19 ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.” ’20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ 21 “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Luke 12:19–21 (NAS)
Read Luke 12:16-21
I live in hurricane country. It makes good sense to store up for an extended period without power, water, and the essentials of life. That’s why I have a couple of generators and eight cans of gas. Is this what he’s talking about? No. It would be if I had a 2,500 gallon fuel storage tank underground perhaps, but we’re not talking about preparedness based on past experiences.
In my banking career, I loaned many parties money to expand their businesses, usually involving warehouses. In my later consulting career, I’ve evaluated properties all over the eastern USA for the purposes of one man building warehouses and retail outlets for his aluminum gutter business. Is this what he’s talking about? No. This is simply growing a business the old fashioned “American way.”
There’s a distinct difference in investing the blessings of God and hoarding them!
This parable would mean nothing if the man gave away or even sold his produce. It’s also about presumption and turning a blind eye to the hand of God in one’s life. What makes me cringe is the demolition of present storage buildings to erect new and bigger ones! What do you do in the meantime? There’s the expectation of a rip-roaring future ahead and the abundance of everything.
God is not opposed to preparedness or industry, but pride and selfishness as opposed to gratitude and generosity. This attitude ignores the giver of good gifts (Matthew 7:11). It’s accepting the award without giving credit to whom it’s due. It’s betting on the come when your very next breath is in God’s hands.
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” 14 Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. For you are just a vapor that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away. James 4:13-14
Be rich toward God!
At the Gate 