Are you greedy? You probably don’t think of yourself as a greedy person. I don’t think of myself that way. I just want myself and my kids to have roughly as much as my neighbors do, or as much as the average citizen of the U.S. enjoys. That’s not being greedy, is it? Jesus’ words to a certain man recorded in Luke 12:13-15 are a wake-up call that our hearts may be more filled with greed than we realize.
There was a man who thought he was being wrongly deprived of his share of an inheritance by his brother. I don’t know about you, but it bugs me more to be deprived of $100 that I think is owed to me- like if my employer didn’t credit me on my paycheck for all the hours I worked- than if my checking account goes down $1,000 to pay for a car repair. It seems the man who approached Jesus was feeling that way.
Listen to what he asked Jesus, and what Jesus said in response: 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.” Luke 12:13-15 (NIV)
Jesus didn’t tell the man that his brother was treating him rightly. The man’s brother may have been in the wrong. But even so, this man’s heart was in danger of being consumed by greed. He was so bent out of shape over that amount of wealth he thought he had coming to him, that when he actually got to see Jesus- this man who had been doing amazing miracles, and teaching and preaching so powerfully as no one had ever done before; this man whom some people believed must be the Messiah- the Savior that God had promised to send to to rescue his people from their sins and death- his first thought was not: “Is this man the one I should trust in for eternal life?” Instead his first thought was: “Is this man the guy who can finally get my brother to give me the share of wealth I have coming to me?”
Is that ever us? Do we ever get so consumed by the desire to have more money or stuff- perhaps money or stuff we think we are wrongfully being deprived of- that we can’t enjoy what God has given us? Or that the first thing in our prayers is not thanks to the Lord for his gift of salvation, or that he keep us on the path to heaven; but that he lead that other person to give us that chunk of wealth that they should? “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed,” Jesus tells us.
Maybe our temptation to greed is not over money we think we are wrongfully being deprived of. Without realizing it, we may be living by the philosophy that life does consist in the abundance of possessions we have. “If I can just get that house by the lake, then I will be happy.” “If I can just get that house by the lake fixed up the way I want it, then I will be happy.” “I need a new pickup truck in order to be happy.” Why? Did your current pickup truck stop working? No- but my neighbor just got a new one that makes the one I have look second rate. This idea gets reinforced by the culture we live in. There are all the ads that try to convince us that if we buy their product, then we will really be living the good life. An even greater influence is when we see people all around us working longer hours than they need to so they can afford more stuff than they need. And in the process they often shortchange time with their family, and time with the Lord nourishing their faith. But we think from their example that’s how we ought to live, too; and we will be falling short if we don’t. We need to hear Jesus’ words repeatedly: “Life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.”
But what will help us be less consumed by the desire to get more possessions, and instead content with what God has given us, and focused on what is more important than that? It’s not just listening to Jesus’ words of warning. It’s also taking to heart Jesus’ words that remind us of the far more important things God has given us that we can focus our hearts on; and the security we can have about earthly needs because of God’s promises.
Jesus also said to his believers: “Seek his [God’s] kingdom, and these things [food, clothes and what we need for our earthly life] will be given you as well.” (Luke 12:32 NIV) And he not only told us to seek God’s kingdom; he went ahead to the cross and died for our sins, then rose from the dead to live as our Savior, so that we could be citizens of God’s eternal, heavenly kingdom as a gift, that he already paid for completely. He told his believers: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) Remembering these things will free us up to spend more time on what is more important- and gives more joy, now and forever!- than piling up possessions on this earth; and to gladly use our earthly possessions to help others, for Jesus’ sake.
