Gluttony

Happy Sunday. I know that many of my viewers are in Indiana, and I want to say thank you for watching or for listening. It was my pleasure to visit with many of you a week or so ago. It was so good to be with you. I had the pleasure of eating with dear friends when I was there.

Ever built a vacation around food? Perhaps you drive miles out of the way to eat at a favorite spot. Today, as we continue in our study of the seven deadly sins, we will look at the sin of gluttony.

The Bible is filled with stories of people eating. God fed the children of Israel with Manna From Heaven. The children of Israel were promised a land flowing with milk and honey. There are lots of stories of Jesus eating with his disciples and even with sinners. You'll remember how Jesus fed over five thousand men, plus thousands of women and children, with a boy's lunch consisting of fish and bread.

God gave us taste buds, and he gave us some great things to eat. What does the Bible say about gluttony? Proverbs 23:2 is a good place to begin. It says, "If you're a big eater, put a knife to your throat."

Later on in Proverbs 23 we find this verse, this in verses 19 to 21: "My child, listen and be wise. Keep your heart on the right course. Do not Corrals with drunkards or Feast with gluttons, for they are on their way to poverty, and too much sleep clothe them in rags."

The picture painted in scripture, and the reason that this sin was put on this list of seven deadly sins a long time ago, is a life out of control. Proverbs 25:28 teaches, "A person without self-control is like a city with broken down walls." When those words were written, the walls of a city were the main defense. When the walls fell, it was over. A person without self-control is doomed.

Over the years I've come to realize that your size and shape can have very little to do with gluttony. Some of the biggest eaters I know are skinny people. Each Fourth of July the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest is held at Coney Island. The winner for the past many, many years as a skinny man named Joey Chestnut.

You may be watching this or listening today, and you may be thinking that this has nothing to do with you. Well, let me see if I can make this matter to you. Gluttony is a problem because when we're a glutton, It's All About Us.

Have you ever noticed at a church dinner, I have someone in mind, someone that was always in the front of the line so they could get the best stuff, even the deviled eggs? That always bothered me. Often we would announce that guest and folks over 70 should go first, but that wouldn't stop these people, the gluttons.

We've looked at Matthew 25:31-46 before. I'll read it in its entirety. It says, "When the son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a Shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will then put the Sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand," and that's the group you want to be in, "the king will say to those on his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison had you visited me.'

"The righteous will then answer him, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and we gave you food? Or when was it you were thirsty and we gave you drink? When was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, are naked and gave you clothing?'" They continue in the question: "'When was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?' And the King will then answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.'"

It's important that we help people and not keep everything for ourselves. That becomes very clear in the next part of the verses: "Then the king will say to those at his left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart from me into Eternal fire prepared for the, for the devil and his angels,'" or his demons, "'I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'

"They will also answer, 'the Lord, when was it that we saw you this way? When did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and not take care of you?' Then he will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'" And it ends by saying, "And these will go away into Eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

I can guarantee you that the gluttons are in the goat group, not the Sheep group. Gluttons have no time for others. They have no desire to share.

One of the memories in my mind, my mother died when I was a young boy, and one of the memories I have of her is that she put her husband and her children first. There were five children, and we never would eat, or when we would eat, she would never take the last piece of anything. Never. It was for others. She put others first. Isn't that what we're called to do? When we do that, this world is a much, much better place.

I was in Indiana for the funeral of a dear friend, Leota Conover, one of the greatest servants I have ever known. One of the things that she did there was feed people. At school she was a lunch lady. At home she cooked for all of her extended family. And at church, every time we had something, she was in the middle of serving people. I don't know if I've known anyone much greater.

Being a servant is the opposite of being a glutton. It helps us to concentrate on others, not on ourselves. That's the lesson I learned from this one.

Pray with me. Lord, thank you for great examples that we have, people like my friend Leota, who's in heaven now. I thank you for her example. Lord, if we don't think gluttony applies to us, help us to see that there's something that we can do to help others, not just to Heart at all for ourselves, whatever it might be, but put a love in our heart for others so that we can serve. In Jesus name we pray, amen.

God bless you. Thank you for joining me today.