THE PITFALL OF PROSPERITY
LUKE 12:13-34
The teachings of Jesus as presented in the Gospel of Luke are set within a particular context. It is not always a chronological context. Sometimes these accounts are topically arranged. But sometimes the arrangement is also chronological. The setting for this story is found in Luke 12:1.
Under these circumstances, after so many thousands of the multitude had gathered together that they were stepping on one another, He began saying to His disciples first of all, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy." (Luke 12:1).
Notice the opening phrase: "Under these circumstances..." What circumstances are these? They are the circumstances found in Luke 11:53-54 where the scribes and the Pharisees began to plot how they might attack Jesus.
Have you ever had the experience of knowing that someone was out to get you? That they were watching your every move and doing their best to try to trip you up? Such a circumstance would worry anyone. And thus it is in this context that Jesus speaks on the subject of worry and anxiety. The entire first part of the chapter is taken up with this theme.
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12:4 |
Do not be AFRAID of those who kill the body... |
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12:5 |
But I will tell you who to FEAR; FEAR the One who after He has killed has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, FEAR Him. |
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12:7 |
Do not FEAR; you are of more value than many sparrows. |
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12:11 |
...do not become ANXIOUS about how or what you should speak in your defense... |
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12:22 |
...I say to you, do not become ANXIOUS for your life... |
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12:25 |
And which of you by being ANXIOUS can add a single cubit to his life’s span? |
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12:26 |
...why are you ANXIOUS about other matters? |
It is in the midst of this theme of anxiety that Jesus deals with a certain type of anxiety - financial anxiety.
SETTING FOR THE PARABLE
And someone in the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me."
But He said to him, "Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbiter over you?" (Luke 12:13-14).
This passage begins with an interruption. Jesus has been teaching about the importance of fearing the spiritual over the physical. But there was a man in the crowd who was so preoccupied with his material inheritance that he hadn't heard a word that Jesus said.
The world has a way of doing that to us. It is easy to get so concerned about the immediacy of your particular circumstances or situation that you cannot see anything else. When you find yourself holding a hammer, it is easy to see everything as a nail. But Jesus didn't give us a hammer. He gave us a cross.
The request of this man was not without warrant. It was the custom for the rabbis to mediate in such disputes.
Notice the specific request which this man makes. He does not ask Jesus to hear the merits of the case and make a decision. He asks Jesus to pre-judge the case in his favor.
WARNING AGAINST GREED
And He said to them, "Beware and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions." (Luke 12:15).
We don’t hear many sermons on greed. But one of the Ten Commandments deals with this specific sin.
Think about that. If you were being asked to write down the most significant laws for a nation, what would you write?
What about greed? God considered it to be very important.
"...for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions." (Luke 12:15).
I am not a suit of clothes. I am not a house or a car. My identity is not in those things. And my self-worth should not be tied to those things.
THE PARABLE
And He told them a parable, saying, "The land of a certain rich man was very productive.
17 And he began reasoning to himself, saying ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’"And he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry."’"But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’
"So is the man who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." (Luke 12:16-21).
Notice the use of the personal pronoun. He had "I" trouble. The word "I" and "my" are used 12 times in this passage. That does not mean it is always wrong to use the personal pronoun, but in this case, it is a description of a man who lives for the moment. He does not take God into account.
Indeed, he does not even take himself into account. He does not realize that his own life is limited.
1. A Philosophy of Pleasure: Take your ease, eat, drink and be merry (12:19).
This was the philosophy of the Epicureans. Luke, as a Greek physician, would have been familiar with them. They rose to prominence in the years following Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.
They engaged in the pursuit of pleasure. Their motto was the maximum amount of happiness for the minimum amount of effort.
2. True Foolishness: But God said to him, "You fool!" (12:20).
This is not speaking of His intellectual capacity. It is an evaluation of his life. He was living his life as though there was no God.
The fool is one who acts as though God does not exist. I know a lot of people who claim to believe in God, but who act as though He had taken a long walk and wasn't coming back. They are practicing atheists. Indeed, I act like that whenever I sin.
Here was a man who acted as though God were not there. He had ignored the fact that his very material possessions over which he lavished so much attention were a gift from God.
Therefore he ignored what was the very purpose of his wealth. He treated wealth as an end unto itself rather than as an opportunity to use it to glorify and honor the Lord.
3. The Requirement of God: " This very night your soul is required of you" (12:20).
This literally says, "In this night THEY demand your soul from you." This was a common use by the Jewish rabbis to speak of God. It was known as a "plural of majesty."
This man made two incorrect presumptions:
The man thought that he was in control of his life. But it is the Lord who determines the length of a man’s days. The man looked to his wealth as his security and was unmindful that our security is only in the Lord.
4. The Point of the Parable: So is the man who lays up treasure for himself " (12:21).
It is a fatal act of folly to do as this man did. If you are going to accumulate riches, make them eternal riches. Make them riches "toward God."
This brings me to a question. What does it mean to be rich toward God? It is SALVATION! The believer is the possessor of all of the riches of Christ Jesus.
By the way, did you see the correlation between the situation in the parable and the situation of the man who had come to Jesus? The fact that he is coming and arguing over an inheritance indicates that someone has died and left a lot of money. What good did it do them? They could not take it with them. They could only leave it behind. And, even then, it only led to a family feud.
5. The Question of Work.
Before we leave the parable, I want to ask you a question. What does this parable say about the value of work? Is this an excuse to stop working and providing for the needs of my family? Does this mean that I should not plan for the future? No, it does not.
The Bible has quite a lot to say about the importance of work and of planning. Jesus told a parable about the foolishness of one who set out to build a tower without first counting the cost of what it would take to finish it (Luke 14:28).
There is nothing wrong with planning for the future. But those plans ought to include ALL of the future. They should not stop with my death. They should be concerned with the life after death. To plan for anything less is to sell short your own soul.
THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PARABLE
Jesus begins this section with the words, "For this reason..." This is an explanation of the parable which He has just told.
1. A Warning Against Anxiety.
And He said to His disciples, "For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, as to what you shall eat; nor for your body, as to what you shall put on.
Anxiety is the counterpart of greed. Greed can never GET enough. Anxiety is afraid that it may not HAVE enough.
If you are going to worry, at least be smart enough to worry about the right thing. If you are going to worry, then worry about that which lasts. Worry about eternity. But better yet, come to Christ and trust in Him as Lord and Savior and be able to cease from worry altogether.
2. Three Illustrations.
All three of these illustrations are seen in contrast to the rich fool of the previous passage.
a. Illustration #1 - The Ravens.
"Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; and they have no storeroom nor barn; and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds!" (Luke 12:24).
The raven was on the Levitical list of unclean animals. If ever an animal could be considered worthless, it was the raven. And yet, they are pictured as a part of God's consideration. If God is concerned about ravens, how much more will be His concern for you?
b. Illustration #2 - Life Span.
"And which of you by being anxious can add a single cubit to his life's span?
It is not quite clear in the Greek text whether this has reference to the length of one's life or to his height (the word "life" is added by the translators and does not appear in the original). It doesn’t really matter. Both are equally true.
Anxiety doesn’t make you live longer. On the contrary, it makes you life shorter. Here is the principle: Anxiety does not produce positive results.
Anxiety also cannot make you taller or shorter, slimmer or plumper (I should know, I've tried).
c. Illustration #3 - Field Lilies.
"Consider the lilies, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory did not clothe himself like one of these.
If God arrays the lilies, He is able to clothe you. If God provides for short-lived grass, then He will provide for you.
We worship a God who provides. He provides for birds and for flowers. And He is able to provide for you.
3. Conclusion.
"And do not seek what you shall eat, and what you shall drinks, and do not keep worrying.
"Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys.
34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Luke 12:29-34).This is a strong statement. Jesus calls His people to give their money to Him. But this is not necessarily a call to give to the church building fund. This is a call to give to those in need. It is a call to give to charity (12:33). The word there is normally translated as "alms." The point is that when we give to the poor, we are giving to Jesus.
He wants everything that you have and everything that you are. Does this mean that I am sinning if I have a savings account or own my own house? I do not think so. But it does mean that I am to be generous to those in need.
Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.
Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,
In this passage, the rich are not told to get rid of all of their riches. But they are told...
This is what Jesus is describing. If you are working to gain the wealth of the world, you will lose the wealth of God. What are you seeking?
I want to conclude this section with several principles.