Jesus said to the crowds, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions” (Lk 12:15). Jesus is responding to the man in the crowd who asked him to be an arbitrator between him and his brother. The brother was concerned that he would not get his fair share, or any share, from the inheritance.
Jesus is offering the man a healthier orientation and perspective, which is to help him to see what is most important in life. Jesus knows the scriptural stories of conflicts between brothers, such as Cain and Abel, Esau and Jacob, Joseph and his eleven brothers. Jesus knew his own culture and interactions of the people of his time. He knew that conflicts over inheritance could quickly escalate into blood feuds and even death.
Jesus is helping the man in today’s Gospel, his disciples, as well as those listening to him then and us today to see that what is primary and important is relationships, not wealth. First and foremost, our relationship with God is the most important. One’s life does not consist in possessions, and this ought not to be our pursuit and primary focus in life. Wealth and material goods are fleeting, they do not last. We will always seek the newest, updated model of this or that, we will become bored quickly and want more and more. Ultimately, we will not be fulfilled, because we have been created for so much more.
We have been created to be in relationship with God and each other. We have been made to worship, and if we do not worship God, we will worship something or someone else. If it has been awhile, return to reading the Book of Exodus and see what happened when Moses was away from the Israelites for only forty days (see Exodus 32). Too many of us idolize wealth or seek it as security. Dr. Matt Nelson, author, apologist, and assistant director of the Word on Fire Institute has written that: “Sanity begins with the realization that God does not need us to worship him, we need to worship God. Worship cultivates peace in the soul of the deepest and most lasting kind. When we worship we rest. It is thus the essential human activity, the first of all first things and the secret to real and lasting happiness.”
The parable that Jesus shared about the rich man with his bountiful harvest brings the point home that God and the things of heaven are more important than the things of this world which will not last. The man in the parable constantly thinks of only himself, not what does God want me to do with this bountiful harvest. He is wrapped up in – I, me, and mine. Jesus’ listeners would have recognized in Jesus’ telling another person who stored up vast amounts of grain, Joseph who “collected grain like the sands of the sea, so much at last he stopped measuring it, for it was beyond measure” (Genesis 41:49).
The difference between the man in the parable and Joseph was that the man was storing up grain for himself alone, and not thinking of anyone else in need. Joseph stored up grain beyond this man’s wildest dreams and was doing so because God let him know that the seven years of prosperity would end and would be followed seven years of dire poverty. Joseph was saving the grain to save the nation and those in need. The man was following his own self interest, Joseph was following the will of God.
Let us meditate on the words that Jesus offers us today, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” What is more important to us, our things or God and the people in our lives? Do we place our security in wealth or God? Do we want apparent, temporary happiness or real, lasting meaning and fulfillment? All that we have is a gift from God. What prevents us from sharing with others in need from that which we have received? How we ponder and answer these questions will have an impact on the peace and happiness in our lives now and in the life to come.
Painting: I have found more peace and rest in following the guidance of Jesus. Photo of the painting of Jesus I took in the chapel at The University of St. Mary of the Lake.
Nelson, Matt. Just Whatever: How To Help the Spiritually Indifferent Find Beliefs That Really Matter. El Cajon, CA: Catholic Answers, 2018.
Spiritual Stepping Stones 