Sometimes Jesus told his parables with no interpretation or explanation. Other times he gave the cheat sheet, as with this one. At the end of his story about the rich man and his barns, he says,
“So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God.”
That’s an intriguing command. What can we get for the God who has everything? How can we “be rich” toward the One whom we see as the Giver of all good things?
The Christian way of life holds that everything we have is a gift from God – life, health, relationships, possessions, housing, food… you name it, all entrusted to us to enjoy and nurture and grow. Even what we earn is a result of our God-given abilities and networks. The very magnitude of our indebtedness can make it difficult to see ourselves as rich enough to be rich toward the Maker and Giver of all.
So one way to be “rich toward God” is to see ourselves as rich. As blessed. As gifted. Focus less on what we believe we “owe” God and more on accepting the showers of blessings God desires to give us. The Good News says that God desires abundance for us. As we’re more open to being blessed, we experience that more often and more fully.
Another way to be “rich toward God” is to be extravagant with our time and resources. One hour and a few dollars a week are all some people are willing to spare, figuring they need the lion’s share for living in this world. What if we flipped that and offered God all our time and money, and allocated a portion for what we need to live on? Hmmm. Numbers might come out the same, but we’d live out of a place of abundance and trust instead of scarcity and anxiety.
Pastor Rick Warren (The Purpose-Driven Life) and his wife live on 10 percent of their income and give away the other 90 percent. At their level of wealth, I’m sure they still have plenty. Even so, it’s an inspiring choice, one we might begin to move toward. If we give away the biblical standard of 10 percent of our income (gross or net, you choose), we still have 90 percent to play with. That’s a lot!
Being rich toward God also means being rich toward God's children who have less than we do, who are in need of food and clothing, housing, justice, jobs, healing, peace – and friendship, company, hope. The man in the story thought only of himself and his own supposed security. What a waste of resources! Jesus’ story invites us into a better relationship with our abundance, neither feeling guilty nor clutching it tightly, but trusting in God’s provision, in our blessedness; eager to share it because clinging to it doesn’t make us more secure, and letting it go makes us infinitely richer.
Where in your life are you holding tightly to what you have, afraid of losing it? Invite God into those places of tightness… and then practice relaxing your grip. The antidote to greed is generosity. As we excel in giving, we will delight in God’s grace. No need to sock that away - it never runs out.
That’s an intriguing command. What can we get for the God who has everything? How can we “be rich” toward the One whom we see as the Giver of all good things?
The Christian way of life holds that everything we have is a gift from God – life, health, relationships, possessions, housing, food… you name it, all entrusted to us to enjoy and nurture and grow. Even what we earn is a result of our God-given abilities and networks. The very magnitude of our indebtedness can make it difficult to see ourselves as rich enough to be rich toward the Maker and Giver of all.
So one way to be “rich toward God” is to see ourselves as rich. As blessed. As gifted. Focus less on what we believe we “owe” God and more on accepting the showers of blessings God desires to give us. The Good News says that God desires abundance for us. As we’re more open to being blessed, we experience that more often and more fully.
Another way to be “rich toward God” is to be extravagant with our time and resources. One hour and a few dollars a week are all some people are willing to spare, figuring they need the lion’s share for living in this world. What if we flipped that and offered God all our time and money, and allocated a portion for what we need to live on? Hmmm. Numbers might come out the same, but we’d live out of a place of abundance and trust instead of scarcity and anxiety.
Pastor Rick Warren (The Purpose-Driven Life) and his wife live on 10 percent of their income and give away the other 90 percent. At their level of wealth, I’m sure they still have plenty. Even so, it’s an inspiring choice, one we might begin to move toward. If we give away the biblical standard of 10 percent of our income (gross or net, you choose), we still have 90 percent to play with. That’s a lot!
Being rich toward God also means being rich toward God's children who have less than we do, who are in need of food and clothing, housing, justice, jobs, healing, peace – and friendship, company, hope. The man in the story thought only of himself and his own supposed security. What a waste of resources! Jesus’ story invites us into a better relationship with our abundance, neither feeling guilty nor clutching it tightly, but trusting in God’s provision, in our blessedness; eager to share it because clinging to it doesn’t make us more secure, and letting it go makes us infinitely richer.
Where in your life are you holding tightly to what you have, afraid of losing it? Invite God into those places of tightness… and then practice relaxing your grip. The antidote to greed is generosity. As we excel in giving, we will delight in God’s grace. No need to sock that away - it never runs out.
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