A group of American tourists went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.  During their tour of the Holy City, the tour guide stopped and pointed to an old brick wall at the end of a narrow street.  Then the guide stated, “This is a place of great miracles.  If any one of you pray from here, money will come pouring out of that wall.”  Upon hearing this ostensibly outrageous statement, every one of the tourists rushed to the wall to offer up their prayers.  But do you know what these tourists saw after they approached the old wall that the tour guide pointed to?  An automatic teller machine (ATM) located within the wall. 

​No one dislikes money in this world.  And the prospect of gaining great wealth without expending too much effort will interest just about anyone.  But earning money is not an easy task.  Not anyone can become rich.  The old proverb, “great wealth is bestowed by Heaven,” is probably not a false statement.

 Jesus taught us a great deal about money because money plays an important role in our lives.  We can be skeptical as to wonder how a holy man such as Jesus had concerns for money and dedicated so much time to talk about it; yet, in truth, one of the most frequent topics of Jesus’ conversation and teachings was regarding money.  According to a study, 18 out of 37 parables of Jesus deal with money.  Furthermore, throughout the Bible, there are about 1,000 sentences (500 apiece) that contain words “faith” and “prayer;” however, there are over 2,000 sentences that contain the word “money.”  What does this mean?  Because money is the most important thing in a man’s life, correct and righteous values regarding money must be established within a man’s mind before he can truly believe in God.

 Today’s scripture is unique verses that only appear in the Gospel of Luke.  A man got involved in a sibling squabble over inheritance.  The man asks Jesus to preside as the judge to settle the issue between himself and his brother.  However, Jesus respectfully declines the man’s request.  Jesus, in an indirect manner, stated that He would not be involved in a family argument to act as an arbitrator that divides up the inheritance for distribution.  The most obvious reason for Jesus’ decline probably had to do something with the character of two brothers that were involved in the dispute because He felt that both parties had character issues, Jesus declined to be involved in an argument of these brothers.  To reiterate, for Jesus to be involved in this dispute would only mean that He would merely be determining who greed is more just an endeavor that is hardly worthy of Jesus’ efforts.

​ Rather than becoming their judge, Jesus becomes their mentor, teaching them two valuable truths.  Because He was able to discern the avarice deep within the hearts of the two brothers, Jesus intended to teach them some very fundamental truths.  Take a look at verse 15.  “And he said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of things he possesses.””  The underlying reason for this internecine squabble was greed.  So the first thing that Jesus recommends to them is to erase the seed of gluttony from their hearts.  He tells them that life of a man does not depend on how much he possesses; therefore, covetousness is one thing that we must be vigilant against.

Our interest lies with the parable outlined in verse 16.  This parable reinforces and drives home the point made in verse 15.  This parable is widely known as the “parable of the rich fool.”  Today, we will take a look at this parable to see why this wealthy man was a fool.

​First, the rich man was not grateful to God.  The rich man had abundance of crops growing in his fields.  In fact, he had such an overabundance of crops that after harvest, he would have difficulties finding silos and storage space to store his crops.  How did he become so rich in the first place?  Of course, he probably worked hard to become wealthy.  No where in the Bible is it inferred that this man used dishonest or immoral means to gain his wealth.  He was probably very honest.  Perhaps he was a respected leader of his community.  He was born with innate abilities and potential to become rich, and coupled with a hard work ethic, he indeed became very wealthy.  Since he did not harm others, his greed can be classified as harmless greed.

​Despite all his riches, the man did not understand how he become rich, who gave him the fertile lands, who gave him the sunlight, and who gave him the early and late rains as crops required.  If he knew that God was behind his blessings and wealth, he certainly was not grateful to God for all that he had.  No where in the scripture is it mentioned that he tithed or gave an offering of thanks to God.  The rich man was foolish because he did not understand the fact that all his wealth and fortunes ultimately came from God.  Although God made him rich, the rich man harbored no feeling of gratitude in his heart towards God.

 After World War II, an elderly couple attended a memorial service for their friends’ son, who happened to live in their neighborhood.  Their friend couple lost their only son to the war.  In the midst of their enormous grief, the couple donated a stained glass window to the church in memory of their deceased son.  In their son’s name, and as a sign of their gratitude towards God, they donated a $50,000 stained glass window to God.  The wife of the elderly couple who attended the service said to her husband, “Honey, they did something very precious!  What do we need to give God ourselves?”  Surprised, the elderly husband answered.  “What are you talking about?  Our son returned safely from the war so why do we need to give something?”  The wife immediately shot back.  “Honey, that is precisely why.  That couple gave $50,000 to God despite the fact that their only son is dead.  Our son returned to us safely and in good health shouldn’t we give something more than they gave to God because we have so much more to be thankful for?” 

 It is true.  Sometimes, the people who seem to have nothing to be thankful for show greater gratitude to God.  The rich man of today’s scripture had much to be thankful for, but refused to show his gratitude to God.  He believed that he became wealthy and successful through his own devices.  He did not understand that his wealth and fortunes stemmed from God.  Therefore, he was a fool.

 Second, the rich man was an egocentric, selfish man.  Verses 17 through 19 contain numerous first-person pronouns.  In fact, the pronoun “I” gets repeated six times in those three verses.  The possessive pronoun, “my,” gets repeated five times.  What does this tell us?  The sole interest of the rich man centered on himself.  He did not care nor concern himself about the welfare of others, not the least bit.  He only concerned himself with his wealth, his needs, and his future.  Today’s parable shows that the rich man lived solely for himself, spoke solely for himself, planned solely for himself, and congratulated only himself.

 The rich man reaped in a great harvest.  He ran out of storage space for the abundance of crops he harvested.  Rather than utilizing the existing silos, he decides to build a new and bigger set of silos and storage barns.  He was sure that a larger silo would pay great dividends by allowing him to store more crops for a longer period of time.  So what does he profess in verse 19?  “And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.””  He was very content that with such a large harvest, he can relax, eat, drink, and be merry for many years to come.

 The fact that this man had his eyes and ears closed to his poor, starving neighbors makes him a foolish man.  He had absolutely no interest in happiness of others.  He only concerned himself with his own happiness and future.  There is a Roman proverb that states, “Money is like sea-water; the more a man drinks, the thirstier he becomes.”  It is true.  Money is good, but when money gets utilized for the sole purpose of selfish reasons one’s own safety, greed, and happiness it turns into salt water.  The more one drinks, the thirstier one becomes.

 The following event took place when the king of automobiles, Henry Ford (1863-1947), was visiting Ireland.  Three catholic priests visited Ford, asking him to make a donation for a non-profit hospital.  Ford promised to give $15,000.  However, an Irish newspaper mistakenly stated in the following morning’s headline article that Ford pledged $50,000.  The priests immediately paid a visit to Ford yet again, apologizing for the oversight.  They offered to have the newspaper re-run the article with the correct amount of $15,000.  Ford replied, “fathers, it is all right.  Do not worry.  I will pledge the remaining $35,000.  I only ask that you keep one promise.  Please inscribe the following phrase over the entrance of the hospital.”  The phrase that Ford requested reads as follows.  “I was a stranger and you took me in.”

 We need to take a greater interest in our neighbors.  We need to become magnanimous, able to lend our ears and attention to the pain and sorrow of our neighbors.  We cannot be strangers to our neighbors.  The rich man of today’s scripture is foolish because he only knew of himself.  He could not see past his own interests and concern himself with welfare of others around him.  Egocentric and selfish wealth ultimately wrecks all relations with God.  It ruins our relations with our neighbors.  It ultimately leads to tragic and sorrowful end.

Third, the rich man had no interest in life after death, the kingdom, at all.  In verse 19, the rich man desires to “take ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”  Such phrases remind us of the school of Epicurus (342-270 BC).  Epicurus was a Greek philosopher who stated that hedonism is the most righteous thing in one’s life.  Hedonistic philosophy of Epicurus sought to maximize pleasure while minimizing pain and suffering.

The rich man of today’s scripture was interested only in pleasures of the present.  He had no interest in his eventual death and life beyond.  He had no concerns about the life after death.  All he wanted to do was stockpile his grain silos and the pleasures that his vast wealth can afford him in the present.  Rest at ease, eat well, drink well, and enjoy the pleasures of life that was the motto that he lived by.

 The Stranger, a novel written by Albert Camus (1913-1960), contains the following unbelievable story.  A Czechoslovakian man went abroad to earn money, to exploit the opportunities not available in his destitute hometown.  He returned triumphantly 25 years later, as a wealthy man.   He returned with a wife and a son as he made his grand return to his hometown.  His mother and sister, meanwhile, still ran a small inn in the town.  The wealthy son, wanting to surprise his family members, put his wife and son up in a hotel in a nearby town and returned to his mother’s inn by himself and got himself a room.  Of course, his mother and sister could not recognize him, since he had changed so much over the past 25 years.  Realizing that his mother and sister could not recognize him, he decided to have a little fun and boasted to them, without revealing his identity, all the money he made abroad.  That night, his mother and sister sneaked into his room, killed him with a hammer, and threw his body into the river.  Not knowing that he was their son and brother, and out of pure greed, they killed him.  When his wife showed up the next day, the truth was revealed.  You can probably imagine the tragedy that struck this family.

 No matter how much wealth and power we currently possess, all is inconsequential after we die.  Therefore, Jesus states in Luke 9: 25.  “For what advantage is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?”   

The rich man is foolish because he could not think of the next life.  He mistakenly believed that his current wealth would last him thousands of years.  The true tragedy lies in the fact that he could not comprehend the shortness of life that he will eventually die sooner than later.  To this foolish rich man, God speaks in verse 20.  “You fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?”  Jesus points out in the parable that the rich man can die as soon as that very night. In essence, He is saying, “It is difficult to predict one’s future so who will take your wealth once you disappear from this world?”  Those are heart piercing words, indeed.  All that wealth and the happiness that derived from it will become inconsequential.  Jesus is throwing out the truth for us to grasp that we cannot take any of our happiness or wealth with us, that we come into this world empty-handed and leave this world empty-handed. 

The conclusion of the parable lies within verse 21 of today’s scripture.  “So is he who lays up treasures for himself, and is not rich towards God.”  Towards the secular world, the rich man had nothing more that he could possibly desire.  He had everything.  Yet, towards God, he was hopelessly destitute.  Jesus states that life such as that of this rich man is a foolish and futile life.

What is your life like?  Is it foolish?  Or is it sagacious?  It is not a sin to be rich.  Yet a life centered on possessions is foolish.  God views those like Indiana Jones, who seeks the riches of the world, as foolish.  But He views those like Mother Theresa as intelligent and wise.  Although she lived a life of poverty while providing for others, her life was abundantly rich and plentiful towards God.

 This morning, let’s pray in the name of our Lord that all our lives can be wise and intelligent that we can fill up our silos and coffers in heaven with our earthly possessions. 

 Amen.