Lighthouse scribes

Luke 12:15 AMPC
[15] And He said to them, Guard yourselves and keep free from all covetousness (the immoderate desire for wealth, the greedy longing to have more); for a man’s life does not consist in and is not derived from possessing overflowing abundance or that which is over and above his needs.
The first time I heard the parable of the rich fool was on a beautiful day during my family’s morning devotion. I was probably nine or ten, and all my life we had used the Daily Guide published by Scripture Union for family devotion. As usual, we would take turns to read the verses, and the guide reader for the day had done so. Afterward, my parents further explained and gave us the room to add our comments or ask our questions. I still remember not understanding why God was upset at a man for making good plans. I didn’t understand that with God, the state of our heart even in the things that were good on the outward and had been achieved without breaking any rules, mattered.

Let’s examine the parable and the request that led up to it.
[13] Someone from the crowd said to Him, Master, order my brother to divide the inheritance and share it with me.
This chapter began with Jesus speaking first to the disciples and then to the larger audience of thousands of people. From verses 4–7, He spoke about dependence on God and how we are of great value to God. He was teaching them to focus on what’s important: their value and place in God. Suddenly, a man from the crowd asked him to be an arbitrator in an inheritance dispute.

This reminded me of when I have tried to explain the importance of kindness and generosity to young kids, only to see them instantly do the exact opposite, showing that nothing was learned from what I had said. 

Was Jesus saying that we shouldn’t rightfully or legally seek to recover what is ours? No. In Jesus’ response, we see exactly what the issue was, because unlike men, Jesus saw his heart and knew that underlying a request for justice was a covetous heart.
Luke 12:15 AMPC
[15] And He said to them, Guard yourselves and keep free from all covetousness (the immoderate desire for wealth, the greedy longing to have more); for a man’s life does not consist in and is not derived from possessing overflowing abundance or that which is over and above his needs.

The Rich Fool (Luke 12:13-21)

This story sounds like the aspiration of humans in general: the hope that every labor will yield a great harvest, that we have more than enough for ourselves, for generations, and to do good. So, what was the problem? He did not desire what was not his. He did not cheat to get his success. So, why did God judge his ‘good stewardship’ and find him wanting?
Are you familiar with a phrase common in the Christian community about generational wealth? Have you heard ministers preach to the congregation to desire the kind of riches that can be passed on to generations or used for the propagation of the gospel? We often think that once the issue of finance is taken out of the life equation, everything else is sorted. We want to be comfortable and have no worries about material things, but are we buffeting our bodies at the expense of our souls? Also, is God not clear that He takes care of us, and so when we work hard, it should not be so that we can amass riches and consequently have more than enough for ourselves and for generations after? See Matt 6:19-21; 25-33.

Genesis 1:28 NLT
[28] Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
Genesis 2:15 NLT
[15] The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it.

The Bible links riches to hard work and diligence (Proverbs), but God also links riches to our motive and character. When all is said and done, we are left with one question: Why do we want what we want?

God’s Verdict
Luke 12:20 NLT
[20] “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’ ”
Luke 12:21 AMPC
[21] So it is with the one who continues to lay up and hoard possessions for himself and is not rich [in his relation] to God [this is how he fares].
God killed the rich fool.
There are two things that cannot co-exist that Jesus spoke about: the love of God and mammon (money, wealth). In God’s parable, He concluded that the rich fool made his wealth a priority over God. Is God saying we should not be rich or leave inheritances to our grandchildren? No. Through scriptures, God has continually reminded us that we must depend on Him. Whether He was telling Gideon to fight with a smaller army or He was giving Israel an unusual battle strategy that did not seem to match the enemy horde before them; whether He was telling Israel’s king not to amass battle horses or telling the Israelites not to gather too much manna, the lesson has always been that anything we do with the intention to make us self-sufficient or self-reliant is anti-God. Such things will draw us away from God and weaken our relationship with God.

1 Timothy 6:9-10 NLT
[9] But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. [10] For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

I love the Bible, among many things, because it reminds us that we must never think we are ‘there’ and we are above a particular sin/iniquity/transgression. But we must continually seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness, because we are continually being changed as we behold God’s glory.

Finally
I will leave you with Paul’s words to Timothy.
1 Timothy 6:11-12 ESV
[11] But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. [12] Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
May our hearts be a fruitful ground to the seed of God’s word. Amen.

Love,
Osi

P.S Please read the text in the Bible and share what you’ve learnt.

P.P.S I apologise for the hiatus.

P.P.P.S How have you been? Really.