Jesus Talks Money: Greed
Don’t be greedy with your money and possessions. You can’t take it to heaven with you. Piling up money and possessions for yourself doesn’t benefit you in the end. Instead, be wise and use your resources in a way that honors God. (Luke 12:13-21)
Transcript
Luke 12:13-21 (The Parable of the Rich Fool)
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
20 “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?’
21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
INTRODUCTION
Are you a greedy person? I’m guessing that you answered no. I’m not sure that any of us would say that we’re a greedy person. Because, let’s face it, we know what greed looks like. It looks like Scrooge McDuck. We know Scrooge McDuck, and we’re not him.
But what if this isn’t what greed looks like? What if greed was more subtle, more insidious? Could you see it in yourself in a different form?
Here are 5 ways greed can show up in your life:
Hoarding: Greed can create the compulsion to buy more things even when you don’t need them. This can lead to cluttered closets, basements filled with unused stuff, or not being able to get rid of things.
Excessive spending: Greed can also drive you to spend beyond your means, racking up expensive credit card debt.
Overworking: Greed might drive you to work long hours or take on multiple jobs in order to accumulate more wealth, even if it comes at the expense of your family, health, or other areas of life.
Manipulation: Greed can also lead you to manipulate the system by lying for more benefits. You might even exploit others for your own financial gain.
Jealousy: Greed can also create in you a desire to keep up with others who seem to have more. This can lead to a never-ending cycle of comparison and discontentment.
Now, doesn’t greed feel a lot more tangible… a lot more common… and a lot more frightening.
It’s a good thing Jesus taught directly about greed. Because God knows we need the help.
GOD’S WORD
Our passage begins with a guy coming up to Jesus and asking him to resolve an inheritance dispute with his brother. This might seem like a strange request. I’ve never had brothers come up to me with a financial dispute. But if they did, I’d go all dad on them: “Well, if you can’t share nicely, then neither of you get any of the money. You can make the check payable to RiverLife Church.”
It might seem strange to us, but it wasn’t back then. Rabbis were regularly called upon to resolve family disputes.
But Jesus didn’t even answer the question, and instead, he went straight into a teachable moment. In his response, he addressed: the problem with greed, the consequences of greed, and the solution to greed—all in just a few minutes.
And in case you’re falling asleep on me this morning, here’s the summary: In a world obsessed with getting more, Jesus reminds us that true wealth is found in faith, contentment, and generosity.
Problem with Greed
Let’s talk about the problem with greed. After side-stepping the guy’s problem, Jesus says:
“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” (Luke 12:15)
I guess we have to define greed, but I suspect we all know it when we see it… at least in other people. Greed, at its core, is a desire for more. It’s a desire for more wealth, possessions, or power, often at the expense of others.
If it grows strong enough, greed can even drive a person to do unethical or illegal things. Don’t believe me? Research out of Berkley in 2012 found that higher-income people behaved more unethically than lower-income people…in all seven studies they did. That’s the problem with greed.
Why does Jesus tell us to guard ourselves against greed? Because “Life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
Ya see, greed is a liar.
Greed says – "More is always better."
Greed reassures – "You deserve this."
Greed promises – "More money will solve all your problems."
Greed entices – "If you have more things, you’ll be happier."
Greed affirms – “If you are worth more, if you’re worth more.”
Greed is a liar. That’s the problem with greed. It always over-promises and under-delivers.
Every one of these lies is refuted by Jesus’ statement: “Life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” Whatever you’re looking for in more money, more clothes, a bigger house, a better car… you won’t find it there. Money and possessions will not give your life its meaning or value or significance.
Matthew Henry, a famous theologian of the 1600s, described it like this:
“The things of the world will not suit the nature of a soul, nor supply its needs, nor satisfy its desires, nor last so long as it will last.” -Matthew Henry
Consequences of Greed
Next, Jesus tells a parable to illustrate three consequences of greed.
A farmer has a really good harvest. So, he decides to build bigger barns and then sit back, take it easy, and relax. But then he dies and loses everything.
The focus of this parable is not on wealth itself but rather on one's attitude to acquiring it. The man in the story experiences a bountiful harvest and has to decide what to do with it all.
But the text shows where his heart really is. Let me read part of it with a little added emphasis.
17 He thought to himself, “What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.” 18 Then he said, “This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain.”
His approach to stumbling on wealth is to become self-centered. He doesn’t want to share his abundance but keeps it for himself. That’s one consequence of greed—you ultimately become selfish. The essence of greed is keeping what resources God brings your way for yourself.
A second consequence of greed is that you think that this life is all there is.
“Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.” (Luke 12:19)
Makes sense. If all your goals are earthly and temporal, then why not live it up. YOLO! [That episode of awkward middle-aged guy was brought to you by 2012. You’re welcome.]
A third consequence of greed is that you claim ownership over your success, money, and even yourself.
There’s an incredible play on words in the original Greek here that gets lost in translation. In verses 19-20, these three words in red are all the same word, just translated differently because of their context.
19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years…” 20 But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you… “ (Luke 12:19-20)
But to get a sense of it in the original Greek, here’s a different way you could translate these sentences.
19 And I’ll say to my SOUL, “SOUL, you have plenty of grain laid up for many years… 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your SOUL will be demanded from you…
This man thinks that his soul, his life-force is his own, but it’s not. It’s ultimately God’s. Even the word “demanded” is the same word for paying back a loan. His very life is not his own. It’s on loan from God. It doesn’t belong to him. Neither does yours nor does mine.
Solution to Greed
But Jesus offers a solution to all this. It’s in the last line of the passage.
21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:21)
What’s the solution to greed? Be rich towards God.
The ultimate goal of our lives is not to accumulate wealth or possessions but to be rich toward God. This means investing in our relationship with Him, using our resources to bless others, and living a life that reflects His love and grace.
The rich man in the parable was called a fool because he stored up treasures for himself but was not rich toward God. In the end, he lost everything he had worked so hard to accumulate. Let us not make the same mistake but instead seek to build a legacy of faith and generosity that will last for eternity.
Here are 4 investments that make you rich toward God.
Invest in your relationship with Him. Learn more about God. Spend time with him.
Invest your resources to bless others. Donate. Practice unexpected generosity. Give to the church regularly, generously, and according to your ability.
Invest in the faith of the next generation. Look for ways to support and lift up our children and youth.
Invest in learning to be content with what you have. Learn to say, “I want what I have. I don’t need more.”
Where are you going to invest?
CONCLUSION
This parable gives us the life and death of a rich man and leaves us to judge whether he was a happy man.
The true measure of wealth is not in what you accumulate but in how you use your resources to honor God and serve others. That’s where real life is found.
