The point is, ladies and [gentlemen], that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA.[1]
This was the end of the iconic cinematic speech given by Gordon Gekko at the Teldar Paper stockholders’ meeting in the 1987 film Wall Street (a film I do not recommend and have only watched this scene). Greed is considered a virtue and lauded as that which will save. With its insatiable appetite for more, its aggressive impatience, its lack of concern for others, and its myopia, greed gives its host hyper-focus and energy to seek gratification for its appetite. Greed is power, but it is a destructive power, destroying its host and everything around him.
As it is with all other sins, greed is a disordering of a God-given, righteous virtue. God created us with a mission and commensurate desire to make the world more than it is. Just as God himself desired more and, consequently, created the world, so we, his image, want more. We want to take one seed and make a hundred-fold more than it is. We want to take minerals from the earth, refine them, and shape them into buildings, beautiful art, jewelry, or even energy that creates comfortable lives. We want the investment of our time and energy to bear the fruit of money, even a great deal of money, so that we can not only have the necessities of life but also enjoy an abundance. God created us with this drive, this appetite. This appetite for more drives us to fulfill our God-given responsibilities.
Greed or covetousness disorders that appetite and turns “more” into an idol (Col 3.5), that from which we seek the life that only the living God can provide. Wealth defines me, giving me meaning, purpose, joy, and security against all threats; at least, that is what I have deceived myself into believing. But the insatiable appetite can never be satisfied. It is as if you are drinking salt water to quench your thirst: the more you drink, the more thirst you create.
Solomon warns his son about this disordered appetite for wealth. He puts before us two characters to illustrate. First, there is the profligate pleasure-seeker in Provers 21.17, 20. He loves pleasure (literally, “joy”) that comes from the wealth of wine and oil, but he is consumed with consuming, devouring everything as soon as he gets it. He is the drug addict, alcoholic, or the credit card abuser who spends everything immediately to get his fix. He is the child that is always indulged and never made to feel uncomfortable. He is taught to believe life should never be uncomfortable and, consequently, is angrily discontent when life is not all pleasure. Everything, money and energy, is invested in present gratification. Everything is spent so that he becomes a poor man both temporally and eternally.
The second character is, what we would call, the workaholic. Proverbs 23.4-5 is an exhortation not to expend yourself to be rich, to have the wisdom to desist because of the transitoriness of possessions. Every material thing, including your own body, is vapor and will fade away into death. If you invest yourself in that which will ultimately die, then you will die with it. Greed that hyper-focuses you on being wealthy is putting blinders on you concerning the fullness of your responsibilities. Many a man has lost everything truly important by chasing wealth.
God wants you to have a healthy appetite. There are many characteristics of a healthy appetite for wealth, but contentment, in some ways, embodies them all. Contentment is a grateful willingness to accept God’s providential provision when I have been faithful in doing all that I am supposed to do. Godliness with contentment is great wealth (1Tm 6.6).
But how do I know when I am content? When I don’t have to have. When I am not possessed by possessing. When I am not consumed with consuming. When I can look at that new gadget and say, “That’s nice, but no thanks.” Or “That’s nice, but I can wait.” Contentment doesn’t rely on what I possess but on what possesses me, so it doesn’t matter if I am a millionaire or have very little. Contentment, like all disciplines, is freedom; freedom from the tyrannous idols that drive me relentlessly to overwork, overspend, and be overly consumed with how much I have in my bank account. Contentment is freedom from fear of losing it all.
Be on guard against greed. But in all your guarding,
cultivate a healthy appetite for wealth.
[1] http://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeechwallstreet.html, accessed April 20, 2022
