The sin of greed is mischievous. It is one of those grave sins we barely notice. You could be a greedy person and you do not know it and worse, you could be a Christian who is greedy and not even know it. As a follower of Christ, greed is something you should never tolerate. After all, it is one of the seven deadly sins. The discipline Bible verses talk about greed and its effects on your treatment of the people around you and as well as your personality.

To help you understand how greed occurs, here is a story about greed to help you see and understand how greed happens.

Paul was one of those successful real estate agents. In fact he was so successful, he’d already started his own real estate firm before reaching the ripe age of thirty. He wanted to become the best agent in the land.

Two weeks before his grand opening,   Paul  had four high-tech computers carried to his office. His assistant, Tracy, asked why they had four computers when there was only two of them – her and  Brad.

Paul told her, “We’re going to expand soon.”

Following the opening,  Paul  had expensive lunches and gourmet coffee delivered to the office every day. He put on the finest suits that cost no less than five hundred dollars each. And instead of hiring new employees, he dumped more work on Tracy.

A year later, four new computers were carried into the office again, and the older computers were given off to charity. Tracy finally confronted  Paul  .

“We don’t need new computers,” Tracy said. “What we need are more people to help me out with work.”

Paul said, “I decide where to spend my money. You don’t have the right to complain. You should be thankful you have a job in the first place.”

This is a fine example of classic human greed.

Paul is a Christian, but he had no idea he was spiraling down into a life controlled by greed and materialism. He was under the belief that he was just enjoying his success, but what he was really doing was pushing away the very people that had helped him reach that success in the first place.

The discipline Bible verses tell us that greed is an enemy of the Lord in our hearts. It is perfectly okay to desire something, but you simply cannot serve two masters at once. The only master you should serve at all times is the Lord. Greed will only bring sadness and pain to your life in the long run. So when faced with a choice, use what God has entrusted to you wisely. If God has blessed you to be in a position of power over people, do not overwork them, belittle them or  require huge amounts for little pay, be willing to share, be willing to lend a helping hand if you are able to, be willing to give as God has given to you and simply choose to walk away from greed!