"And one out of the multitude said unto Him, 'Teacher, bid my brother divide the inheritance with me.' But He said unto him, 'Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?' And He said unto them, 'Take heed, and keep yourselves from all covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in abundance of the things which he possesseth.' And He spake a parable unto them, saying, 'The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: and he reasoned within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, because I have not where to bestow my fruits?' And he said, 'This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, be merry.' But God said unto him, 'Thou foolish one, this night is thy soul required of thee; and the things which thou hast prepared, whose shall they be?' So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." (Luke 12:13-21)

It is amazing how indifferent, even rude, some people are when others are speaking. Sometimes we just aren't listening, no matter how great the subject or speaker may be. In the context of Luke 12, Jesus, the Master teacher, was teaching "the many thousands of the multitudes." As He taught them about the danger of hypocrisy (Luke 12:1-3), the comfort that comes from acknowledging God's universal providence, the importance of fearing God (Luke 12:4-7) and confessing Him before others (Luke 12:8-12), "One out of the multitude said unto him, 'Teacher, bid my brother divide the inheritance with me.'"

What a rude and selfish interruption. What arrogance to think that a personal squabble between brothers about property was more important than the grand themes Jesus was teaching the multitudes. It was an attempt to enlist Jesus on the side of one of the disputants in a family quarrel. Jesus very pointedly responded, "Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?" Legal tribunals were established to settle such disputes. The Lord refused to make it His mission to meddle directly in such affairs. He refused to arbitrate the matter. This prompted Him to warn the multitudes about the dangers of covetousness and the foolishness of placing one's confidence in earthly riches.

The man's problem was covetousness. Jesus warned the multitude, "Take heed, and keep yourselves from all covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in abundance of the things which he possesseth." (Luke 12:15) Covetousness is defined as "a strong desire to acquire more and more material possessions or to possess more things than other people have, all irrespective of need - greed, avarice" (from Greek-English Lexicon Based on Semantic Domain. Copyright (c) 1988 United Bible Societies, New York).

Life, in the breadth and depth of its significance, does not consist of possessions, but of character; and true riches belong to those whose souls are rich toward God. Jesus taught, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also." (Matthew 6:19-21) At the very root of being possessed by our possessions is the sin of covetousness, which is idolatry.

The apostle Paul taught, "Put to death therefore your members which are upon the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry; for which things' sake cometh the wrath of God upon the sons of disobedience." (Colossians 3:5-6) Man's life here consists of honoring and serving God our Maker, not making money.

The Parable

This man was richly blessed. His crops had produced abundantly. As he considered his situation, he made plans to build greater barns to store his future crops. He planned--much like we do--to retire and enjoy the fruits of his labors for many years. Yet, God called him a fool. That very night, he was going to die, and his soul would be required of him. The things he had provided would belong to another. Though this man had great possessions, he was not rich toward God.

The Application

This man was a fool because he reasoned that he would have his material possessions forever. He thought he had a perpetual lease on life and that he could satisfy it with material things. At best, life is brief. James 4:14 states, "What is your life? For ye are as a vapor that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." Psalm 90:12 says, "Teach us to number our days that we may get us a heart of wisdom." The Scriptures assure us that "It is appointed unto men once to die" (Hebrews 9:27).

This man was a fool because he neglected his soul. Death is certain, and then what? The Scriptures also teach that there is an appointed time for judgment. "Inasmuch as He hath appointed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom he hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead." (Acts 17:31) Indeed, "each one of us shall give account of himself to God." (Romans 14:12) So what's the point? The purpose of life is summed up in Solomon's words, "This is the end of the matter; all hath been heard; fear God and keep His commandments for this is the whole (duty) of man. For God will bring every work into judgment with every hidden thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil." (Ecclesiastes 12:12-13)

This man was a fool because he ignored other men's pleas for help. It is right to provide for those who depend on us. It is also right to lay up something for a rainy day. But what about others who are in need? Paul wrote that a man should labor "... working with his hands the thing that is good, that he may have whereof to give to him that hath need." (Ephesians 4:28) I recently read of a lady emptying her closets and complaining, "Oh, these moths! These moths have consumed almost everything that I laid away in the beginning of the summer." A friend expressed her sorrow and explained that she did not know what it was to have moth-eaten garments. When asked for further explanation, to the woman's surprise, the visitor said, "I gave away to the poor, months ago, all the garments for which I had no longer use; and there was no difficulty in preserving the remainder from the moths." Indeed, the great storehouse for our surplus is in benevolence.

This man was a fool because he thought only of himself. He spoke only of "my fruits" and "my goods." Indeed, he had laid up treasure only "for himself." He failed to consider that the greatest factor in the production of his fruits and goods was God. He gave God no praise and failed to ask Him what he should do with such abundance; rather, he reasoned only "with himself" (Luke 12:17). No doubt, this man thought of himself as a self-made man. What a fool he was. What a fool was the brother who interrupted the Master's great teachings to request arbitration of a dispute over worldly goods. Let us learn to lay up treasure in heaven.