(Luke 12:15-21) “Then 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.” (Vs.16” And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. (Vs.17) And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ (Vs.18) Then 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. (Vs.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.”’ (Vs.20) 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?’ (Vs.21) So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Today in the western democracies we see people going about their business, living their lives, getting married, building their fortunes, pursuing their chosen careers, indulging in the pleasures of their fleshly appetites and that without having any checks and balances spiritually speaking. In this teaching the Lord Jesus spoke about a certain businessman related to the reality of one’s temporal life on this earth. Now let’s look at Luke 12:15-21.
(Vs.15) “Then 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.”
Greed comes in many forms today. It can be greed for recognition, fame, success, possessions, for money or to satiate ones fleshy appetites and desires unabated. The Lord Jesus was emphatic in His statement when He said “Beware” or “watch out.” He knew the power of Satan to incite the fallen passions, desires and selfish ambitions of fallen man to gratify the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). The world for the most part does not respect a person for what, or who they are, but what they portray themselves to be. Success, wealth, recognition of one’s achievements and fame and power are the name of the game for recognition in this fallen world estranged from its creator.
However, the Lord Jesus went on to say that a person’s life does not consist of his abundant possessions. He was not saying that possessions in themselves were wrong but knew the subtlety of Satan’s lure of having things good in this world to get people to bite the bait and be hooked to do his bidding and ultimately to bring them down to perdition. If we do have possessions in this world we need to watch out that they do not possess us! Of course God’s definition of abundance in scripture is not the world’s definition of it. God does give an abundant life but it is an abundance of spiritual wealth primarily even though He also meets our physical needs. True abundance is to have a living and personal relationship with God through the Messiah our Lord Jesus (John 17:3) (John 10:10).
Did not the Messiah Himself our Lord Jesus say about His Father; “But seek and keep on seeking first God’s kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 5:33). He also said; “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled with it” (Matthew 5:6). Many within wider Christendom today hunger and thirst after miracles, signs, wonders, healings, prophecies and prosperity and having things good in this world but very few today hunger and thirst after righteousness or that holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14).
A famous preacher once said; “A ship in the water is okay but water in the ship isn’t.” It takes a supernatural act of God to save us out of the world but it takes time to get the world out of us. This process is called sanctification, the means that God uses to set us apart from the world, the flesh and the devil and to use us for His good, acceptable and perfectly divine will for our life (Romans 12:1-2). Because His blood has fully atoned for our sins and has provided redemption when we repent and believe on Him who shed His blood to deliver us from sin’s power and from this present evil age, He pardons, forgives and cleanses us from all sin by His blood and then seals us with the blessed Holy Spirit because we have heard and believed the Word of Truth (1 John 1:7-9) (Ephesians 1:7, 13).
For the unsaved person they are still under the power of Satan and sin and are headed for Hades (Hell). Now the Lord Jesus went on to speak about a certain businessman who had been very successful and thought to himself how he could even get more wealth to enjoy in life but was not rich towards God. However, he was in for a very rude awakening! Now let’s look at this.
(Vs.16-19) “And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ Then 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. 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.”’
Now the soul is that part of us that consists of the intellect, the emotions and the will. As for the inner spirit it is spiritually dead and only the blessed Holy Spirit can spiritually regenerate it and impart to the inner spirit the very eternal life and nature of God resulting in being joined to the Lord and being one spirit in Him. God’s thoughts, desires and His will become ours. We have the mind of the Messiah and start to conform our thinking to His thinking aided of course by the blessed Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:1-4) (1 Corinthians 6:17) (1 Corinthians 2:16) (Romans 8:29). With man this is impossible but with God nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37).
Now this businessman we are told was well attuned to the dictates of his soul and was revelling in his success and achievements in this life in the business world and looking forward to becoming more successful and gaining more property and wealth. He spoke these thoughts with great warmth to his soul, engaging his thoughts, his feelings and especially his will about his future success in this life. However, he had not reckoned on having to face God.
Like many businessmen today he thought that he still had many years to go to build up his wealth and that his demise was not even on his radar as it were. Because he had a lot of wealth and possessions he was looking forward to taking things easy and enjoying life’s pleasures, eating out at the best restaurants in town, possibly travelling to exotic locations and being merry, drinking with his colleagues in the bars and nightclubs and at his business functions where he would be rubbing shoulders with the rich, the famous and the successful. Now let’s continue.
(Vs.20-21) “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 stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
While he was sitting in his house in the cool of the evening contemplating all that he had and had achieved in this life, and thinking he had many more years to enjoy it all, the Lord took His life and his soul was lost for eternity. God called him a fool, the man was not congenitally foolish but in professing to be wise and accomplished in his own eyes he thought he was so clever and successful, however, in God’s eyes he was acting like a fool! Did not our Lord Jesus say; “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and for the gospel will save it. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mark 8:35-37). All that this business man had laboured for under the sun was all left behind for someone else. It is also written; “As a man came from his mother’s womb, so he will depart again, naked as he arrived. He takes nothing for his labour to carry in his hands” (Ecclesiastes 5:15).
Did not the Lord Jesus also say; “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21). Serving the Lord Jesus, obeying his commandments in the power of the Holy Spirit, using the gifts God has given us to do His bidding and sharing the gospel when appropriate to do so, will enable us to lay up true spiritual treasures in the bank vaults of heaven where they will be kept for safekeeping and the basis upon which we will receive our rewards at the judgement seat of the Messiah (2 Corinthians 5:10).
This businessman was rich towards himself but not rich toward God. This man had his reward in this life and there was no further reward to come. After he was jettisoned into eternity to face the God he had rejected all of his life down here on earth he would now pay the price for his ‘foolishness.’ Someone was watching the funeral possession of Aristotle Onassis the mega Shipping Magnate and billionaire and the bystander asked the man standing next to him “How much did Mr Onassis leave behind?” The other man replied; “Everything!”
If you are a businessman and you relate to the businessman in this teaching of the Lord Jesus and as yet you are as still in your sins and headed down the highway to hell, will you now consider Him to whom all of us must give an account? God gave His one and only begotten Son the Lord Jesus to shed his life’s blood to atone for your sins that you might be reconciled to God and restored into a personal relationship with Him for eternity (John 3:16-18) (2 Corinthians 5:19). The question you must answer is “have you trusted the Lord Jesus to save you from the power of sin and have you a desire to even now turn in repentance to God and by faith in the Messiah Jesus to receive Him as your personal saviour and Lord?”
You may think it is a decision you can make before you die at the end of your life or at some other time when you are not so busy, but what if God should require your soul tonight? Are you ready to meet Him? Will your success, your wealth and your colleagues be able to save you? As it is written; “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). As it is also written “Today if you hear His voice do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 3:8a). As it is also written; “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring” (Proverbs 27:1).
You may well be at the pinnacle of success and think that nothing can stop you climbing up the corporate ladder but it may be that you will hear God say “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 stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” The question that remains to be answered is “Are You Rich Toward God?
