Luke 12
January 18, 2022
“And Jesus told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 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.”
Jesus doesn’t say that there is anything wrong with the farmer’s production of crops that created wealth. The problem is the self-centered way in which the farmer views his wealth. 11x in 3 verses, he says ‘I’, ‘my’, or ‘myself.’ His goal is self-indulgence instead of blessing others (the context of Jesus’ parable is a warning against ‘greed’ - v15). It is this self-centered way of life that God calls ‘foolish’ (v20) because it fails to factor in God’s sovereignty as the One who ultimately determines when we live and die (v4-5).
Lord, I declare that You are the Sovereign One, not me. In my mind, I know that You are the One who superintends the affairs of the universe, including the number of my days on this earth. But I confess that I think a lot (probably too much) about whether Amanda and I will have enough money to retire. I know I can slip into a self-centered perspective when I consider that subject. Remind me that the ‘very hairs of my head are numbered by You’ (v20); therefore I don’t need to ‘fear’ (v7b), or live as if it’s all up to me to provide for myself. Teach me to work as unto You, to save wisely and to be generous, and to trust in Your good, sovereign care over my life!
— Pastor Joshua Brooks
Use the following steps to guide your daily time with the Lord…
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Start with prayer. Ask God to open your heart to help you understand and receive His Word.
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Read and observe the passage carefully. As needed, read a second Bible version to help with understanding.
➡️ What does it say?
What does this passage teach me about God? What does it say about my sinful nature and my need for God’s grace? How does this passage point to Jesus?
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➡️ What am I going to do about it?
Does this passage include a promise to claim, an action/attitude to avoid/embrace, or a principle to apply? How can this truth apply to my life? What could my next step be? How can I share this with others? Is there a verse or section of Scripture I need to memorize?
