TREASURE by Dr. Shah, Clearview Church, Henderson
Introduction: How many of you would love to find some hidden treasure in your backyard? Ten years ago (2009) in England, Terry Herbert was metal detecting at a friend’s farm. He had been doing this for 18 years but this time the device actually started buzzing. It had located a small, glittering bit of metal which turned out to be a gold artifact. But that wasn’t it! Within minutes, his detector was buzzing all over the place. Terry had discovered an Anglo-Saxon treasure trove from 1,400 years ago. Archaeologists and museums started buzzing all over the place. After all was said and done, they found 4,600 pieces of gold and silver. It was declared a national treasure valued at four million pounds known as the Staffordshire Hoard. You can see it at the Birmingham Museum and the Stoke Museum in England. The big questions are— “Who owned that treasure? Why did he/she bury it?” No one knows! Here’s the point: Earthly treasures cannot be permanently owned. What you treasure today will belong to someone else’s tomorrow. The only treasure that you can permanently own is what you put into heaven’s bank, the kingdom of God. In our series on the parables of Jesus, we come to the Parable of the Rich Farmer and the message is titled “TREASURE.”
Luke 12 16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, “What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20But God said to him, “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Question: Parables are like mirrors. They reflect who we are. Are you the rich farmer who trusted in his possessions? By the way, you don’t have to be wealthy to be rich. It’s not about your bank balance. It’s about how obsessed you are with it. Are you trusting in your riches? Are you saved? If tonight your soul is required of you, where will you go?
Preface: Unlike the previous parables, this parable of the rich farmer is somewhat troubling at first glance. If we’re truly honest, what’s wrong with what he did? Listen again to verse 16 “…The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.” What’s wrong with that? That sounds like a blessing! What farmer, business owner, or employee would not want their business or job to be blessed? 17 And he thought within himself, saying, “What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.” Is that wrong? Not really. He is a visionary. He is thinking ahead and taking the necessary steps to manage his growth. The alternative would be to sit back, do nothing, and lose everything. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ Is anything wrong with that? Once again, no. Isn’t that the reward of a well-planned life? Shouldn’t we all plan ahead so we can retire one day and have the necessary income when we can’t work like we could? It seems like this rich farmer, rather than being a villain, should be a model for all of us to follow! In order to understand the true intent of the parable, we need to look at the context in which Jesus gave it.
Context: To understand the context of this parable, we need to back up to verse 13 Then one from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”Keep in mind that this parable was given during the Travel Narrative of Jesus in Luke. Remember Luke 9:51, when Jesus knew that the time had come for him to be ascended that he set his face to go to Jerusalem? It was a fulfillment of Isaiah 50:7 “…Therefore I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed” and Ezekiel 3:9 “Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead; do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.” Face like flint symbolized determination and resolve in the face of incredible trials. When Jesus knew that it was time for him to suffer and die the most awful death on the cross for the sins of the whole world, he didn’t hesitate or dilly-dally. Instead, his eyes became laser focused, his feet picked up speed, and his mind was locked on what was about to happen. Just then—“Jesus, my brother is not sharing…” Imagine a building is on fire and firefighters are rushing in to save lives. Just then someone stops them and say, “My cat is stuck on a tree. Can you help me first?” What was Jesus’ response? 14 But He said to him, “Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?” My translation: “Dude, do you really think that’s why I came?” 15And He [Jesus] said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” This is the context in which Jesus gave the parable of the rich farmer. It was not about being successful, planning ahead, or saving up for retirement. It was about covetousness. The desire to acquire more.
Application: Are you covetous? Are possessions controlling your life? Nothing wrong with having things and new things but are you more concerned about material things than about the things of God?
Back to the parable: The rich man has a conversation with himself (soliloquy)—19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ He doesn’t get a chance to answer back because God interjects! 20But God said to him, “Fool!” Why did God call him a “fool”? The word for fool is “aphron,” the same word found in the LXX at Psalm 14:1 “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” This rich farmer probably went to the synagogue and did the ritual sacrifices but he was an atheist at heart. More than that, he was a selfish atheist.
Application: Is that you? Are you an atheist at heart and a selfish one?
20 But God said to him, “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?” Sometime back I was teaching a Wednesday evening Bible study and my phone kept ringing. I kept ignoring it until Nicole came by and told me that it was the fire department. There had been a horrible wreck on southbound I-85 and an entire family was killed up near Wise area. Long story short, I got there and prayed for the firefighters before they had to remove the bodies. The saddest part was to watch them remove the things of the people one by one. There was the wife’s cell phone, the little girl’s backpack, someone’s shirt, etc. They were putting them on the side of the highway. Just a little while ago, it belonged to someone but it no longer had an owner. Same will happen to your stuff one day. Listen to the next verse 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” The word for treasure is “thesaurus” from which we get our English word “Thesaurus.” A thesaurus is a dictionary that stores words. The problem was not with his success, planning ahead, or saving up for retirement. The problem was that this rich farmer was only living for self with no regard to God. He was an atheist at heart. He was storing up only for himself.
Application: Is that you? Are you only living for self? Where does God fit in your life?
Now, if Jesus would have ended here, the message would have been “Don’t live for self. Put God first,” but it doesn’t end here. Listen to verse 22 Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.” By the way, this is very similar to Matthew 6 where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. It could be that Jesus repeated portions of that sermon here. Once again, verse 22 “…Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.” Jesus was not telling his disciples, “Don’t plan your lives.” He was simply telling them, “Don’t be overcome by “merimnaw.” It’s a Greek word for “worry” that’s much more than daily care. It is “paralyzing anxiety.” Question: Are you living under paralyzing anxiety about money, relationship, health, future, etc.? Jesus reminds them that they are not animals. 23 “Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.” Animals live only for their daily necessities, minus clothing. We human beings were created for things far greater. We were created in the image of God with the ability to relate with Him and help build his kingdom in this world. Jesus appeals to nature to prove his point. 24 “Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them.” Ravens were considered to be unclean birds. The point is that God cares for them too! “Of how much more value are you than the birds?” 25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 26 If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest? 27Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith? By the way, one of the best antidotes for anxiety and worry is nature. We turn to TV, shopping, or playing golf. All those things are fine but that’s just substituting one activity for another. Spending time in nature will do that for you more than anything else but the point is that we have far more value than animals and plants.
Jesus continues in verse 29 “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. 31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. 32 Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” In other words, work on building God’s kingdom and he will take care of your needs.
So, how do you build God’s kingdom? Study the Bible more? Pray more? Serve in church more? Win the lost more? None of these things are wrong and we should be doing them but that’s not what Jesus meant when He told us to seek his kingdom. Listen to verse 33 “Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” In other words, don’t hoard but help others in need. This is what #iamtheneighbor project is all about!
Invitation: Are you living for self? Are you hoarding? What if your soul is required tonight? Are you saved?
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