Those Who are Greedy for Gain

[Sue J Love]

Jeremiah 8:4-7 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

4So you are to tell them this is what the LORD says:
“Do men fall and not get up again?
Does one turn away and not return?
5Why then have these people turned away?
Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;
they refuse to return.
6I have listened and heard;
they do not speak what is right.
No one repents of his wickedness,
asking, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone has pursued his own course
like a horse charging into battle.
7Even the stork in the sky
knows her appointed seasons.
The turtledove, the swift, and the thrush
keep their time of migration,
but My people do not know
the requirements of the LORD.

I live in the USA, so I can only speak of what I know of what is going on within my nation, and I do not know everything. But I have been part of the body of Christ since age 7, and I am now age 76, four months away from turning age 77. And I have lived in many US states and cities, and I have participated in ministry in many different church gatherings, of at least 4 different church denominations (Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, and Christian & Missionary Alliance), so I have a pretty fair pulse on it all.

And what I have witnessed, and had confirmed by many other followers of Christ who have observed the same, is that the vast majority of what is called “church” in my nation has gone the way of the world. They have joined forces with the government (merged with the state) and with the world and they have turned their gatherings into places of business to be marketed to the people of the world, all of which God forbids. Thus, many have altered the gospel of Christ to make it more acceptable to the world.

[Matthew 21:12-13; John 2:13-17; Acts 5:27-32; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13; 1 Corinthians 3:1-9; 2 Corinthians 6:14-18; Philippians 3:18-19; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22; Revelation 13:5-8; Revelation 18:1-5]

So many of them now are teaching a very diluted gospel message which does not require repentance (death to sin) and obedience to God’s commands as critical components of faith which saves. Or if they do teach these, often they will teach them as recommended, but not as required. And so we have many professing Christians who have not denied self and died to sin, and for whom obedience to God’s commands is not what they practice, but who still live life their way, doing what pleases the flesh and not God.

Jeremiah 8:8-9 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

8How can you say, ‘We are wise,
and the Law of the LORD is with us,’
when in fact the lying pen of the scribes
has produced a deception?
9The wise will be put to shame;
they will be dismayed and trapped.
Since they have rejected the word of the LORD,
what wisdom do they really have?

But while so many of what are called “churches” are partnered with the state and with the world, and are following the ways of man, and not of God, in order to win the world to their gatherings, they are promoting themselves as the true church, the one under the authority of God, teaching the truths of the Scriptures. But these businesses called “church” are not the church. We who by faith in Jesus Christ who have denied self, died to sin, and who are walking in obedience to our Lord’s commands, in practice, are His church.

And this does not mean we are all perfect. But none of us should be living according to the flesh and not according to our Lord and to the teachings of the Scriptures. All of us who profess faith in Jesus Christ are to be living in submission to the will of God for our lives, in holy living, according to God’s expressed will and purpose for our lives. All of us should have our lives surrendered to the Lord, walking in His ways, doing what He commands, living morally pure, upright, and godly lives until our Lord returns.

Jeremiah 8:10-12 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)

10..For from the least of them to the greatest,
all are greedy for gain;
from prophet to priest,
all practice deceit.
11They dress the wound of the daughter of My people
with very little care,
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
when there is no peace at all.
12Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed?
No, they have no shame at all;
they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
when I punish them, they will collapse,
says the LORD.

Sadly, so many who profess faith in Jesus Christ who are serving as pastors and elders of church congregations (or of what are falsely being called “churches”) are worldly men, living to please the flesh, following after the ways of the world, teaching lies to the people. They are mainly focused on doing what will attract the world to their gatherings in order to grow their numbers, and so they willfully teach half-truths (lies) in order to appease human flesh and to not offend the people they want in their gatherings.

So, they will treat those in their congregations who are willfully, deliberately, and habitually living in sin, addicted to immorality and all sorts of other sins, with “kid gloves,” pacifying them in their sins. And they will lie to them and tell them that if they made a confession of Christ as Savior that they are now guaranteed salvation from sin and eternal life with God, regardless of how they live. And so they say, “Peace, peace” to them when there is no peace, because they are not at peace with God if they habitually sin.

But they are not ashamed of what they are doing to the people in teaching them lies and appeasing them in their habitual and deliberate sins. But it isn’t just that. They also attack those of us who are teaching the truth of the gospel, and they try to convince the people that we are the liars, even though the Scriptures clearly teach we must deny self, die to sin, and follow our Lord in obedience to His commands, in life practice, in the power of God, by His grace, if we are to have salvation from sin and eternal life with God.

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]

Those Who are Greedy for Gain
An Original Work / August 18, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

The Heart of Man

Based off Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23
An Original Work / April 4, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Listen to me ev’ryone and
Understand this teaching of Christ:
Why do you break the commands
Of God for the sake of tradition?
When you follow the ways of man,
And don’t obey the words of Christ,
You nullify the words of God,
And you hold to the ways of man.

What comes out of a man’s mouth is
What makes him unclean and dirty.
The things that come out of the mouth
Come from the heart, from within him.
The heart of man is so sinful;
From his nature, out comes evil:
Lying, cursing, greed and malice,
Lust and lewdness, deceit, slander.

Jesus calls us to obey Him;
Turn from our sins; follow His ways.
Yet, His people honor Him with their lips,
but their hearts not with Him.
Their worship of God is in vain.
Their teachings are rules taught by man.
Jesus calls us; gently leads us
To return and follow His truth.