It has come to my attention that at least in some cases I have unintentionally derailed what I had hoped would be the big windfall of midlewithmystery.com; a life-building and kingdom-growing conversation between us stimulated by my postings.

My discovery came when a friend told me that he would really like to talk to me about what I wrote but he didn’t want to share his thoughts with everyone in cyberspace. Uh oh. I forgot a reply would appear in the public domain. I am a bit slow in the digital-reasoning department. So…..If you would ever like to comment or ask a question and not do it publicly, address it to me at cummins011353@me.com. Sorry if I have stifled a conversation. That, sadly, is precisely what I had hoped not to do. In regards to the renovation of our hearts, it’s quiet enough already! Now, to the Word of God….

Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” 

We can only wonder what this offended, would-be heir thought when Jesus said,

“Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 

What do you suppose he thought when Jesus then attempted to rescue his heart (and ours) by saying, 

“Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”

If he was a typical run-of-the-mill Adamic-natured guy (like us) he probably thought, “Greedy! I just want my fair share! If there is ONE thing that I AM NOT, it’s greedy! This guy is definitely a false prophet.” 

Perhaps even the people around this exchange thought, “What’s greedy about wanting a little justice?” When reading Jesus’ words we must keep in mind that he came to set men free. The deliverer dimension of being Savior required that he expose in fallen man those things that their hearts were in denial of and therefore enslaved to. Jesus knew that the god of this world had been doing a masterful job in assisting men in rationalizing everything they do. Jesus came to strip the blinders off our eyes and get us to see (and own) our denial and our absurd rebellion so that we might understand that we are, in actuality, in desperate need of Him.

The crowd (and us) like to think of greed as that I-want-it-all attitude and we would be right yet only in part. This man’s heart was not in bondage to that form of greed. The form of greed this man was enslaved to was that much-easier-to-justify form that can apply to a farthing as well as a fortune. This is that entitlement-form that comes from victimhood and our self-fashioned conditions of justice.

Why the offended heir is grasping is that he (and all those sympathetic to his cause) are using this world and its temporal value system as its point of reference (a toxic and fatal idea). If we think Jesus is being harsh it is because we ourselves are not navigating by true north. We have forgotten that this is the same Lord who said a man was guilty of adultery if his imagination and will collaborated in wanting his neighbor’s wife and was guilty of murder when he was angry. We may think he has set the bar far to high for mere man to ever clear. (Please note; As new creations, we are no longer mere men.)

Their is yet more to the problem of greed that we remain blinded to. It is that in our grasping for a bit more (for whatever pretense), it is evidence that we are not trusting God. We are not at rest with God as our ultimate provider. We are working instead with the stress-producing, material-and-time-bound notion that God is absent from the equation of our provision. We must also recall that without faith it is impossible to please him. To help this crowd (and us) to better understand our bondage, Jesus offers a parable……

“The land of a rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself (rationalizing), saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 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.”‘ 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?’ So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

The subject in this story is apparently dealing with a fortune-sized estate instead of the farthing-sized one but its all the same. The deluded soul in this parable was hoarding and hedging. He was making storage provisions for his anticipated windfalls which would insure his long-term comforts.  For a man like myself (a boomer) who is nearing the age our culture has deemed retirement-age, these are relevant words. It would seem with this parable Jesus has his guns aimed at my demographic’s head. But again, the Truth does not discriminate. It’s universally true of us, that unless we relate to Jesus as Lord and his words as authoritative we will inevitably rationalize (reason falsely), forcing Jesus to expose our precarious position. He says our fatal error is that we have reasoned thus…..

“Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”

This barn-builder might take pride among men for what appears to be good estate planning but not before God to whom wealth-preservation does not mean the same thing. This Lord says…..

 ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’

Our unwillingness to see all forms of sin (even what we perceive as modest) as being just as deadly as another is why the perceived need for Jesus as Savior (and especially Lord) is modest to non-existent. Who really needs rescued when, in our minds (so adept at rationalizing), we are only moderately guilty or innocent all together. Where this mentality is present, we like to bring in Jesus as a consultant on an as-needed basis. Where the Christian soul thinks good estate planning is its ultimate hedge against the unknown, it is enslaved along with everyone else in the world. I believe Jesus would implore the children of light…..

Do not store up treasure for yourselves on earth. Instead focus on other’s needs. Be a wise and generous steward of all that has been entrusted to you. Do not be deceived; wealth can make itself wings. Trust in me as your true source and guard your hearts against all the subtle forms of sin that your culture and its god has told you are harmless. Abide in me and let my words abide in you even as they are by design sharper than any two-edged sword. My word is capable of sorting out and distinguishing all forms of sin and enabling you to reformat your hearts according to my reality. I will not deny that my knife hurts. While being stripped of lies will be painful, please remember that it is my kindness (even in your discomfort) that will be leading you to repentance and the abundantly liberated life I have purchased and promised you. Think of your estate planning from this eternal perspective and you will have addressed your actual and truest long-term needs. In this way you can be rich toward me. 

Father, teach us to watch over our hearts with all diligence. Holy Spirit help us to see every way in which we have rationalized our heart’s entanglements with this world. Deliver us from every lie that has us bound to the temporal. Teach us to number our days as those without number so that we may ultimately present to you wise hearts that have already been swept clean of hidden agendas and secret sins. And Father, please teach us that it is Jesus Himself who is our windfall. In Him our cups truly are running over. To you alone Lord be glory and honor and dominion in our hearts and all realms forevermore. Amen.

 

 

 

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