John Grisham’s novel The Testament opens with the dying words of a man who will soon be parted from all his money. Here are his last thoughts on earth:

Down to the last day, even the last hour now. I’m an old man, lonely and unloved, sick and hurting and tired of living. I am ready for the hereafter; it has to be better than this…My assets exceed eleven billion dollars. I own silver in Nevada and copper in Montana and coffee in Kenya and coal in Angola and rubber in Malaysia and natural gas in Texas and crude oil in Indonesia and steel in China. My companies own companies…My money is the root of my misery. I had three families—three wives who bore seven children, six of whom are still alive and doing all they can to torment me…I am estranged from all the wives and the children. They’re gathering here today because I am dying and it is time to divide the money.

            Whether rich or poor, this is how life on earth always ends: with the dead leaving it all behind, and the living dividing whatever is left. Yet the living are not always satisfied with the way things get divided. In my work as a pastor, I have witnessed this sad scene many times. I have even experienced this unfortunate phenomenon in my own family. When families should be united to honor their beloved dead, they are often severed by the senseless of selfishness! This was certainly true of the man in the crowd who said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” (Ryken 657)

 

An Argument over Inheritance (13-15)

Jesus had just finished criticizing the Pharisees for their hypocrisy and teaching his disciples about authentic discipleship, and now a man in the crowd tried to take advantage of Jesus for personal gain. I can only imagine the look of disappointment on Jesus’ face when the man said this. It was as if he didn’t hear anything Jesus said.

A man had died and his kids were arguing over the inheritance. Both were jockeying for the best legal position so that they could get what was coming to them. One of them was sure he was getting short-changed, so he asked Jesus to adjudicate. He wasn’t looking for an objective opinion or a just judgment; he selfishly wanted Jesus to settle the estate in his favor. (Ryken 658)

Did this man not realize who he was dealing with? Did he not know that the Son of Man cannot be manipulated? Notice Jesus’ brilliant response: “Man, who made me a judge and arbitrator over you?” Even though Jesus is the divine Judge and one day he will execute final judgment on humanity, he simply refuses to take sides in selfish disputes.

            Here we are 2000 years later and people are still trying to get Jesus into siding with them. Politicians do it! Economists do it! Theologians do it! Everyone wants Jesus on their side! But we must remember that Jesus is neither a Republican nor a Democrat, a Conservative or a Liberal, a Capitalist or a Socialist! Likewise, Jesus is not a Roman Catholic, a Presbyterian, a Methodist, a Lutheran, a Baptist, and he is definitely not an Episcopalian! He’s not even a Congregationalist like us! Jesus is Jesus! He is the sovereign King of Kings and Lord of Lords and he refuses to be manipulated by man’s petty and selfish schemes.

            Do you ever try to lobby Jesus to add leverage to your side of an argument? Do you ever try to use him to get what you want? Instead of trying to get Jesus on our side, we would be wise to get on Jesus’ side. Instead of trying to conform him to our desires, we should conform ourselves to his desires! Instead of arguing over an inheritance, we should guard our hearts against greed!

 

Guarding Against Greed (15)

Rather than getting involved in this petty argument, Jesus offers these two brothers a sobering warning. He gets to the real heart of the matter when he says: Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

            Jesus’ warning goes far beyond these selfish brothers; it is also meant for us! Whether we are among the haves or have-nots, we are all tempted by the consuming desire to have things that God has given to others rather than us. The poor are tempted to want all that they do not have, while the rich are tempted to want even more of what they have. So, Jesus warns all of us to guard our hearts against greed. (Ryken 660)

            So many people in our world have been deceived by the great financial fib that money brings happiness. As Jesus testifies here, acquiring money, land, or possessions does not add meaning or true fulfillment to life. Why is this the case? The late Bishop J.C. Ryle once said, “The more acres a man has, the more cares. The more his money increases, the more his time is generally consumed and eaten up thinking about it.”

            How about you? Do you make enough money to make you happy? Do you have enough material possessions to have meaning in your life? Do you have enough in savings to feel secure? Are you guarding your heart against greed?

 

The Fool and His Fortune (16-21)

            To intensify his warning about greed and selfishness, Jesus tells the brothers the parable of the fool and his fortune. The parable is quite easy to understand: A farmer experienced a bumper crop so he decided to tear down his old barns and build bigger ones to store his abundant harvest. Then he could retire early and enjoy the good life: taking it easy, eating, drinking, and being merry.

Now somebody might look at this parable and wonder why Jesus casts this famer in a negative light. After all, the farmer worked hard and wisely saved for the future. He didn’t cheat the system or take advantage of anyone in the process. He earned his fortune through honest means and had the opportunity to retire early. What is so wrong with that? As a matter of fact, many people would admire and applaud this famer for being a good businessman.

So, why does God call him a fool? His foolishness was not found in his outward actions as much as his inward attitude. His heart was completely and utterly selfish! How do we know this? Well, look again at verses 17-19 and notice the long litany of personal pronouns. The pronoun “I” is repeated six times. When you read these verses out loud slowly, the farmer sounds like an egotistical teenager or Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

The famer’s problem was that he made everything about him: “My crops! My barns! My money! My life!” He did not acknowledge God as the source of his good fortune and he use his money to help anyone other than himself. St. Augustine, in his sermon on this parable, comments that “the bellies of the poor were much safer store rooms than his barns.” Instead, the fortunate farmer slipped into the senselessness of selfishness!

Why is his selfishness so senseless? God answers this question in the parable when he says: “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” All of the working, saving, planning and striving aren’t worth a thing if you die tonight and someone else claims your estate.

Now don’t misunderstand what Jesus is teaching us. He is not saying that it is sinful to save for the future. He is not saying that it is immoral to retire early. He is not even saying that it is wrong to be wealthy. He is saying that it is wrong and foolish to have a heart of selfishness! This is what he was trying to impress upon these two brothers arguing over their inheritance.

This powerful parable penetrates the depth of our souls. It forces us to search our own hearts for selfish dispositions and arrogant atitudes. Wherever you find yourself on the economic scale, are you content with what you have? Are you jealous of others who have more than you? Do you look down on those who have less than you? Do you realize that God is the one who has given you everything you have? Do you thank him for it? Do you use what God has given you (time, talent, and treasure) to bless other people and to expand his kingdom here on earth or are you saving it for yourself?

 

            Unfortunately, many people in our world today have the same attitude as the foolish farmer. They view themselves as owners rather than stewards. They think that their money, possessions, and lives belong to themselves. This senselessness of selfishness is epitomized in the chorus of Bon Jovi’s popular song “It’s My Life”:

 

It’s my life
It’s now or never
I ain’t gonna live forever
I just want to live while I’m alive
(It’s my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just want to live while I’m alive
It’s my life

 

            I love Bon Jovi, but the message of this song is dead wrong! It’s not my life! My life and everything in it belongs to God! We would be much better off to remember the words from the Heidelberg Catechism Question #1—“ I am not my own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death, to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.” What will happen if God demands your life this very night?