A Sobering Truth
When you die, someone else is going to get all your stuff. There are no U-Haul’s behind hurses. When this world ends, all the toys go back in the box. Whoever dies with the most stuff, still dies.
You may’ve heard these cliches about the temporary nature of our possessions. These sobering truths are never clearer to me than when Suzy and I visit an estate sale. We like to go looking for gardening supplies and rare books. And honestly it sort of freaks me out every time! Walking through someone’s house and looking through all their stuff, knowing they recently died, feels like an invasion of their privacy. But alas, where else can you find so many cheap books!
It’s good to remember that, when we die, the things we’ve accumulated in life pass on to someone else because it helps reorient what we’re living for. One of the most basic beliefs of the Christian faith is that the things we can’t see are more important than the things we can see. The apostle Paul says it like this, “What is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” Therefore, “We do not focus on what is seen, but what is unseen” (2 Cor. 4:18, CSB).
What Does Wealth Have to Do with Discipleship?
In our text today, Jesus says the same thing but in a different way. He tells a short story, a parable, about a rich man whose goal was accumulating as much as possible in this life while forgetting to consider the next life.
Jesus has been teaching about fearing God above man (Lk. 12:4-5) and about acknowledging him as Lord even when it’s difficult (vv. 8-9). But then he shifts gears to talk about wealth. Why does he move from discussing discipleship to discussing wealth? Because what we do with our money reveals something about our discipleship. In fact, as one writer says, “The first question regarding discipleship is what one does with money.”[1] What we treasure reveals what we love, and what we love reveals what we follow. Jesus’ followers, therefore, are called to have a unique relationship with money and possessions. This is why Jesus tells a short parable about the dangers of greed in the context of teaching on discipleship.
We’ll begin by asking, what is greed (vv. 13-15)? Then ask why is it deadly (vv. 16-20)? And finally, how can we fight it (v. 21)?
What is Greed?
First, let’s see how this section begins and ask what is greed? In verse 13, someone in the crowd asks Jesus to arbitrate a dispute with his brother over their inheritance. As some of you know, conflict amongst siblings over inheritance can be sticky and tricky.
But Jesus chooses to not get sucked into the conflict (v. 14). When he’s approached by people wanting his decision or opinion on an issue, he often redirects the focus, usually saying something like, “Look at yourself first.” Why? Because he’s interested in more fundamental issues, heart level issues like covetousness, or greed (v. 15).
What Do Veruca Salt, Smaug, and Scrooge Have in Common?
What is greed? Some examples from books and movies may help illustrate what greed is. In Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Veruca Salt heard that Willy Wonka was giving away golden tickets hidden in chocolate candy bars, so she gets her father to buy all the chocolate bars until they find a ticket. When she gets to the factory, she sings about her greed: “I want the world. I want the whole world. I want to lock it all up in my pocket.” Fortunately, Willy Wonka sees her greed and kicks her out of the factory. Her greed led to pouting and anger and impatience and even violence, destroying some of the factory when she didn’t get what she wanted.
Then there’s the mighty dragon Smaug in The Hobbit. Smaug has an all-consuming obsession and insatiable desire for gold. His greed is so intense that he notices when just one cup is stolen from his hoard. His possessiveness is characteristic of any who have more than they need but can’t bear to lose any of it. His greed motivates his destructive behavior when he burns down Laketown when his treasure is threatened. His greed spreads like a disease, corrupting Thorin Oakenshield with the obsessive desire for gold. The disease of greed consumes his heart and eclipses reason and wisdom. Smaug teaches us that greed isolates people (and dragons), hardens hearts, undermines trust, and leads to conflict and poor judgment.
Then there’s Ebenezer Scrooge. He was very rich but wouldn’t give his employees time off during Christmas and he refused to give to the poor. He had more money than heart, and it took a dramatic intervention to help him see the hurt he was causing.
Veruca Salt, Smaug, and Scrooge were all overcome by greed. Their greed was hidden in their hearts but visible in their actions. It led to isolation and injury, both to themselves and to others. This is why greed is considered a deadly sin.
More, More, More
Greed has been defined as “the desire to have more, to get one’s hands on whatever one can, to acquire without reference to one’s own specific needs or the situation of others.”[2] Greed is an inner impulse that leads to evil deeds. And it starts growing in our hearts at a young age. It’s why we want the bigger slice of pizza or more toys than our siblings, why we refuse to let someone else have a turn on the video game.
But greed lives in all our hearts, no matter the age. We see it when we don’t want to share with others and when we aren’t content with what we have. It’s also seen at a cultural level when workers aren’t paid fair wages while the C-suite makes millions and billions of dollars, or when firing long-time employees happens to save the company money, or when natural resources are exploited without regard to how it may affect future generations or the environment. It’s seen in a litigious culture that files around 50 million lawsuits annually. It’s seen when we marry someone for their money or evade income taxes. It’s seen when the prices of basic goods and commodities are inflated because the powers that be know people desperately depend on them. The ultimate example of greed in America is the toilet paper crisis of 2020. That was revealing!
Greed is part of the downfall of any people. In his book City of God, Augustine talks about how greedy and corrupt Rome became after Carthage was defeated in the second century BC: “After the destruction of Carthage there came the highest pitch of discord, greed, ambition, and all the evils which generally spring up in times of prosperity.” He talked about “the moral deterioration, which set in during times of prosperity,” especially how it effected young people. He said, “The young were so corrupted by luxury and greed that it was justly observed that a generation had arisen which could neither keep its own property or allow others to keep theirs.”[3] Rome’s prosperity led to greed which led to all sorts of sins, eventually leading to destruction.
A Serious Sin
Greed was a serious sin before Augustine, even in the early churches. Paul groups greed with the sins of sexual immorality and impurity in Ephesians 5:3, “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.” And in Colossians he says covetousness is idolatry (3:5).
The word for “greed” in verse 15 describes a striving for material possessions in a way that takes advantage of one’s neighbor. It’s an “active striving for the increase of material possessions as a means of security”[4] and “a special threat to the new life of the Christian. It brings him under an ungodly and demonic spell which completely separates him from God through serving an alien power.”[5] The first Christians had Jesus’ words in mind: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” (Mt. 6:24). Greed was so serious that Paul says that Christians shouldn’t associate with greedy people (1 Cor. 5:9-11).
Guard against Greed
Jesus says we should “be on our guard” against greed (Lk. 12:15a). Why should we guard against greed? Because, as he says next, “one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions” (v. 15b).
Greed is dangerous because it disorients our hearts about what’s truly important in life. It leads us to think and act as if life is about stuff. It convinces us that material things are more important than spiritual things.
Jesus knows that our attitude toward possessions effects our openness toward God. The more we love and trust and need stuff, the less we’ll love and trust and need God.
Why is Greed Deadly?
To illustrate why greed is deadly for a disciple, Jesus tells a short parable in verses 16-20. Jesus tells a story of a rich man whose business had a really good year (v. 16). But his flourishing field presents a problem – he doesn’t have enough room to store his crops (v. 17). So he comes up with a solution – he’ll tear down his barns and build bigger ones (v. 18). So far this man is a model of forward-thinking, practical wisdom, and decisive action.
But verse 19 reveals that something’s off in his heart. He thinks that having an abundance of provision means he can check out and live life on his terms. His desire is to protect and enjoy his fortune. He doesn’t mention helping others. He only plans to take care of himself.
So God comes to him in verse 20 and calls him a “fool.” Death intervenes and aborts his plans. He’s suddenly forced to see how foolish he was to see his possessions as a basis for his life and security. He suddenly sees how little control he actually has over his life. What he thinks is his own, his soul, he learns is only on loan and is now suddenly demanded from him.
As you hear about this guys success, you may think, “Good for you!” So what did he do wrong to bring God’s negative verdict? God calls him a fool, what was his folly?
His folly was assuming that the essence and the security of his life was his wealth. The parable is a commentary on the last half of verse 15. This man believed that his life was about the abundance of his possessions.
This man is an example of a greedy heart that leaves God out of the picture. He put his security in his possessions, but his possessions didn’t make him secure.
The reason this man is a fool is because he had the wrong focus in life. He focused on preparing things for himself. He focused on securing his own economic future. He focused on accumulating wealth. But life should not be focused on self or stuff, but on God. And if it’s not focused on God, dying will produce instant and eternal regret. And someone else will get all your stuff (v. 20b).
Greed is deadly because it leads us away from what really matters, namely, God. And living without God results in dying and going to hell.
How Can We Fight Greed?
If left unaddressed, greed can send us to hell. Therefore, we should fight it relentlessly. How can we fight greed? Verse 21 shows us the way.
We fight greed by fighting the temptation to accumulate stuff for ourselves, “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself” (v. 21a). The one who accumulates wealth merely for him or herself is a fool like this rich man in Jesus’ parable.
How do you know if this is you? How do you know if you’re living for possessions? Consider whether you’re working so much that good things in your life are suffering, all so that you can “make it” professionally? Is your work hurting your health, your family, your friendships, your faith? Are you preoccupied with your investments, checking them daily to see how they’re doing? Do you spend more time strategizing how you can get rather than how you can give? Do you consistently fail to give any of your resources away to help others?
This leads to the second way we fight greed: by being radically generous toward God, “(the rich fool) is not rich toward God” (v. 21b). Giving to God is how we fight greed.
How do we give to God? Jesus’ parable doesn’t tell us how to do this, but in the next section he says that those who belong to him should live with radical generosity (vv. 32-33).
Being “rich toward God” means using our material resources to help those in need. What does this look like? Look up two sermons on our website, “The Church’s Generosity, Part 1 and 2,” for more information on this topic.[6]
I’ll summarize here by saying that “being rich toward God” is not something that American Christians do well. Researchers have found that the average American Christian only gives 2.9% of their income to church or charity. Jews and Mormons give more than Christians in America. If each American Christian gave 10%, there would be an extra $46 billion for kingdom work.
Give the Firstfruits
In the Old Testament, we find this idea of giving a tithe of our firstfruits to God (Deut. 26:1-13). This way of giving fit nicely into an agrarian society like ancient Israel, but it applies today as well. You see, farmers don’t know what their income for the year will be until the harvest comes in. If we were farmers, we’d probably decide what to give based on that. That would seem like the natural thing to do. But God says not to do it that way. He says to give of the firstfruits, not the last fruits. He says to give before we know how big the harvest will be.
Why? Because if we give out of the surplus, it’s just giving what we can afford to give without changing the way we live. God didn’t want his people to give out of their leftovers, but to give out of the heart of their income, to give past the place they think they can afford to give, to give in a way that changes the way they live, to give sacrificially, to give until it hurts. If we only give out of the surplus, then our giving doesn’t affect the way we live. But our giving should affect the way we live, where we eat, live, what we drive, where and how we vacation, what clothes and technology we buy.
If we only give out of the surplus, then when hard times come, we won’t give. But the principle of giving the firstfruits says that we should give out of scarcity, not surplus. Giving the firstfruits means that we trust God to provide everything we need.
Where and How Much Do We Give?
Deuteronomy also talks about where we should give and how much. Verse 12 talks about giving to “the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.” So we give to the ministry, the “Levite”, to those who keep watch over us and feed us spiritually. And we give to the poor, the sojourner, widow, and orphan. Our Church Covenant says, “We covenant to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church, the relief of the poor, and the spread of the gospel through all nations.”
But how much should we give? Deuteronomy 26:12 mentions the principle of tithing. The New Testament doesn’t command Christians to tithe, but this doesn’t mean that tithing can’t be a useful principle in our giving. And Jesus or the apostles never tell us not to tithe.
The tithe can be a good starting point for our giving. Randy Alcorn compares tithing to a baby’s first steps. They aren’t their last or best steps, but they’re a start. He says tithing can be like training wheels, or a mechanism to help you start giving. After a while, you don’t need the wheels.[7] It therefore seems wise to start our giving at ten percent and see where God takes it from there.
When Suzy and I got married, we had quite a bit of debt so we sat down with a financial planner from our church. He helped us make a plan to get out of debt and challenged us to keep tithing even while we paid off our debt. In about a year, we were out of debt and the Lord provided everything we needed. And as we’ve continued to give a tithe of our firstfruits to God every month, it’s been amazing how he’s provided for us, again and again and again. We’re living proof of the truth of Proverbs 3:9-10, “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.”
So we fight against greed by fighting the temptation to accumulate more and more stuff and by radical generosity.
A Message for All
This message is for all people, not just wealthy people. You don’t have to be rich to live like this rich fool. It’s easier for the wealthy to pile up possessions, but those without much can be just as driven by greed and just as focused on things instead of God.
Whether rich or poor or somewhere in between, one obvious arena this parable needs to be heard is in how we view retirement. On the one hand, wise planning is commended in Scripture. But the American vision of retirement is not. The idea that we should save as much as possible so we can retire as soon as possible and spend our wealth on ourselves in the last couple decades of our life is not an idea we find in Scripture. As one writer says, “Our view of retirement…looks very much like the rich fool’s soliloquy. We are not content to make a living; we want to make a killing or at least enough to retire early. But life is not about taking our ease and taking care of ourselves. To be ‘rich toward God’ means to live productively, reflecting the character of God in all our relations,” and for as long as we live.[8]
How do you view retirement? How do you view your money? How do you view possessions?
All of these questions are downstream from the more fundamental question of how you view your life in relation to God? Is God the center of your life, the organizing principle around which everything else spins? Is he the Treasure you’re living for? If so, greed will start to die and radical generosity will start to grow in your heart because our heart always follows what we treasure.
God’s grace is what will make God more important than money to you (2 Cor. 8:9). We can be rich toward God because he became poor for us.
The gospel of grace changes our hearts so that we say, “To you who boast tomorrow’s gain, tell me, what is your life? A mist that vanishes at dawn, all glory be to Christ!”
[1]Klyne R. Snodgrass, Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2018), 389.
[2]John Nolland, Luke 9:21-18:34, Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 35b (Dallas: Word Books, 1993), 685.
[3]Augustine, City of God, trans. Henry Bettenson (London: Penguin Books, 2003), 68-9.
[4]Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, 6:271.
[5]Ibid.
[6]The Church’s Generosity, Part 1 – Preston Highlands Baptist Church, The Church’s Generosity, Part 2 – Preston Highlands Baptist Church
[7]Randy Alcorn, The Treasure Principle: Unlocking the Secret of Joyful Giving (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Publishers, 2001), 63-7.
[8]Snodgrass, 401.