One’s life does not consist of possessions. (Luke 12:15)
Let’s get one thing clear from the start: Jesus didn’t call the rich man in his parable a fool because of his wealth. Rather, his folly had to do with where he placed his hope. “Bigger
storehouses! That’s the ticket,” he reasoned when he had an exceedingly good harvest. With storehouses full of food and goods, he was sure he would live a worry-free life.Worry free? Hardly! What if the storehouses are raided? I should build a fence. What if they burn down? I need insurance. What if the rates go up? What if my goods spoil? I should
probably make sure they’re environmentally controlled. What if that breaks? Imagine if the man had placed the Lord of the harvest ahead of the harvest itself? Then the source of his hope would not have been one prosperous season but the One who is provider and sustainer of life year in and year out.
What the rich fool couldn’t understand is that our lives are sustained day to day, moment to moment, by the Father. Here’s one way to look at it. Once you turn on your television, it stays on only because it continues to draw power from an electrical source. When you turn it off, it no longer has “life.” It doesn’t matter how many stations you get via satellite or the cool all-in-one remote you have. In a sense, we are similar. We have life because God is sourcing our lives, and we will enjoy that life only to the degree that we are “plugged into” it. It is only as we maintain continuous, life-giving contact with the Lord that we will thrive.
Only then will we experience a greater sense of joy and freedom, power over temptation, peace in the midst of life’s challenges, and a lasting sense of dignity and purpose.
So how will you respond when “your life will be demanded of you” (Luke 12:20)? By showing the Lord the material wealth you have accumulated? Or by giving him a life that
has relied again and again and again on his love and providence?“Lord, I choose to hope in you rather than in stored-up earthly wealth. Markets fluctuate, and riches may come and go. But you are unchanging. You are my true treasure.”
Romans 4:20-25; (Psalm) Luke 1:69-75
Father Ed Bakker
Anglican Catholic Church / Original Province
Mission of Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne
Bendigo
Australia
