Beware of all forms of Greed.

Proper 12, Luke 12:13-21, Year C

Transcript

Just raises his concern to Jesus. As Jesus has been teaching his disciples, this man says, teacher, tell my brother to divide up the inheritance between us. And Jesus says, who am I to be judge over this situation? But before we get into today's lesson, I have to kind of take you back and remind you where we're at. In the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12, Luke has designated to this narrative of Jesus teaching his disciples about a particular thing.
Some things to look out for as they continue to follow Jesus, as his disciples continue to follow him in the way that they are to go. And it begins with this understanding that chapter 11 ends with this. And this paints the scene of why Jesus is teaching and what brings us to our lesson today. In verse 53 in Luke, at the very end of chapter 11, it says this. When he left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile and to question Jesus closely on many subjects, plotting against him to catch him in something that he might say.
And this is how Chapter 12 opens up under these circumstances. After so many thousands of people have gathered together that they were stepping on one another, Jesus began saying to his disciples, first of all, and then he starts teaching his disciples. So we have to understand that the context of our lesson today is Jesus looking to his disciples in the midst of a massive crowd that are stepping on top of each other. In the midst of this heightened sense of hostility from his enemies, the scribes and the Pharisees, Jesus now turns to his disciples and begins to teach them things that they need to know and be aware of as they move forward in following after Jesus. And the first thing at the beginning of chapter 12 that he paints for them is to beware of this deception of the Pharisees.
And in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus would say, I send you out like sheep among wolves. So therefore be cunning as serpents, but as innocent as doves. He is preparing them that as they might be brought before the courts of men, as they might be dragged into among the Pharisees and the scribes, that they need to be mindful that just like they are hostile towards Jesus, they are going to be hostile towards you. So be aware. Be aware of this hypocrisy, Jesus calls it.
And then he continues to teach them that though you're aware of this, that when they do drag you in, don't be fearful of them, don't fear them. Don't fear anybody who might be able to take the body, but cannot determine what the soul will do after that, but yet fear the Lord, who is the one who can cast the soul into hell fear him. So Jesus is preparing them on what lies ahead for them if they are to follow Christ. That just like the hostility and the plotting against Christ, they too are going to experience this, but not to fear. Jesus goes on and tells his disciples, like, you fear God, but yet you don't have to fear him.
For you are more valuable than the ravens and the sparrows because of me. The Father sees you, and he will give you the Holy Spirit, so that when you're dragged into the courts of men, you don't need to worry about how or what you're to say, for the Spirit will teach you what to say in that moment. And it's at those words that this man from the crowd says, teacher, tell my brother to divide up the inheritance between us. And as I was studying this passage, as I was studying our Gospel lesson, I was like, this is the most random thing. It's almost as if Luke cuts off Jesus teaching and then wants to direct our attention to something else that takes place.
But that's not what Jesus does. Jesus uses this interruption in the crowd to continue to teach his disciples and how they need to navigate their future following after him. Just like he says, beware of the deceit and hypocrisy of the Pharisees and the scribes. This is what I also want you to beware of. Beware of every form of greed.
And then Jesus begins, like he usually does, and speaks into a parable. And he talks about every form of greed. Greed takes this form where on one end you have somebody who, like the rich man, hoards every abundance from the work of his own hands. He builds bigger storehouses, and the abundance keeps going. Jesus paints this parable about this greedy person who is able to produce for himself out of his own hard work, a storehouse, and storehouses and greater and bigger storehouses for himself.
And in the parable, he says, this man will say to his own soul, hey, look at what you've done now let's eat, drink, and be merry. And then the plot twists. Then the one who's actually in control of all things, the one who should have been feared, the one who is the giver and taker of life, comes and says, rich man, oh, how mighty massive your storehouses are. Good job. No, he doesn't say that.
He says, your soul is taken from you tonight. And who. Who will you leave this abundance to that you hoarded to yourself? So the parable teaches a lesson about the things of this world that you might be Capable of doing that the disciples might, in their hearts, desire. In the midst of this plotting and this hostility they face from the Scribes and the Pharisees, there might still be this greediness in their heart that longs to have what others have.
And that's the other form of greed, which is coveting. See, on one end, you have the guy who has more than he can ever spend, and he doesn't spend it on anybody. He's like Scrooge from the Christmas Carol before he goes down and is visited by the three spirits. Scrooge gets as much as he can and he accumulates this wealth. And he's really stingy with it.
He doesn't give it to the poor. Matter of fact, this ruins his relationship, of his potential wife. He loves and is thirsty for all this wealth for himself. He doesn't treat anybody with abundance, only himself. But he never spends it.
Makes no sense. He just loves the thrill that he can count coins. And the other end is coveting. It's the person who wants to be and have what Scrooge has. They see all the things and they don't have themselves.
And they covet and they want, and their heart is longing. And these are the forms of greed that Jesus says, beware of this as they drag you into courts, as you sit among men who are hostile, who are your enemies for my sake, because you have followed after me. Beware of your heart clinging to these forms of greed. Be mindful of desiring to have an abundance, because that makes it easier that when you face trials and challenges of all kinds, it's just nice to know that you have more money than you can spend. We always hear this in our world, that if you just had money, it would make it better.
You can navigate. You can have enough money for any medical surgery. Money is where it's at. But that's a thing of the world. Now, the other end, Jesus says, man, don't have in your heart that form of greed that longs for something that somebody else has.
And so he teaches, begins to teach his disciples. How do you combat these desires in our hearts, these forms of greed? How can we not become like that? But how can we beware of these forms of greed that might be lurching in our hearts? And Jesus ends this by saying, being rich towards God, which begs the question, how can you be rich towards God?
Then how can you, being greedy and protecting yourself against greed, seek to be rich towards God? Well, he tells us it's through giving. Don't be greedy, but give as your Father gives. And as you begin to mimic and model what God himself, who owns everything and by the command of his words can bring into existence anything he so desires, gives lavishly to you, matter of fact, God the Father has spared no expense for your life. His very own precious son was spent to purchase you and why you are found to be most valuable.
And so if you want to be rich towards God, Christ would say, beware of greed and to prevent yourself from being greedy, give to those in need and you'll be like your father. And being like your father, you're rich with God. But he also says, don't be coveting. Don't desire what other people have. And you combat that desire in your heart with contentment.
Learn to be content with whatever the Lord has blessed you with and not blessed you with. Learn to live in to where you are. And this might be a really challenging one, a hard one for some of us. We always are wanting more. We want that next iPhone that comes out, the next generation because it has more features that might make our lives a little bit better.
So we're going to go into debt and like, max out our credit over a $2,000 phone. Or we might want that other position that the guy has at our company, the people we work for, because you want the authority that comes with that. Or maybe you're an associate pastor who's been given a vision and a desire and a calling to be a senior pastor to lead a people, and you're coveting all the other senior pastors that seem to be living out into the fullness of their ministry, and you're there stuck making bulletins and executing other people's visions for the church.
Can you learn, Bruce Grimmitt, to be content and allow God to direct your steps? Do you need that? If you were an associate pastor the rest of your life, are you content to do that? Would you do that for God?
To that I had to say yes. And it was in that moment where God says, now I can move you to my blessed, precious people at Fairview, because you've gotten rid of this coveting in your heart. And now you've been rich towards me. And now I will give you a beautiful people, one that you can love on and pray for and shepherd and get to be a part of their lives. So coveting keeps you from the very things that you actually are desiring.
But being rich towards God is to learn to be content with where God has you. And aren't these things giving and contentment the very thing that embodies the Life and ministry of Christ as we continue to read about his life through the Gospels. As Jesus heads to the cross, we are told that with the joy set before him, he goes and endures the cross. And why does he endure the cross? It's not just for the forgiveness of sins for you, that's what it accomplishes, but it's because it's the will of His Father.
And you remember when Jesus is in praying to His Father and says, can this cup pass for me, but yet not my will, Yours be done? The Son says to the Father, I desire for this cup to pass from me, but not my will. Your will be done. I will be content. If you want to forfeit my life for these people, I will do it.
I will be content. And with that joy set before me, I will endure the cross. I will endure its shame. I will endure it for these people. I will give everything that I have.
I will not hoard my own life. I will give it up for the sake of your people. Jesus embodies these principles when he is himself led before the tribunal of Jewish leadership. And they beat him. They tell him that he is lying, that he's blasphemous, that they plotted against him and they've become successful and he's been dragged before them.
And then he acts out the teachings that he left with his disciples, that he does not fear man because they might take his life, but they cannot do anything after that. And his Father, he trusts him to lift him from the dead and to set him upon a throne that is seated at his right hand. He's content to endure whatever His Father has in store for him. He's aware of their deceit. He doesn't fear them.
He does what his Father wants. And he's content to do so because Jesus has this whole idea that this world is passing away. Everything in this world will be done away with. And ultimately, what he's teaching his disciples is that you have to begin to pluck out these worldly things from your life. The fear of man.
You have to pluck out all these aspects that the world is enticing you to. All forms of greed. Pluck those things out. Because just like we read in Ecclesiastes, all of it is in vain. Your storehouses are all in vain.
What matters the most is Christ in the kingdom.
See what we're doing in worship. This won't stop. The world will pass away. But I'm going to see your lovely faces every day. We're going to eat together every day.
We will be worshiping. Like we do every day. And when we begin to practice these things now, we are getting richer and richer and richer in God.
And that's something worth hanging onto. That's something that when we come in here, there is nothing worldly about this. This is the glimpse of the heavens here on earth, which we pray in the Lord's Prayer. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. We are the reflection of the heavenly city.
And what we do together isn't just something that should be tossed aside. It's something that you should enjoy because you're going to do it for eternity. And that excites me, that moves me to want to be more rich towards God than the things of this world. That makes me want to consider what I spend my time doing, what I spend my money on. I would rather be investing in something that lasts for all eternity.
And we do that in our food pantry. There's just one way we give from the resources of our time and our money. Part of our budget is the food pantry, part of our efforts. The people that gather spend their time preparing for the food pantry and executing it. We spend our talents playing music to give, to bless others, to give them a glimpse and invite them to come taste and see that the Lord is good.
We are the kingdom, and we do kingdom things.
And so we give. And we don't desire anything in the world. Our appetites are all hungry for the kingdom stuff. So Jesus is teaching the disciples that when they meet their trials, when the world seeks to plot against them, be mindful of it, but don't fear them. Fear the Lord.
Trust that you are valuable to him. Trust in his provision for your life. Don't be greedy. Don't desire the things of the world that seem to be less fearful. The world might be passing by you, and it seems like they don't have a care in the world.
And yet here you are, filled with all sorts of trials and challenges of every kind, because you're trying to live for Christ and the world's opposed to it. And they look like they're having a great time. He says, don't focus on that that passes away.
Keep the kingdom and your king in the forefronts of your minds, on the edge of your tongue, and make every aspect of your life more and more and more into the reality that is actually true, which is the kingdom of God and Christ Jesus, our king who rules and reigns, who gives us freely and shares with us his inheritance of eternal life and abundance that you can't even begin to imagine, you always heard that the kingdom has streets of gold because gold becomes the very concrete that we pave our streets on. There's so much of it, and we're just looking around like, well, let's pave that road with gold. We got more than we can ever spend. That's the kingdom. And today we have a special, special occasion.
We come to this, this meal. This is a kingdom meal. Again, this is not one that is going to stop. It's actually going to get more robust. See, here we come and we feast on Christ, who becomes the one that we're content in, who becomes the very provision of God the Father for us to not only forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness, but to feast on him in delight and joy.
In our worship, we gather here and the first thing we do is we get right with God through confession. Then the next thing we do is we hear from God to order our forgiven lives. Now, rightly, how is it that we now live with forgiveness and then God wants to sit down and eat with you?
Throughout all the scriptures, every time the people of God gathered for worship, it always, 100%, all the time, ended with feasting. And this is why this table is so special, because when we gather around it, it is a sign of what we will be doing with Christ when he returns. It's a feast. God loves to eat. Don't ask me why.
It just becomes very evident when you're reading scripture. Like, why are you eating all the time with your people? God just says, hey, it's my thing. It's how I. That's how I roll here.
I want to eat with my people. I like to feast with them. Today we get to do that. Today we get to experience what Jesus is teaching his disciples, which is true contentment in Christ. Here, where we begin to experience that God is a giving God and we receive Him.
It's a special thing. So as I close here and we move into this next phase of our worship, which is just thanksgiving, having heard God's word, having been freed from our sin, we now move into a portion of worship where we're offering our gifts and saying, thank you, Jesus, for everything. And I'm giving back to you because I'm content. I'm demonstrating through tithes and offerings that this is not what my life consists of. My possessions, my money.
And so I give back a portion of you because I want to invest in the kingdom. I want the kingdom to grow here on earth as it is in heaven, and then we come thankfully to the table not just for the forgiveness of sins, but a new relationship that's been made right because of Jesus. And we're feasting with joy with our Father.
So may you reflect on these things, and may the word of God speak into your life. May the peace of God that surpasses all understanding be with you. Let's pray.