A sense of sin had overwhelmed me. My tax collecting job had become a burden to my busy brain. I could no longer plan for an unfair profit with as much ease as I had done in previous years. My sleepless nights and restless conscience were getting the best of me. I was actually feeling sympathy for the folk who had come under the power of my political agenda. Religious thoughts were beginning to fill my head. The Law had clearly taught that it was wrong to cheat and take more that is required.

My people had been under foreign rule for centuries; now I was part of the oppressive influence. I was helping to rob them of their meager resources. I was jeopardizing their ability to survive. For some reason, I could no longer ill-gotten gain. The enthusiasm with which I had taken my job was gone. My dreams for power and prominence had faded. I could not understand my declining ambition for wealth.

It may have been the presence of a new prophet named Jesus. Although I had not heard or seen Him close up, those who had heard and seen Him said he spoke with a new kind of honesty and a profound ethical vision. They said He verbally chastised religious leaders of their hypocrisy and challenged all kinds of sinners to repent. He made it clear that we could not serve God and mammon, they explained.

One day, He came to my village and when I heard Him and saw Him, I realized He was different. I invited Him to my house because I wanted to know Him better. He did not come into my family setting rebuking me for the work, which was damning my soul. He did not give a lecture condemning the dishonest use of one's resources. He came with the courtesy of a king and the dignity of one who could really be the son of God. He did not have to make ugly pronouncements on anything. The beauty of His being stood in judgment on all the iniquities of my life.

I gladly committed myself to restore and repay. I could no longer rob God or man. He inspired within me a sense of loving and stewardship, which taught me it is more blessed to give than to receive. My soul was set free once the chains of an unhealthy ambition were broken. I began to see my wealth as a means of ministry rather than a source of pride.

Hear me now and learn well the lessons of my disgusting greed lest your life be lost in a maze of materialism.