GREED–THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL (literally)

(I update this from time to time, but below I show that greed is the primary cause of all evil. There can and are secondary factors, but vast amounts of science and experiences of billions of people confirm that greed is the primary cause of evil. Only a very few examples are documented below. But if we don’t focus attention on the issue of greed, trying to solve the problems our church and world faces is like playing whackamole and forgetting to pull the plug on the whole machine.)

COMPELLING THOUGHTS :

• “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. ” 1 Timothy 6:10
• “Greed brings grief to the whole family, but those who hate bribes will live.” Proverbs 15:27
• “Greed causes fighting; trusting the Lord leads to prosperity.” Proverbs 28:25
• “In their greed they have gathered up many nations and swallowed many peoples.” Habakkuk 2:5
• “It was land monopoly that ate out the lion heart of Rome. Latifundia perdidere Italiam — “Great estates ruined Italy. ”  The Roman historian Pliny
• “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” Galatians 6:10

The Bible tells us that God is the one who gives us power to earn wealth.

“You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth…” Deut. 8:18

But some people take earning money to extremes until it becomes greed and pride. We are living in a time of the worst greed in history, far worse than Roman times.

Many sources say we are now at a tipping point in America and the world. For example:

• A UK’s House of Commons Library report found that “More than two-thirds of the world’s entire wealth will be owned by the richest 1% of people by 2030…global inequality [is] now at a tipping point” which will be “economically disastrous, risking a new explosion in instability, corruption and poverty”[1]
• David DeGraw, an investigative journalist, puts it succinctly and says,” An extensive analysis of economic conditions and government policy reveals that the need for significant systemic change is now a mathematical fact. Corruption, greed and economic inequality have reached a peak tipping point. Due to the consolidation of wealth, the majority of the population cannot generate enough income to keep up with the cost of living. In the present economy, under current government policy, 70% of the population is now sentenced to an impoverished existence… the top .01% has a stunning $9.1 trillion in wealth. In total, the top 1% has a mind-blowing $32.6 trillion. Having that much wealth consolidated within a mere 1% of the population, while a record number of people toil in poverty and debt, is a crime against humanity [since] it would only cost 0.5% of the 1%’s wealth to eliminate poverty nationwide.”
  https://daviddegraw.org/peak-inequality-the-01-and-the-impoverishment-of-society/
• The World Inequality Lab, a research project in over 70 countries based at the Paris School of Economics, and co-authored by the French economist Thomas Piketty found that “The global middle class has been squeezed,” it said. “Inequality around the world has reached an irreversible tipping point.”[2]
• America has the greatest inequalities, highest mortality rate, most regressive taxes, and largest public subsidies for bankers and billionaires of any developed capitalist country.” Petras, James. “How Billionaires Become Billionaires.” October 5, 2017, https://www.globalresearch.ca/how-billionaires-become-billionaires/5612125.

Winnie Byanima, the director of the Christian aid organization Oxfam says, “It is obscene for so much wealth to be held in the hands of so few when 1 in 10 people survive on less than $2 a day. Inequality is trapping hundreds of millions in poverty; it is fracturing our societies and undermining democracy.” and “this is a symptom of a failing economic system.”[3]

God states this is what causes all evil and many griefs.

• “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. ” 1 Timothy 6:10

Many insightful people and experts from across the spectrum have confirmed God’s many warnings that greed, the love of money, hoarding, luxury for a few are the roots of all evil (1 Tim. 6:10, James 5:1-6; Rev. 18:3-19, etc.). They cause major harm at all levels of society from causing the deaths of many children to destroying societies, nations and civilizations. 1000s of years of history confirm that greed causes a myriad of traumatic evils. 1000s of studies in science confirm that greed and high levels of economic injustice are the cause of every evil, just as God stated.

The Christian economist Dr. Michael Hudson, writes about how when greed takes over and many go into debt, that is the greatest destabilizing force in history.
“A century ago, two centuries ago, three centuries ago and all the way back to the Bronze Age, almost every society has realized that the great destabilizing force is finance – that is, debt. Debt grows exponentially, enabling creditors ultimately to foreclose on the assets of debtors. Creditors end up reducing societies to debt bondage, as when the Roman Empire ended in serfdom.”
https://www.counterpunch.org/2015/10/05/parasites-in-the-body-economic-the-disasters-of-neoliberalism/

The Bible said long ago:
“The borrower is slave to the lender.” Prov. 22:7

All throughout history, exploiters/tyrants tried to force people into debt since that is when they could strip them of their assets.
https://www.counterpunch.org/2011/12/02/debt-slavery-why-it-destroyed-rome-why-it-will-destroy-us-unless-its-stopped/

We as godly people should try to pay off our own debts first, then teach others God’s principles about how to get out of debt, help them learn about govt. and non-profit ways to get out of debt and some cases friends, family, the church should help people in debt out of it. Being in debt is a form of slavery and actually robs God’s people and church of more funds long term. When people are in debt, they are often forced to pay huge amounts of their income to banks, leaving less for their families, less to give to God’s work, and less time for their families as well.

By the Bible’s definition of love, if we have enough for our needs,  which includes paying off all debts we ow, then we are to find ways to give to others in need to help them become independent too.

“If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister[a] in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?” 1 John 3:17 (NLT)

According to researchers like Dr. Chomksy and others, this kind of giving love is the scariest thing to the people who are in the top 1%.  At a lecture at Syracuse Peace Councils, Noam Chomsky said:

“…this concept of sympathy and social solidarity is considered extremely dangerous [by the most powerful and wealthy people, the top 1%]. There’s a major propaganda effort to try to drive into people’s heads that you should only be concerned for yourself…There’s been a tremendous effort over the years to somehow drive that into people’s heads and to drive out all normal human feelings…That’s pretty dangerous. If it was happening in a small country, it would be a shame. But when it’s happening in the richest most powerful country in history, it’s very dangerous.”

Noam Chomsky on U.S. Education System https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5xkp8ce7DQ (~8:08)

The reason love, sympathy and solidarity are considered so dangerous is because one of the biggest ways the super wealthy make profits every year is by forcing many people into debt, charging them interest, consuming enormous amounts of their time by trying to figure out how to juggle debts, and then stripping away their wealth and assets in various ways.

One of the simplest ways we can help people to be independent and self-sufficient is this. The Bible has many verses telling us to do good first to the household of faith (Gal. 6:10), help God’s people in need around you (Rom 12:13) and in foreign countries (Rom. 15:26), anyone who is poor and has a good character (Deut. 15:11, Prov. 3:27), to love our enemies and more. Research is showing that if every family just bought $10 more from local community businesses, it would return $9.3 billion to local economies and help reduce/solve several other problems like pollution as well.[4]

There are ~128 million families in America, ~95 million Christian families and 385,000 SDA families in America. Simple math/statistics then show that that if Christians spend $100/month on church businesses/local businesses, it would bring ~$72,923,437,500 into these communities and if they tithed that, it would be ~7.3 billion in tithe!  If SDA families just spent ~$100 more very month on SDA/Christian businesses/local businesses, it would bring ~$340 million for local believers/community and ~$34 million in tithe. This is why Michael Shuman (an economist, attorney, author, and entrepreneur) says,

“The best way of reducing poverty and increasing equality is going local.”[5]

Greed/debt affect almost everything.  A recent scientific study showed that poor children are the most vulnerable to foodborne diseases:
“foodborne diseases annually cause as many as 600 million illnesses and 420,000 deaths worldwide. One of the most disturbing findings from the report is that children are disproportionately affected: 125,000 kids under five die from foodborne illnesses every year. ‘Based on what we know now, it is apparent that the global burden of foodborne diseases is considerable, affecting people all over the world — particularly children under 5 years of age and people in low-income areas,’ Dr. Kazuaki Miyagishima, the WHO’s Director of Food Safety and Zoonoses, said in the agency’s press release.”
Every year, almost half a million people die from a seemingly harmless illness
https://www.businessinsider.com/annual-food-poisoning-deaths-2015-12

Another thing destroyed by greed is freedom. Here are a few insightful people who realized that freedom and greed can’t coexist:

**“True individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.” President Franklin D. Roosevelt said:

**“I sincerely believe … that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies, and that the principle of spending money to be paid by posterity under the name of funding is but swindling futurity on a large scale.” Thomas Jefferson

**”I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country. ” Thomas Jefferson, 3rd US president 1801-1809

**”I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country…corporations have been enthroned and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed. I feel at this moment more anxiety for the safety of my country than ever before, even in the midst of war.”
President Abraham Lincoln

**“unequal distribution of wealth inevitably transforms popular government into despotism. This is not a thing of the far future. It has already begun in the United States, and is proceeding rapidly before our very eyes.” Henry George (pioneer of the land rent/single tax that is based on a couple of the principles of Biblical Jubilee economics)

**The great Christian apologist G. K. Chesterton saw capitalism as legalized pickpocketing, for it channeled wealth from many workers to a few capitalists. Communism was hardly an improvement though, Chesterton wrote, for it only “reform[ed] the pickpocket by forbidding pockets.” (for more on how capitalism is based on greed and causes desperation throughout societies, as well as how it has been heavily promoted by the Rockefellers and other super rich elites and how they are using it as one of their main tools to create the first one world order or new world order, something that  Bible prophecy predicted as a great danger, read this link:
http://www.redmoonrising.com/AmericanBabylon/Part5.htm

We will look below at some of the other specific problems, tragedies and injustices that the Bible says that greed causes and what history, science and economics have confirmed about this issue.

But first let’s make sure we understand what constitutes greed.

One Greek word that is often translated greed (or covetousness) in the Bible is  pleonexia, from the Greek term πλεονεξια, (see Luke 12:13–21; Colossians 3:1–11; 1 Thessalonians 2:5; 2 Peter 2:3).

Biblical commentator John Ritenbaugh describes it as a “ruthless self-seeking, and an arrogant assumption that others and things exist for one’s own benefit.” Plato and Aristotle defined it as “the insatiable desire to have what rightfully belongs to others.”

New Testament Greek scholar William Barclay describes pleonexia as an “accursed love of having,” which “will pursue its own interests with complete disregard for the rights of others, and even for the considerations of common humanity.” He says that biblically it is an aggressive vice that operates in three spheres of life:

• In the material sphere it involves “grasping at money and goods, regardless of honor and honesty.”

• In the ethical sphere it is “the ambition which tramples on others to gain something which is not properly meant for it.”

• In the moral sphere, it is “the unbridled lust which takes its pleasure where it has no right to take.”

THE SPECIFIC EVIL CONSEQUENCES OF GREED ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE
The Bible tells us that the root of all evil is greed in general and then also specifies specifically some of the horrific damage it does. Here are some of the specific consequences.
(Note: I’m still adding some real life situations/science that confirm that each principle is happening these days too…a few are here already, but more are coming).

1) WICKEDNESS/LOSS OF ETERNAL LIFE
The Bible has many things to say about greed and hoarding, none of them good. It also strongly condemns luxury in nearly all situations.  Greed is a form of idolatry and will result in loss of life. Here are some typical verses.

“You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.” Ephesians 5:5

“Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” Luke 12:15

“And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you.  For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.  All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.” Mark 7:20-23

“Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God. Some of you were once like that. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (NLT)

Ellen White writes:

“This history [of Nehemiah] teaches an important lesson. In this generation wealth often comes by fraud….Just to the extent that we may try to gain personal advantage at the disadvantage of another, to that extent will we become unresponsive to the influence of the Spirit of God.” Royalty and Ruin, p. 230

2) GREED IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL (injustice, crimes, oppression, cruelty, etc.)
“For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” 1 Timothy 6:10

“But you! You have eyes only for greed and dishonesty! You murder the innocent, oppress the poor, and reign ruthlessly.” Jeremiah 22:17

3) GREED CAUSES LOSS OF LIFE & HARMS THE GREEDY

“Such is the fate of all who are greedy for money; it robs them of life.” Proverbs 1:19

Ecclesiastes 5:13 There is another serious problem I have seen under the sun. Hoarding riches harms the saver.

EXAMPLE #3:
Who Profits from the Opioid Crisis? Meet the Secretive Sackler Family Making Billions from OxyContin –by  Christopher Glazek, Esquire reporter.

Sacklers have funded education, the arts, businesses, influenced govt publicly, but hide that they got their fortune from selling pharma drugs like OxyContin that are causing an Opioid crisis.
~15 Opioids are killing many people.
~18 billionaire democracy
~20 Obama signed law to condone opioid crisis Trump nominated fox to guard chicken coop.
~21 Now being marketed abroad. Following Tobacco playbook.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGITecuBEHQ

4) GREED CAUSES PERVERSION OF JUSTICE
“But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice.” 1 Samuel 8:3

EXAMPLE 1:
There are ~40 million slaves of different kinds around the world according to the Global Slavery Index (https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/).

EXAMPLE 2:
If debt were included as a form of slavery as the Bible calls it, that would number would probably be over a billion.
http://www.nationaldebtclocks.org

5) GREED CAUSES POVERTY
Greed by people giving trillions to the rich every year is the primary cause of poverty, injustice and slavery around  the world.

“A person who gets ahead by oppressing the poor or by showering gifts on the rich will end in poverty.” Proverbs 22:16

“Greedy people try to get rich quick but don’t realize they’re headed for poverty.” Proverbs 28:22

Proverbs 21:17 Those who love pleasure become poor; those who love wine and luxury will never be rich.

Proverbs 21:20 The wise have wealth and luxury, but fools spend whatever they get.

EXAMPLE #1:

Many people working in transporting goods are also being abused and exploited.  Here is just one of many examples.

“Samuel Talavera Jr. did everything his bosses asked. Most days, the trucker would drive more than 16 hours straight hauling LG dishwashers and Kumho tires to warehouses around Los Angeles, on their way to retail stores nationwide. He rarely went home to his family. At night, he crawled into the back of his cab and slept in the company parking lot.  For all of that, he took home as little as 67 cents a week.

Then, in October 2013, the truck he leased from his employer, QTS, broke down. When Talavera could not afford repairs, the company fired him and seized the truck — along with $78,000 he had paid towards owning it.  Talavera was a modern-day indentured servant. And there are hundreds, likely thousands more, still on the road, hauling containers for trucking companies that move goods for America’s most beloved retailers, from Costco to Target to Home Depot.

These port truckers — many of them poor immigrants who speak little English — are responsible for moving almost half of the nation’s container imports out of Los Angeles’ ports…A yearlong investigation by the USA TODAY Network found that port trucking companies in southern California have spent the past decade forcing drivers to finance their own trucks by taking on debt they could not afford. Companies then used that debt as leverage to extract forced labor and trap drivers in jobs that left them destitute.

If a driver quit, the company seized his truck and kept everything he had paid towards owning it. If drivers missed payments, or if they got sick or became too exhausted to go on, their companies fired them and kept everything. Then they turned around and leased the trucks to someone else.

Drivers who manage to hang on to their jobs sometimes end up owing money to their employers – essentially working for free. Reporters identified seven different companies that have told their employees they owe money at week’s end.

The USA TODAY Network pieced together accounts from more than 300 drivers, listened to hundreds of hours of sworn labor dispute testimony and reviewed contracts that have never been seen by the public.”
https://www.usatoday.com/pages/interactives/news/rigged-forced-into-debt-worked-past-exhaustion-left-with-nothing/ https://money.cnn.com/2017/07/03/autos/long-auto-loans/index.html

6) GREED BRINGS GRIEF/RUIN TO FAMILIES
People who spend their lives chasing money cause broken relationships, marriages and families and this is a huge cause of poverty.

“Greed brings grief to the whole family, but those who hate bribes will live.” Proverbs 15:27

1) “When a poor family in Cambodia fell afoul of loan sharks, the mother asked her youngest daughter to take a job….She was then delivered to a hotel, where a man raped her for two days…When she returned home, her mother sent her away for stints in two other brothels,..Like other local mothers CNN spoke to, she blames poverty for her decision to sell her daughter, saying a financial crisis drove her into the clutches of the traffickers who make their livelihoods preying on Cambodian children. ‘It was because of the debt, that’s why I had to sell her,’ she says. ‘I don’t know what to do now, because we cannot move back to the past.’”
cnn.com/interactive/2013/12/world/cambodia-child-sex-trade/

Watch these videos by “The Abolitionists” an organization started by a Christian that is working to free children from the most heinous forms of modern slavery, child sex slavery and child chattel slavery.

EXAMPLE #2:
“Faced with starvation and complete financial ruin, farmers in the drought-ridden region of Bundelkhand are being forced to sell..their wives….One farmer in Jhansi, named Kalicharan, told The Telegraph that he had borrowed money to buy a water pump. When the money lender came for the repayment, he took his wife and three children.”I told him to give me some time to arrange money but he forcibly entered my house and took my wife and children,” Kalicharan told the newspaper. https://abcnews.go.com/International/drought-poverty-force-indian-farmers-sell-wives/story?id=8599840

EXAMPLE #3:

“Greed causes fighting; trusting the Lord leads to prosperity.” Proverbs 28:25

WAR
President Eisenhower was a military man, but he warned very strongly against the military industrial complex getting too strong since this would destroy freedoms (as many American founders also knew and warned against).

Eisenhower’s “Military-Industrial Complex” Speech Origins and Significance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg-jvHynP9Y

Smedley Butler was a 4 star general and thought he was fighting for freedom, but realized that much of the fighting he did was actually done due to the influence of corporations. He wrote a small book on how corporations have the highest profits during war and this is why they often support wars so strongly.

War Is A Racket, by Major General Smedley Butler, 1935 –
Ratical.org https://ratical.org/ratville/CAH/warisaracket.html

Allan Nairn has been a journalist covering dozens of wars around the world for decades. He reports that both the democrats and republicans have supported a lot of wars abroad that did not bring democracy to those places and often involved much injustice and loss of innocent lives.

Allan Nairn: Obama leads no war on terror

This article and many others explain how the United States is supporting wars that have terrible consequences and have killed many innocent children.
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2018/09/29/us-isnt-just-backing-yemen-war-its-helping-trap-those-forced-flee

8) GREED CAUSES EXPLOITATION
“In you, people take bribes to shed blood; you demand and accept interest on loans; in greed you make profits off your neighbors by extorting them; and you have forgotten me,’ says Adonai Elohim.” Ezekiel 22:12

“[The godless] oppressed the poor and left them destitute. They foreclosed on their homes. 20 They were always greedy and never satisfied. Nothing remains of all the things they dreamed about. 21 Nothing is left after they finish gorging themselves. Therefore, their prosperity will not endure. Job 20:19-21

EXAMPLE #1:

Western scientists and corporations are patenting indigenous medicines and teas so that only they can sell them and the natives who have been using them from ancient times won’t be able to sell them anymore.
https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/videos/345445232867175/

EXAMPLE #2:

The GOP is trying to do away with a ban on chemicals that harm children at their most vulnerable ages.
https://www.ewg.org/release/house-gop-seeks-scuttle-playground-bans-glyphosate#.W6VRj7aB33C

10) GREED CAUSES THE CORRUPTION OF RELIGION
“In their greed they [false religious teachers] will make up clever lies to get hold of your money.” 2 Peter 2:3
“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence!” Matthew 23:25

“From the least to the greatest, their lives are ruled by greed. From prophets to priests, they are all frauds.” Jeremiah 6:13

11) GREED CAUSES OPPRESSIVE GOVERNMENTS
“A prince without discernment is a cruel oppressor, but one who hates greed will prolong his life.” CJB Proverbs 28:16

“It’s become clear that many of America’s most powerful and most respected institutions have housed and protected repeat sexual harassers and predators, while shutting up or shutting out their victims…“Has a sexual harassment problem” is a dubious distinction that the Democratic Party shares with Hollywood, Fox News, prestige television shows and networks, the restaurant industry, America’s most successful massage chain — and, of course, the Republican Party.”

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/11/28/16704580/democrats-sexual-harassment-conyers-franken-moore

www.constantinereport.com/handy-list-republican-sex-offenders/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_federal_political_sex_scandals_in_the_United_States

12) GREED CAUSES THE RUIN OF NATIONS
“In their greed they have gathered up many nations and swallowed many peoples.” Habakkuk 2:5

Yuan Zhiming was a dissident and co-leader of the Tiananmen Square protests. He later escaped to America, became a Christian and then began making documentaries about belief in the God of the Bible throughout Chinese history. He made a powerful documentary  surveying 5,000 years of Chinese history which shows that belief in the God who revealed Himself to them and who is the same as the God of the Bible leads to equality, peace and thriving, while belief in false religions, secularism and atheism lead to greed, violence, crime and much loss of life.

China’s Confession 神州忏悔录 (Abridged, English subtitle) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jh5cBIZscSA

A key section of the documentary says:

“Facts have once again demonstrated to us that as long as the Chinese people worship men instead of God, as long as sinful men act like righteous God, as long as men with limitations hold limitless power, that peace and stability will never last long…Oh China! This is where your misery resides. The one who sits on the central throne is not God, but an earthly man….men who did not know God became gods of men. Is not this the source of all China’s tragedies? Chinese butchered their fellow Chinese and Chinese conspired against their fellow Chinese. They abused each other…until…they became prey for foreign invaders…Oh China, because you firmly believe there is no God, you give full reign to sinful men to carry out their self abuse in hopelessness. Since you firmly believe mankind does not share a common holy nature, you then let human reason negate your God given conscience. Since you believe there is no Savior except yourself, you are left to drown again and again in an ocean of bitterness, a sea of fire and a pool of blood, of your own making”

13) GREED CAUSES PERSECUTION & IS A TRAIT OF BEAST POWERS
“And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. Rev. 13: 17

“For all the nations have fallen because of the wine of her passionate immorality. The kings of the world have committed adultery with her. Because of her desires for extravagant luxury, the merchants of the world have grown rich.” Revelation 18:3

14) GREED CAUSES JUDGEMENT FOR EVIL

James 5:5 You have spent your years on earth in luxury, satisfying your every desire. You have fattened yourselves for the day of slaughter.

15) GREED CAUSES IDOLATRY
“So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.” Colossians 3:5

16) PRIDE (IN FASHION) CAUSES GREED & DESTROYS THE ENVIRONMENT

“I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.” 1 Timothy 2:9-10

EXAMPLE #1:
Nestle pumps millions of gallons of Michigan water for just $200 a year. Two hours away, Flint still doesn’t have clean water. https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/videos/1776093229172031/

EXAMPLE #2:
“The throwaway nature of fashion has created a business which creates greenhouse emissions of 1.2bn tonnes a year – larger than that of international flights and shipping combined.” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/nov/28/stella-mccartney-calls-for-overhaul-of-incredibly-wasteful-fashion-industry

17) GREED CAUSES INDIVIDUAL DESTRUCTION

“I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ… But these people scoff at things they do not understand. Like unthinking animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and so they bring about their own destruction. What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion.” Jude 4, 10, 11.

18) GREED CAUSES NATIONAL DISASTER
“What sorrow awaits you who lounge in luxury in Jerusalem, and you who feel secure in Samaria! You are famous and popular in Israel, and people go to you for help. You push away every thought of coming disaster, but your actions only bring the day of judgment closer.” Amos 6:1, 3

“Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip.” Romans 1:29

“Your gold and silver are corroded. The very wealth you were counting on will eat away your flesh like fire. This corroded treasure you have hoarded will testify against you on the day of judgment.” James 5:3

For the reasons above and others, the Bible strictly warns against greed as the root of all evil and even tells us not to associate with anyone who claims to be a Christian and is greedy.

“I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.” 1 Corinthians 5:11

The Bible tells us that godly people love to give and God blesses them for it.

“Some people are always greedy for more, but the godly love to give!” Proverbs 21:26

So after you have taken care of your needs and that of your family, be a giver, not a greedy taker. This is not just important and beneficial for communities, God will also reward you in this life and eternity for doing that (Matt. 10:40-42).

THE RIPPLE EFFECT CONSEQUENCES OF GREED (esp. in the area of land rights)

The Bible repeatedly emphasizes land rights for every family. I have documented this here:
http://blog.truth-is-life.org/rights/thrive/land-rights-most-crucial-for-freedom/

Many scholars have testified that land monopoly is a key factor that has destroyed nations and empires.

The Roman historian Pliny said,  “It was land monopoly that ate out the lion heart of Rome. Latifundia perdidere Italiam — “Great estates ruined Italy “.  This article explains some of the problem.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/fall-roman-republic-income-inequality-and-xenophobia-threatened-its-foundations-180967249/

And if you look at almost every beast and evil power in the Bible and look at their principles in history, they almost always rejected/abandoned land rights for every family. This same problem is rampant around the world now and is the reason why almost every nation is a plutocracy.

If churches don’t follow economic justice, members will have to give large amounts of money to the bank instead of the church and the whole community will suffer since for every $1 invested in churches, there is ~$4.77 and up to $10 in benefits for the community. If this situation continues, eventually people will get so desperate that they will look for anyone who has an answer to their suffering.  When the church in Russia didn’t follow or care about Bible economics and justice, people eventually got so desperate that they thought atheism and communism might have better answers. They did not. 35 million people died, many more were tortured and nearly 1/2 the world lost its freedom.
http://blog.truth-is-life.org/rights/thrive/causesofcommunism/

Below I will review ~20 effects of rejecting the land rights principle that God has given to humanity with specific cases and/or science. There are many more consequences than this. But these are some of the biggest ones.

Before that though, these are some of the main reasons God insisted on land rights for every family and every generation.
A) As above, close interaction with nature gives people insights regarding our Creator and more awe for His power.

B) Economically, it gave every generation the resources to follow their dreams whatever they may be.  Family land could be leased out for up to 49 years. If a person desired to do another occupation besides farming, but came back to the family at that time so that every generation had fair and equitable opportunities and the financial capital/resources to follow their dreams ).

C) Those without land usually have to pay ~40% or more of their salary to landlords, sometimes up to 70%. They also have to spend ~20-30% of their income on food, leaving little for other expenses like education, clothing, transportation, investing in the future, etc.

D) Permanent family ownership of land was not only a right for every family, God specifically referred to it as a key foundational factor for the long term stability of nations and other scholars have persuasively shown  that without this right to land, freed and human rights are degraded and/or destroyed, people don’t really have human rights.

E) One of the reasons this is true is that this is by far the simplest and easiest way to prevent extremely high concentrations of wealth  which the Bible calls greed, the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10) for very good reasons. For almost every evil you can mention whether it’s poverty, hunger, homelessness, terrorism, sex slavery, racism and a myriad of others, numerous studies are showing that greed/hoarding wealth is the root of pretty much every evil and every deception on the planet either directly or indirectly, confirming the Bible’s claim. Studies also show that at present we have some of the worst levels of inequality in history with 8 people owning more than the bottom 50% (3.6 billion) combined.