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Author: Stephen Weller
845 words, 4 minutes read time

A Costly Mistake

Scripture: Luke 12:16-21

In the previous lesson we laid the background that prompted Jesus to tell the parable of the rich fool. In this lesson we will cover that parable.

^{Lk 12:16} “And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, ¹⁷ and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’”

With some farm experience in my background, I understand how soil fertility, cultivation and weather can affect the size of harvest. The land of this man produced a very plentiful harvest that particular year and he was faced with what to do with it. It appears that the land has been providing very well for this man as he is described as rich. There is nothing in this parable that suggest that he became rich by unjust gains; he simply had good land and managed it well.

What is not made clear in the parable is the form of the man’s wealth. Was it measured in terms of money from the sale of past harvests or was it in terms of stored grain and other goods or both? During harvest time the value of grain is usually at its lowest and thus with proper management a farmer can erect a storage facility and store part or all of his harvest and then sell when the price is higher.

It is not clear if this man kept some from previous years and thus had a growing inventory leaving enough room for the current years harvest. One thing that is clear is this year’s harvest was a bumper crop and he would not have enough room and probably other farmers also had good harvests that year and as a result the market price would be low.

To make a point, Jesus said the man tore down his present storage facility to build a larger one, but it seems likely that he would simply add to his existing facility. The idea that he tore down his current storage facility suggest a problem, but up to this point the man has simply been a good manager of his resources and had become rich. He was enjoying the lifestyle his land and good management was producing.

Where in this parable is the man’s covetousness? It is found in the satisfaction obtained from the lifestyle provided from his stored grain and goods when sold at best market prices. He placed a high value on the pleasures of luxury which they provided now and into the future. He derived his happiness from them alone, without seeing any need for God in his life.

^{Lk 12:20} “But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’”

In the man’s happiness with what the world was providing, he was overlooking his need for God. This was a problem within the church at Laodicea and in the western church today. They and we say, “I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17 ESV). As a result, the need of salvation is overlooked or if one is saved one may become satisfied with the wealth provided by the world and not seek after the riches of God.

God called this man a fool because he failed to provide for his soul, that which would exist for an eternity. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul” (Matthew 16:26 ESV)? “What is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off, when God takes away his life” (Job 27:8 ESV)? “Surely a man goes about as a shadow! Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather” (Psalm 39:6 ESV)!

^{Lk 12:21} “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Are you rich in the things of the world or toward God? ¹⁹ “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19 – 20 ESV).

Conclusion

Let us not make the mistake the rich man in the parable made and find pleasure in the things of the world at the expense of being rich toward God. The eternal loss is way too great!