You can see the same problem in Judas. No one was forcing Judas to follow Christ. Judas decided to be a disciple, and the Lord Jesus went so far as referring to Judas as being "chosen."

So there are devils following the Lord Jesus and fellowshiping with the true disciples.

In the Psalms the Lord Jesus spoke of His grief over Judas.

If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me, I could hide from him. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, With whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship as we walked with the throng at the house of God. (Psalms 55:12-14—NIV)

Do you see the problem in the above verse? The reason the actions of Judas brought such grief to Jesus had to do with Judas' closeness to the Lord. If Judas were an enemy, Christ could have endured it. Maybe this is why the Lord said, "I would rather have you cold than lukewarm."

The Divine wrath came on Judas to the utmost.

May his descendants be cut off, their names blotted out from the next generation. May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD; may the sin of his mother never be blotted out. May their sins always remain before the LORD, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth. (Psalms 109:13-15—NIV)

The closer we are to God the more our conduct is of concern to Him, just as the conduct of those closest to us are of concern to us.

What is it that drives people to want to be close to God, to Jesus, when in their heart they desire to cling to the world?

I doubt that anyone forced Gehazi to be the servant of Elisha. The pay probably was not that outstanding. For whatever reason, Gehazi wanted to be near the man of God. Yet in his heart Gehazi desired personal wealth. Perhaps it was a great honor to be the servant of such a distinguished prophet. Gehazi may have seen in Elisha an opportunity for his own advancement.

I have noticed ministers of today who have the ability to become wealthy in the business world. But they go into the ministry. There, because of their natural ability, they soon are successful and well known. Then they send their agents around to the elderly so the easily befuddled senior citizens will change their will and make the evangelist the beneficiary.

Why, when they could be millionaires in the secular realm, do these talented people desire to minister under the anointing? Like Ananias, they keep back part of the proceeds, so to speak. They end up robbing the poor.

Such wolves in sheep's clothing are thought of today as giants of faith, but when the Lord comes He will drive them from His Presence.

Why did such severe wrath fall on Gehazi, on Judas, on Ananias and Sapphira?

We may picture the four of them as devils with horns and long tails. They were not. They were religious people. They wanted to be known as God's people. They desired the company of the saints.

If you had known them you probably would have considered them fine people, true friends in the Lord.

To be continued.