only known one in the world. It's rare, and the asking price is $20,000,000.

eBay is a place for people to buy and sell their treasures. It's a place to find rare collectibles, important pieces of history, one of a kind items, as well as junk you don't need and will regret buying in the future. And as I type that last line my mind goes back to my time working with my cousin.

Cleaning out foreclosed homes really opens your eyes to how much junk we have in America. In some cases the houses were pretty cleaned out. People had had time and somewhere to take their possessions, others didn't. You see the stuff that people wanted at one point, but didn't value enough to take, or didn't have anywhere to take it. So it was left to me, and the few guys I worked with, to throw it out. It's now sitting in a land fill. Some of it was in good condition, but we were on a time frame and had to get the house empty and cleaned. If someone wants to really help people, find contractors that do stuff like that and volunteer to take any clothes they find, sort them, wash them, and donate them to shelters (that was my cousins idea).

I guess the point of all of this is where are you investing your money? The Bible says that in Heaven the streets are paved with gold. My mentor shared this thought with me when I was preparing for my first funeral. We pave our streets with something common and valueless. No one hordes asphalt or concrete, it is so common place that it is worthless. But gold is something that armies have marched for and civilizations have been destroyed over. The quest for gold led to the discovery of America. It's rare and therefore has value here on earth.

But it says that in Heaven the streets are paved with gold. The thing that is most valuable here and now, exists in abundance there and forever. It is so abundant that it is utterly worthless, and the streets that the righteous will walk for eternity are paved with it. The thing that we strive for most in this life has no value in the life to come.

At the end of our time here on earth, our stuff will be just like the foreclosed homes I spent so much time in. Others will sort through it, see the stuff that we valued, but couldn't take with us. So what are we investing in? Momentary treasures or things with eternal value? Stuff to bring comfort, or lives that make a difference?

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Part 5: Greed

"Then He said to them, 'Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed;'..." Luke 12.15a.

Greed, "excessive or rapacious desire, especially for wealth or possessions." It's a desire that is never satisfied and always needs more. It never gives but hoards everything. It is the exact opposite of the Christian life style.

The word used in Luke 12 is pleonexias and it's translated as covetousness. This word means, "inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions; greedy." It's a desire for more, and it has no place in the life of a Christ follower.

In Luke 12 Jesus warns us to be on our guard against every from of greed, and then tells the parable of the rich fool. Ephesians 5.3 says, "But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints;" We're told in the first two verses of the chapter to imitate God, and to walk in love as Christ did. Greed is in no way to be associated with us because it cannot be associated with God.

Greed has no place in our lives because it causes us to focus on wealth and possessions rather than on God. It ruins our lives. I think of Gehazi in 2 Kings 5. He's the servant of Elisha, probably in a role similar to what Elisha had with Elijah. In 2 Kings 5 Naaman comes to Elisha with leprosy, and Elisha tells him how to be healed. After the healing takes place Naaman returns and offers Elisha a reward, but he refuses to take it. Gehazi goes after Naaman and lies to receive part of the reward. He had a bright future, possibly as Elisha's successor, but greed cost him not only that, but also his health and the health of all of his descendants. 2 Kings 5.27, "'Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your descendants forever.' So he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow."

Greed has no place in the life of those who seek to serve God. 1 Timothy 6.10 says, "For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." Earlier in 1 Timothy 3 Paul gives a list of the characteristics of Church leaders. In this list it says, "free from the love of money." Hebrews 13.5 says, "Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “ I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,”

Colossians 3:5 states, "Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry." Greed amounts to idolatry. Jesus said in Matthew 6.24, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth." If we aren't serving God we're serving an idol.

There is nothing wrong with wealth or having nice things. I think Christians miss this point. Wealth is not evil, money is not evil. The love of money is evil, devotion to wealth is evil. The issue is not having wealth and possessions, but when that wealth and those possessions take the place of God and our desires are not for God but instead for more wealth. If our thirst is for God then it will be satisfied, Jesus talks about this in John 4. But if our thirst is for wealth it's like drinking salt water, the more you drink the thirstier you get. Wealth is never satisfied, greed is never satisfied. It's the perfect foothold of the devil because it keeps demanding more.

We cannot serve God and money, we cannot love both of them, Jesus said so. So which is it God or money? Generosity or greed? It's ok to have wealth, just use it humbly for the glory of God and for building His Kingdom.

If greed is a foothold that Satan has in your life, then I want to turn to the solution Jesus gives to a rich young man seeking eternal life. He's seeking God's quality of life, a life that is lived for the glory of God. Jesus says to Him, "One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." In the parable of Luke 12, we are told to be rich towards God, and that we don't have to worry because God will take care of us.

I close with Psalm 37.25, "I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread."

Be generous, refuse to love and serve wealth and give the devil the foothold of greed in your life.

Peace be with you

A Root of All Evil

Yesterday was day 51 in my 1 Timothy study. Due to how busy life has been my study has been limited to the days I'm in the office, so it's taking a little longer than I had initially thought. But yesterday the section was 1 Timothy 6.3-10. While I was reading William Hendriksen's thoughts I noticed something for the first time.

I've heard a quote many times, I've said it several times, and yesterday I found out that I've heard and said the wrong thing. The quote is actually a misquotation of 1 Timothy 6.10. "The love of money is the root of all evil." If you're using the King James Bible or the New Living Translation, that would be the correct quotation. But if we look at the New American Standard Bible, the New International Version, the English Standard Version, several other translations, and most importantly, the original text we see the correct translation, "For a root of all evils is the love of money" (directly from the Greek text). "For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil," (NASB).

I have been wanting to blog about this verse for a while now, but every time God wouldn't give me peace about it, so I held off. I now see why, I hadn't noticed "a root" in the text. Honestly, I think it's because I was so used to hearing "the root" that my mind put a "the" in there instead of the "a". I don't know how many times I have read this passage, but I never caught it until I went to the commentary.

So what do we do with this? We now see that loving money is not the only source of evil, but simply one of them. However it is crucial to note that money in itself is not evil, the love of money is. C.S. Lewis talks about this in Mere Christianity.

"But in real life people are cruel for one of two reasons - either because they are sadists, that is because they have a sexual perversion which makes cruelty a cause of sensual pleasure to them, or else for the sake of something they are going to get out of it - money, or power, or safety. But pleasure, money, power, and safety are all, as far as they go, good things. The badness consists in pursuing them by the wrong method, or in the wrong way, or too much... I do mean that wickedness, when you examine it, turns out to be the pursuit of some good in the wrong way." (Book Two, What Christians Believe; Chapter 2, The Invasion

Money in itself is not evil, it is the love of money, the drive to have more, the yearning that is never satisfied, which is evil. We must learn to be content in what God has given us. We must learn generosity with what we have been given. By serving we stay humble, by giving we stay generous. Generosity will keep us from the love of money, which will keep us, in that aspect, away from evil.

In the words of John Wesley, "Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can."

Peace be with you