Luke 12:22-23
Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
In Whom Do You Trust?
Have you ever seen a raven wringing his wings over what he’d eat tomorrow? Of course you haven’t. The birds of the air are never anxious over what they’ll eat. They just deal with today. Yet how often have we–how often have I–worried about tomorrow? Too many times for my own good, I know that. One thing about having sufficiency is it makes us take our eyes off of God. God warned Israel many times that when the land has plenty, when there is sufficient wine in storage, when the fields are full of grain, and when their stomachs are full, they are not to forget their God (Deut 8:10-11). Knowing human nature, we tend to forget our need for God when we have all that we need. God knows this, too, but He wants us to understand that when we start depending on ourselves for our own comfort, we tend to grow less dependent upon God.
The Rich Fool
Jesus spoke the Parable of the Rich Fool, saying that he had prospered so much, he had to tear down his barns to build bigger ones in order to store all the crops he had brought in. He thought that he had it made now and could live a life of ease (Luke 12:19), but God declared him to be a fool, and his soul was required that very night (Luke 12:20). What good would all of his crops do for him now? Here’s the thing: He had so much that he couldn’t possibly consume it all, so why didn’t he share with the poor? Instead, he stored up so much that he decided to live a life of ease. His life of comfort made him have no dependency upon God, and when someone doesn’t feel that they need God, they are in danger of living only for themselves. Was being comfortable enough for the Rich Fool? Jesus said that life is more than food and drink (Luke 12:23). We are not to lay up treasures for ourselves here on earth, but be rich in the things of God (Luke 12:21).
Happiness Not a Promise of God
Many people I speak with who are going through some great difficulties say to me, “I am just not happy,” but the fact is the Bible never promises happiness in this life. There is no chapter or verse that can assure us that this is God’s will for our lives. Rather He wants us to depend upon Him and not rely on our own strength (Prov 3:5). When we start focusing on the comforts of this life and having a life of ease, we take our eyes off of God and put them onto our bank accounts, and this makes us dependent on our own resources and not dependent upon God.
A Closing Prayer
Holy Father in heaven, please help me keep my eyes on You and not be anxious for what is to come tomorrow. Please forgive me when I rely on my own resources and depend on myself and not on You. That is a dangerous place to live, and I don’t want to be like the Rich Fool Jesus spoke about, so I will try to depend on You more and not strive to live a life of comfort. In Christ’s righteous name I pray.
Amen
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