Luke 12:13-21 -- The Rich Fool

Parables -

Parable of the Rich Fool

Luke 12:13-21

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         William Stringfellow said, "Perhaps the moral ambiguity of money is most plainly evidenced in the popular belief that money itself has value and that the worth of other things or of men is somehow measured in monetary terms, rather than the other way around."

What do the following people have in common?

 Mr. Welch of Welch's Grape Juice

 Mr. J.C. Kraft of Kraft Cheese Corporation

 Mr. Henry P. Crowell of Quaker Oats

 Mr. William Colgate of Colgate Soap

 Wallace Johnson, founder of Holiday Inns

 J.C. Penney of J.C. Penney Stores

 Mr. Albert Hyde of Mentholatum

 R.G. Letourneau of Letourneau College of Engineering

   They all put God first in their life and business. They started off their businesses asking God for wisdom in running them according to Christian principles. They started off giving Him a tithe and graduated to proportionate giving from 15% to over 25% of their profits. They were not content to give God leftovers and God was not content to bless them with leftovers. They were not content to be casual in their stewardship with God but made a pledge upon which they could "test God" according to His promise in Proverbs 3:9-10. "Honor the Lord from your wealth, and from the first of all your produce; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine."

The Possessor of heaven and earth placed you here, not as a proprietor, but as a steward.

 Opening Questions — Get Us Thinking:

· If you could have fame, fortune or good looks, which would you choose?

· The following parable shows us the effects of greed. Jesus calls us to share our resources with others for the sake of God’s kingdom.

The Parable of the Rich Fool — Luke 12:13-21

13Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

14Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

16And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

18“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’

20“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

21“This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”

 · Just for fun, if the Rich Fool in the parable (you can call him George Megabucks) lived in your community, what neighborhood would he live in and what kind of car would he drive?

Research Questions — “Dig Deeper” to find God’s Will

1. Deuteronomy 21:17 gave the general rule that an elder son received double a younger one’s portion. Disputes over such matters were normally settled by rabbis. This man’s request of Jesus was selfish and materialistic. There is no indication that the man had been listening seriously to what Jesus had been saying at the first of this chapter. Jesus replied with a parable about the consequences of greed.

2. In response to the man’s plea, Jesus tells a parable. What is the man’s problem? How would you describe this “rich fool?”

□ Clever 

□ Content 

□ Secure

□ Materialistic 

□ A show-off 

□ Immature

□ Brilliant 

□ Unhappy 

□ Dumb

□ Selfish 

□ Lucky

3. What is the man’s solution? Why is he a fool?

4. What was Jesus warning us against when he said, “Watch out!” in verse 15?

5. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry:” (v. 19). What is your attitude toward this philosophy? The attitude of those in your life?

6. How would you respond to the person who says, “Doesn't God just want us to be happy?”

7. What is the punch line of this parable? (v 20-21)

 Reflective Questions — Live it today.

1. Have you ever been like the man in this story?

2. How would this man’s obituary describe him?

□ A tireless worker                               

□ Foolish

□ A success story                                  

□ enterprising

Or another of your  word choice. _______________

3. Advertising is dedicated to making us believe the opposite of verse 15. What differences in lifestyle result from believing Jesus verses advertisements?

4. How can you be “rich toward God” (v 21)?

5. What do you value most in life? (Rank your top 3 choices.)

__ my family 

__ my assets 

__ my friends

__ my work 

__ my integrity 

__ my faith

__ my memories 

__ my time 

__ my good health

6. If Jesus were to ask you the same question as the man in the story, “What have you prepared for yourself,” do you feel good about your answer?

Money is a great servant but it is a lousy god. If you don't manage your money, it will manage you.