This sermon examines the destructive nature of greed through the biblical account of Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, revealing four critical lessons about how greed corrupts spiritual life and ministry. By understanding these warnings from 2 Kings 5:15-27, believers can recognize greed’s subtle influence and embrace the biblical antidote of contentment and generosity through seeking God’s kingdom first.
The message demonstrates how even those in spiritual leadership positions can fall prey to greed’s temptation, making this teaching relevant for every believer regardless of their role in ministry.
Watch the full sermon from Easley Bible Methodist Church below:
The Context: Naaman’s Healing and Response
The sermon begins by connecting to the previous week’s teaching about Naaman’s healing from leprosy. Pastor Jonathan Slagenweit emphasizes that Naaman’s healing came not from the Jordan River’s properties, but from his obedience to God’s word through the prophet Elisha. This sets the stage for understanding how disobedience, driven by greed, would soon corrupt Elisha’s servant Gehazi.
After his healing, Naaman traveled approximately 20 miles back to Samaria to thank Elisha—a significant journey in ancient times. This demonstrates the importance of maintaining a spirit of thanksgiving when God works in our lives, paralleling Jesus’s teaching about the ten lepers where only one returned to give thanks.
Four Lessons About Greed
1. No One Is Immune to the Power of Greed
The first and perhaps most sobering lesson is that every person possesses the capacity for greed. Gehazi wasn’t just anyone—he was Elisha’s personal assistant, a minister in training, part of the prophetic school. The sermon emphasizes that even spiritual people face this temptation, noting that “Satan does not care how he gets us. He only cares that he gets us.”
Pastor Slagenweit shares a personal testimony from his college years when someone tried to lure him away from ministry with promises of financial success. This illustrates how greed tests everyone, regardless of their spiritual calling or maturity.
2. Greed Affects Your View of Ministry
When Elisha refused Naaman’s generous offer of payment (estimated at around $3 million in today’s currency), Gehazi couldn’t understand why. His greed clouded his perspective, making him see ministry as a profit-making opportunity rather than service to God.
This principle extends beyond full-time ministry. The sermon challenges laypeople who might ask “What’s the profit for me?” when considering church service or volunteer work. Greed can make us evaluate ministry opportunities based on personal gain rather than Kingdom impact.
3. Greed Affects Your Integrity
Gehazi’s pursuit of Naaman’s gifts required multiple lies: he lied to Naaman about why he needed the silver, deceived Naaman’s servants about where to store it, and then lied directly to Elisha about where he had been. The sermon traces this web of deception that greed necessitated.
The application extends to modern scenarios: falsifying time cards at work, dishonesty on tax returns, and family conflicts over inheritances. Greed doesn’t just affect our desires—it corrupts our character and destroys relationships.
4. Greed Will Mark Your Life for Destruction
The consequences of Gehazi’s greed were severe and permanent. Elisha pronounced that Naaman’s leprosy would cling to Gehazi and his descendants forever. As an Israelite and prophet in training, Gehazi understood the devastating implications—he would spend the rest of his life as an outcast, required to cry “unclean” when approaching others.
This demonstrates how greed’s consequences extend beyond the individual, affecting families for generations. The physical leprosy served as a visible manifestation of the spiritual corruption greed had already worked in Gehazi’s heart.
The Biblical Antidote to Greed
The sermon concludes with hope, presenting Jesus’s teaching as the cure for a greedy heart. In Matthew 6:24, Jesus declares that no one can serve both God and wealth. The antidote involves two key elements: contentment and generosity.
True freedom from greed comes through surrendering our hearts to Jesus Christ and trusting Him to provide. As Matthew 6:33 instructs, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all of these things will be added unto you.” This requires a fundamental shift in priorities—from accumulating earthly wealth to pursuing God’s kingdom.
The service closed with the congregation singing “Seek Ye First,” reinforcing the message that when we prioritize God’s kingdom above material possessions, He faithfully provides everything we truly need. This truth offers both a warning against greed’s destructive power and the promise of God’s sufficient provision for those who seek Him first.
