Tag: rich-in-god

Luke 12:13-21 Amplified Bible

Covetousness Denounced

¹³ Someone from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the  family inheritance with me.” ¹⁴ But He said to him, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or an arbitrator over [the two of] you?” ¹⁵ Then He said to them, “Watch out and guard yourselves against every form of greed; for not even when one has an overflowing abundance does his life consist of nor is it derived from his possessions.”

Parable of the Wealthy Fool

¹⁶ Then He told them a parable, saying, “There was a rich man whose land was very fertile and productive. ¹⁷ And he began thinking to himself, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place [large enough in which] to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my storehouses and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many good things stored up, [enough] for many years; rest and relax, eat, drink and be merry (celebrate continually).”’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; now who will own all the things you have prepared?’ ²¹  So it is for the one who continues to store up and hoard possessions for himself, and is not rich [in his relationship] toward God.”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Planning the Future Without God

The rich man had it all figured out. He would make one more major investment by building a bigger barn, after that he was going glory in self, to take life easy.

This prosperous farmer had worked hard all his life, he had sacrificed a lot of things to get where he was, and he now felt entitled to enjoy a life of leisure.

Of course! That is okay. We need to give ourselves some good rest, when you have worked hard all of your life, you should be allowed to reap the benefits.

But suddenly God stepped into the man’s life and called him a fool.

https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g878/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/

1. without reason
2. senseless, foolish, stupid
3. without reflection or intelligence, acting rashly

Why did God do that?

Not because the rich man had planned for the future, but because he had stored up things for covetousness, glorifying himself, without being rich toward God.

The man had lived his life with a false sense of security, and in the process he had missed the purpose of his life.

God does not begrudge us riches or retirement.

God is the one who gives us all the good things we have (see James 1:17-18). But God gives us these things for a purpose: to put himself at the center of our lives.

We need to ask ourselves, “Am I living up to the purpose God has in mind for me? And am I rich toward God?” In Matthew 6:33 Jesus urges us to seek out the kingdom of God and his righteousness. When we do that, we will be rich toward God and we will be excessively involved in the purposes for which God made us.

How to Live with Eternity in Mind …

Ecclesiastes 3:11 Amplified Bible

God Set Eternity in the Heart of Man

¹¹ He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end.

Luke 12:13-21 The Message

The Story of the Greedy Farmer

¹³ Someone out of the crowd said, “Teacher, order my brother to give me a fair share of the family inheritance.”

¹⁴ He replied, “Mister, what makes you think it’s any of my business to be a judge or mediator for you?”

¹⁵ Speaking to the people, he went on, “Take care! Protect yourself against the least bit of greed. Life is not defined by what you have, even when you have a lot.”

^16-19 Then he told them this story: “The farm of a certain rich man produced a terrific crop. He talked to himself: ‘What can I do? My barn isn’t big enough for this harvest.’ Then he said, ‘Here’s what I’ll do: I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll gather in all my grain and goods, and I’ll say to myself, Self, you’ve done well! You’ve got it made and can now retire. Take it easy and have the time of your life!’

²⁰ “Just then God showed up and said, ‘Fool! Tonight you die. And your barnful of goods—who gets it?’

²¹ “That’s what happens when you fill your barn with Self and not with God.”

Suppose, if Jesus told it to us today, this parable might go something like this…

Recently there was a certain businessman, a real wheeler dealer. Everything he set his mind to do, he accomplished with great success. If he purchased stock, he bought low and within a short time, sold high. If he built a high-rise, there’d be a huge boom in new businesses needing office space. If he dug an oil well, there would be a revolution somewhere in the Middle East and the price of oil would skyrocket. In fact, the man was so wealthy, he made Elon Musk look like the very lowest of paupers.

In the midst of his success, he had an epiphany. “I’ve worked hard and become the richest guy in the world. Why am still I killing myself? OMG I can buy anything, go anywhere and do anything I want. Nothing and no one no where can ever stop me. What the hey – I’m going to live it up because I can now afford to! And he went to bed laughing and dreaming about the good life he was going to enjoy from then on.

And later that night, with no evidence of severe issues, he died in his sleep. The End.

Jesus was telling his disciples a viable parable that actually sounds a lot like the stereotypical American dream (add in the gorgeous spouse, 2.3 kids, family dog, weekends playing golf, owning the beach, and bam, you got it – the American dream). Well, except for the unexpected death part. Nobody ever dreams of that.

But Jesus knew it was also the Israelites’ dream.

All the Old Testament heroes and Bible greats were rich!

These included Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, King David, and of course, King Solomon – the richest man ever.

Wealthy individuals were very influential, powerful and cultural heroes of the Israelites. They loved overmuch rich guys and wanted to be like the rich guys.

As far as His listeners were concerned, this parable began about an honest farmer climbing the ladder of success right to the top, just like Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, David and Solomon. He was a hero, a role model, a trend setter. yet God dared called him a fool, and not because he was rich, proud or even selfish.

The man was a fool because he lived his life as if this temporary existence was all about him. Jesus indicated that the man never considered or prepared for eternity. It’s not a lecture on being rich, but rather it’s a reminder to be ready!

In the same manner, however “rich” we really are, we could all still be fools.

1. without reason
2. senseless, foolish, stupid
3. without reflection or intelligence, acting rashly

Regardless of our economic class, our race our gender or our political opinions, theology, unless we get ready, we’ll be ill-prepared to meet the God of eternity.

Have an Eternal Perspective

As the saying goes – there are never going to be any U-hauls behind hearses.

We will all face eternity someday and leave behind all the material possessions we invested our life energy into.

The only things that go with us are our good works done for the Kingdom, and the spiritual fruit of our Christlike character. These are the kinds of acts, deeds of service we receive eternal rewards for (they aren’t the means to salvation).

That means we should all live our lives with an eternal perspective in all we do.

What does that [Ecclesiastes 3:11] eternal perspective look like on a daily basis?

Realize Life Is Short

Psalm 37:1-2 The Message

37 ^1-2 Don’t bother your head with braggarts
    or wish you could succeed like the wicked.
In no time they’ll shrivel like grass clippings
    and wilt like cut flowers in the sun.

James 4:13-15 The Message

Nothing but a Wisp of Fog

^13-15 And now I have a word for you who brashly announce, “Today—at the latest, tomorrow—we’re off to such and such a city for the year. We’re going to start a business and make a lot of money.” You don’t know the first thing about tomorrow. You’re nothing but a wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before disappearing. Instead, make it a habit to say, “If the Master wills it and we’re still alive, we’ll do this or that.”

We humans are funny when it comes to our ages. Kids can’t wait to grow up.

They proudly count months in addition to years on their fingers.

Teenagers cannot wait to hit the big benchmarks that allow them greater freedoms: college, driving, working, living independently, voting, married.

Middle-age folks look to slowing it down and we begin to fudge on our ages, remaining 29 years old several years in a row, if not the rest of our lives hiding the telltale signs of aging with hair dye, young fashions and gym memberships.

Eventually, it becomes bad form to even ask how old someone is, so we avoid the subject in polite company. But eventually, a person may get to be so old we can ask again, becomes a cause of surprise, celebration they are still with us!

But no matter how many years we each experience here on this fallen earth, it’s simply a wisp of vapor compared to timeless eternity. In that light, as Jesus was saying, it’s foolish to place greater emphasis on our well-being today than our well-being in eternity. When we truly understand how short our days are, we will live our lives with a greater view to how our actions affect and influence others, and how it furthers or hinders God’s plan and purpose here on earth.

Prioritize What Matters Most

Remember Jesus called the guy a fool not because he was financially well off, but because God was not visible in the equation. The man was simply playing Monopoly with his life; he thought he was winning when he was actually losing.

So what does it mean to live our lives in such a way that we are “rich” toward God? One meaning would be to live in a way that pleases Him, by loving Him our neighbors, ourselves, with all our heart, soul, mind and strength (Mark 12:30).

Another meaning would be that we live with purpose – following the will of God for your individual life. When we fully commit to doing God’s will in our lives, we move from playing Monopoly money to actively preparing for our eternity.

But being rich toward God also means prioritizing people.

If we truly want to be ready for eternity, we should do everything in our power to make other people the central focus of our lives. After all, people are the most important thing to God! People are the reason for both creation and the Cross.

If you love God, with all you are, you will love His people, from every nation, tribe and tongue (Revelation 7:9-10)! So if we are going to be rich toward God and be ready for eternity, our lives need to be not self but other people focused.

Love Openly, Reconcile Quickly, Forgive Freely

Tell people that you care, tell them how valuable they are, tell them you love and appreciate them. Tell them you miss them. Slow down and make time for them in your schedule. Playing Monopoly and acquiring stuff is not nearly as important as making sure people know how valuable they are, to you, to God.

Luke 14:7-9 The Message

Invite the Misfits

^7-9 He went on to tell a story to the guests around the table. Noticing how each had tried to elbow into the place of honor, he said, “When someone invites you to dinner, don’t take the place of honor. Somebody more important than you might have been invited by the host. Then he’ll come and call out in front of everybody, ‘You’re in the wrong place. The place of honor belongs to this man.’ Embarrassed, you’ll have to make your way to the very last table, the only place left.

John 21:15-23 Amplified Bible

The Love Motivation

¹⁵ So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I ^[a] love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.” ¹⁶  Again He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” ¹⁷ He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me  [with a deep, personal affection for Me, as for a close friend]?” Peter was grieved that He asked him the third time, “Do you [really] ^[b]love Me [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend]?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know everything; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him,  “Feed My sheep.”

Our Times Are in His Hand

¹⁸ I assure you and most solemnly say to you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and walked wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and arms, and someone else will dress you, and carry you where you do not wish to go.” ¹⁹ Now He said this to indicate the ^[c] kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after saying this, He said to him, “Follow Me [walk the same path of life that I have walked]!”

²⁰ Peter turned and saw the ^[d]disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had leaned back on His chest at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray You?” ²¹ So when Peter saw him, he asked Jesus, “Lord, and what about this ^[e]man [what is in his future]?” ²² Jesus said to him, “If I want him to stay alive until I come [again], what is that to you? You follow Me!” ²³ So this word went out among the brothers that this disciple (John) was not going to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not going to die, but only, “If I want him to stay alive until I come [again], what is that to you?”

“Follow me [walk the very same path of life that I have walked!]” “Feed my Lambs, Shepherd my sheep, Feed my sheep!” Jesus quietly commissions Peter.

All who have met the living Lord are commanded, covenanted, to follow him.

In following Jesus, Peter ended up in Rome, where he died for his faith.

Tradition has it Peter was crucified like Jesus, except that Peter requested to be crucified upside down, to show that he was not worthy to die as Jesus had died.

Following Jesus brought Peter to a cross.

We often forget that following Jesus brings sacrifice. Jesus says to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).

Matthew 16:24-26 The Message

^24-26 Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for?

Some Christians seem to think that when you are a Christian you are on easy street. But living the Christian life is not always easy. If you stand up for Jesus, you will be in conflict with the powers of this world. In many places around the world, many Christians suffer mightily and sometimes even die for their faith.

In our reading for today, Peter wonders what will happen to the apostle John (John 13:25), but Jesus tells Peter that he must focus instead on following Jesus.

Matthew 7:13-14 The Message

Being and Doing

^13-14 “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.

We must always remember that we cannot ever follow both Jesus and the world.

And we must definitely not get sidetracked in wondering about the Lord’s plans for other believers. We each need to be true, be faithful in the calling he gives us.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 16 The Message

16 ^1-2 Keep me safe, O God,
    I’ve run for dear life to you.
I say to God, “Be my Lord!”
    Without you, nothing makes sense.

³ And these God-chosen lives all around—
    what splendid friends they make!

⁴ Don’t just go shopping for a god.
    Gods are not for sale.
I swear I’ll never treat god-names
    like brand-names.

^5-6 My choice is you, God, first and only.
    And now I find I’m your choice!
You set me up with a house and yard.
    And then you made me your heir!

^7-8 The wise counsel God gives when I’m awake
    is confirmed by my sleeping heart.
Day and night I’ll stick with God;
    I’ve got a good thing going and I’m not letting go.

^9-10 I’m happy from the inside out,
    and from the outside in, I’m firmly formed.
You canceled my ticket to hell—
    that’s not my destination!

¹¹ Now you’ve got my feet on the life path,
    all radiant from the shining of your face.
Ever since you took my hand,
    I’m on the right way.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

https://translate.google.com/