What We Value | Fr. Chad E. JarnaginLuke 12:13-21 (ESV)The Parable of the Rich Fool13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 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.”’ 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?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”Jesus spoke often about our riches and how difficult it is to have them. The fact is that wealth and things are a deep temptation that hardly anyone can ever combat.The way we steward our life, time, resources... mind, energy, and attention... matters.This parable is a caution against coveting... to want what we don’t have... to want when we already have plenty... and perhaps encouragement to be wise. “The one who lays up treasure himself and is not rich toward God... “ Riches in this context means value. It is saying that the movements of our money can sometimes represent the movement of our hearts.Christ's kingdom is spiritual, and not of this world. Christianity is organically otherly. A citizenship and kingdomship unlike our culture... Beyond the reach of empires and nations.The rewards of Christ's disciples are of another nature... and it come from communion. To covet is an actual sin we need constantly to be warned against; happiness and comfort do not depend on the wealth or influence of our world... or how much we have... or want to have.The needs of our souls are met with spiritual energy. This is a parable, which shows the folly of our want. When he saw a great crop upon his ground, instead of thanking God for it, or rejoicing to be able to do more good, he afflicts himself. What shall I do now? The poorest person in the country could not have said anything more anxious. The more we have, the more perplexity. Biggie said it best “Mo money, mo problems”. His folly: To think of making no other use of his plenty, than his own indulgence... without any thought of doing good for others.Richard Rohr writes that “Those who agree to carry and love what God loves, both the good and the bad of human history, and to pay the price for its reconciliation within themselves—these are the followers of Jesus. They are the leaven, the salt, the remnant, the mustard seed that God can use to transform the world. The cross is the dramatic image of what it takes to be such a usable one for God.”May we be reminded that the more we dwell / commune with God, we will be more kingdom-minded because over time, we will care more and more for what God cares for... and in the process of this communion, there will come wisdom on how to embody in the world around us.
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