I didn’t get a chance to post my Sunday school synopsis from last Sunday in a timely fashion so how about we call it a preview for the Bible Study crowd tonight? From time to time people will repeat a common phrase and ask, “Is that in the Bible?”. Well would you believe that this one actually is?
More specifically it’s the last 1/3 of verse 19 in Luke chapter 12. This one actually probably isn’t among those you will typically hear discussed and mistaken as a Biblical reference in general circles because it has been seriously taken out of context through out the ages. It has usually been associated with pirates in the movies having a good time and party animals revelling into the wee hours of the night. But in context, nothing could be further from the truth.
The reason for the misperception is probably obvious. It’s the fact that most folks haven’t bothered to read or memorize the first 2/3rds of the verse so here’s the rest of it. The full verse says “And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’ ” (NIV)
This is near the end of Jesus’ Parable of the the Rich Fool which runs from verse 13 thru 21. What He’s basically telling us is that we shouldn’t put all of our trust in our worldly possessions and toys. Our trust is to be on high. There’s nothing wrong with having nice stuff and doing well. He doesn’t condemn that at all. The purpose of the story is to help us put our priorities in proper order. God first and foremost, everything else afterwards.
Verses 20 and 21 summarize it well. 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 anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
This poor unfortunate guy wasn’t even going to be able to take advantage of the good life because he had spent such an inordinate amount of time fixated on that and almost none on the matters of the Spirit. My Sunday school teacher ended class with a caption on the board that said it all, “An eternal perspective is the cure for materialism.”
Be sure to read Luke 12: 13-21 for yourself and give it some meditation time. Then look at your life and make sure all the pieces are stacked in proper order. A good reference scripture to reinforce the lesson is Matthew 6:24-25. You have more tools, and now you can put them to work in your life.
