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Continuing our studies of Luke Chapter 12, this week we are considering verses 13-21. Please read them every day this week and, if possible, use a different translation each day, asking God to open your eyes to fresh revelation from His Word.
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Luke 12:20-21 (NIV)
‘”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?’ “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God.”’
For many years I worked with a man who was incredibly careful about how much money he spent and would do his absolute utmost to spend as little as possible. He would buy his essential groceries at the cheapest of shops and would never purchase any ‘luxuries’.
He drove the cheapest but most fuel efficient car he could find on sale and would never accelerate quickly nor go beyond the most fuel efficient speed of 56 mph. If he had to purchase a new car, he would research the fuel efficiency of cars for months before buying one.
Holidays were never considered because they were regarded as a waste of money and he would save up every penny he could in order to make his retirement as pleasant as possible. At the time when we worked closely together, I would take Cath on holiday at least twice a year and we often discussed my apparent irresponsibility with money as he considered my vacation time to be completely unnecessary and wasteful.
Sadly, he never had the chance to enjoy his hard earned money as cancer took his life at the age of just 56. We were all devastated at work when we heard the news and my mind was immediately drawn to this passage in Luke chapter 12.
My friend at work was certainly not rich but he demonstrated an attitude toward life that Jesus is warning against. This isn’t just about money or about how we choose to spend it. It isn’t about whether we are generous or whether we act in a miserly fashion. It isn’t about being responsible or being wasteful. It is all about our attitude to God and about our relationship with Him.
Of course we have a significant and serious responsibility to our families and to ensure that we adequately meet their financial and physical needs. We should never throw away money needlessly and God expects us to be good stewards of all that He provides to us.
Jesus is saying here that there must be a balance between our relationship with God and with what we earn and how we earn it. The phrase He uses is ‘rich towards God’. I believe that this is all about having priorities and ensuring that they are in the right order!
The Scripture is full of encouragement to work hard, to not be lazy and to be successful. However, Jesus also provides incredible insight into the heart of God. He tells us that we should “seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and then all these things will be added to you”.
The man thought that he was preparing a secure future that would last for ‘many years’. However, many years became just one night and much gain became complete loss.
At the end of this week, my prayer is that we take careful note of the important things in our life and ensure that God is the number one priority in everything.
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