Kingdom Wealth – Part II
Key Verse: Luke 12:21
“Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God”.
Additional Reading: Luke 12:13-34
To follow up on the last part of yesterday’s devotion, think about this question: How do you measure life? Maybe an easier question to answer would be: how do you define wealth?
Because I often thank God for my wealth, I have thought about what that includes for me. It certainly includes money. But I’ve realized that my sense of wealth goes way beyond my finances.
I praise God for the wealth of my relationship with Him. If I didn’t have peace of mind from knowing my sins were forgiven, what good would my money be?
My wealth includes my relationship with my family. I am so grateful for my wife, kids, and grandkids. This wealth of family is found in the fact that we love each other and enjoy getting together. All the money in the world could not replace that!
My wealth includes the health of my family and myself. I realize that won’t last forever, but I want to always be grateful for the health we have now. So, these things are just a few of the things that I measure life by!
Why don’t you take a moment and jot somethings down that are more important to you than money? It’s a good exercise! If you come up with a very short list of things more important to you than money, you might have a greed problem!
Jesus followed these words to the crowd with a story to highlight His point. The story was of a rich farmer who was really doing well. He decided to tear down his old barn and build a bigger one to store all the produce that his farm was producing.
So far, there is nothing wrong with what the farmer did. It was the words that he said to himself that shows the greed: “…I’ll sit back and say to myself, I have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink and be merry!” (Luke 12:19).
However, Jesus said in this story that God interrupted his thoughts with: “You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?” (Luke 12:20). Jesus wrapped up the story with the lesson that He wants all of us to learn: “…a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God” (Luke 12:21).
Take a moment, at this point, and evaluate your relationship with God. Would you describe it as a “rich” one? Do you spend time praying and reading your Bible on such a regular schedule that others would describe your relationship with God as rich? God is not mad at you because of your money, but He might be nudging you toward a richer relationship with Him!
Father, I want to have a rich relationship with you. Please help me get there. In Jesus’s Name, amen.