Avoid Being ‘The Rich Fool’
June 3, 2008 – 6:19 amThe parable of the rich fool is found in the Bible in Luke Chapter 8:13-21, and holds some key concepts that warrant discussion.
The Parable of the Rich Fool
13Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
16And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. 17He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
18“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ‘
20“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
Clearly Greed is Wrong
I think on some level we’re all competitive and like to compare ourselves to others. I always like comparing myself to the average statistics published in Money magazine and others for my age group in order to see where I stand. This comparison mentality can yield the desire to improve, but it can also be misguided and lead to greed and envy. We are all unique, and we have been given different skills, abilities, and environments. We should try to do the best we can with what we’ve been given rather than worry about getting more than others or “our fair share”.
Hoarding is Wrong
I struggle with drawing the line between diligent planning and hoarding. Am I giving enough? Am I really trusting in God or am I trying to remove my dependency on Him through monetary wealth? These are the things that have been rattling through my mind, and I’m still searching and praying for direction.
The Easy Life Is Not Condemned Explicitly
Jesus did not explicitly condemn retirement or living the easy life. I wish He had been more clear on the topic, but He knows better than I. I do know that in the New Testament Paul worked to provide for himself so that he wouldn’t be a burden to others. And Paul instructed the early church that those who didn’t work shouldn’t eat. I believe we should be productive our entire lives, but this doesn’t necessarily imply working a 9-5 job or drawing a steady income. Some may be called to evangelize, others to be stay at home parents. Likewise some may be called to work and earn income in order to fund God’s work. Have you ever considered that your spiritual gift is earning income that could be used to help others?
We All Need To Be Rich Towards God
I’m not sure what qualifies being rich towards God, but I want to find out. I think finding balance in this area is a difficult one, because giving more money away in most peoples’ minds equates to having less for themselves. Everything we have is God’s though, and he can make more of it or less of it as He sees fit. It’s not a zero sum game where there’s one winner and one loser.
I think the last verse also speaks to storing more than one needs. Saving, investing, and preparing for the future are all clearly recommended in the Bible. And so is support the Church and those in need. We need to find the correct balance between the two, through study and prayer.
Question: if you’re planning to retire early and are a Christian, do you believe your retirement activities will serve God’s purpose better than continuing to work and donate the income to God’s work?
| 2.5 |
If You Liked This Post Then Please Check These Out...
|
1 Trackback(s)