The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 13 - August 4, 2019

Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 13
August 4, 2019
Luke 12:13-21, Colossians 3:1-11
The Rev’d Charles W. Everson
St. Mary’s Episcopal Church
 
Our gospel lesson begins with someone coming to Jesus with an estate law question: the man asks him to tell his brother (probably his older brother) to divide the family inheritance with him. 

This sort of childhood squabble continues even in our day.  In one of the earliest funerals I did after being ordained, I asked the daughter of the deceased, “Will your step-brothers and sisters be coming to the service?”  “No,” she responded.  “They got all the money when their dad died, and we haven’t been able to stand being in the same room with them ever since.  We really don’t want them here.” 

In this case, the younger brother gets upset because the law and tradition of the day said that the elder brother receives the bulk of the inheritance.  The younger brother comes to Jesus, asking him to solve his problem.  “Nope,” Jesus responds.  No.  Can.  Do.  The younger brother thinks his request is all about fairness.  “It’s only fair that I get half,” the younger brother thinks.  But Jesus sets him straight.  His request isn’t about fairness.  It’s actually about greed.

Those two verses shape the parable that Jesus then tells.  A rich man’s land produces abundantly…so much so that he doesn’t have room to store all of his excess crops.  So he does something practical: he build larger barns in which to store them.  But here’s where the rub comes in.  The rich man then says, “And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, and be merry.”  Now that I’ve saved up and feel secure for my future, I can truly be happy.

God’s response couldn’t have been more high-direct.  “You fool!” he said.  “Tonight you die!  And all these things you’ve stored up…whose will they be?”  “So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God.” And then the parable ends.  No happy ending like the parable of the Good Samaritan, or the parable of the Prodigal Son. 

What does it mean to be “rich towards God?”  Does it mean, “You can’t take it with you, so be generous with your assets – especially to the Church?” (wink, wink)  Does it mean that you and I shouldn’t plan for retirement, or save for a rainy day? 
There’s a difference between proper planning and greediness. I think Jesus’s message for us in this parable is this: you have to balance concern for the future with the call to give glory to God by caring for your neighbor – for the poor, the marginalized, and all those in need.  This balancing act is hard work, and requires a lot of discernment.[1]

I am not sure if everyone has this problem, but I have a very rich fantasy life.  I like to think about the day when I will hopefully no longer have to worry about paying bills, and dealing with constant repairs of an old home.  I like to think about what life would be like if I won the lottery. 

Jesus’s response to this rich man – “You fool!  Tonight you’ll die!  So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God” – this response, as jarring as it is, reminds me that I need to stop being distracted by such fantasies.  Frankly, the rich man in this story had become so concerned for himself and his comfort that he had forgotten that God had created the land that produced the excess crop.  He’d forgotten that really, all the excess crop belonged to God and he was just the temporary steward of them.  And he’d forgotten that happiness and contentedness is not found in the abundance of wealth or possessions. 

Paul said in our epistle lesson, “If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.”[2] 

It is only when we surrender our fantasies, whether they be about wealth or financial security or sexual happiness – it is only when we name these distractions for what they are – idols – and lay them at the feet of our Lord that we can truly set our minds on things that are above.  It is only then that we can begin to see what contentedness looks like.

What does it mean to be “rich with God?”  It means acknowledging who we are – sinners in need of a Savior – and acknowledging who God is – the creator and author of all from whom all good things come.  Being rich with God means acknowledging our fantasy life for what it is, and not allowing it to become a distraction as we seek to follow Christ with all that we have and all that we are.  Being rich with God means balancing the need to plan for our future with the need to give away our money and possessions to support the poor, the marginalized, and the needy.  Being rich with God means knowing in the deepest parts of who we are that money and financial security and possessions will not make us happy.  Jesus is telling us in this parable that we find our happiness in setting our minds on things that are above.  On Jesus Christ. 

Despite not being worthy to gather up the crumbs under God’s table, God’s unconditional mercy and love towards us makes us worthy to come into his presence with a quiet confidence that “all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”[3]  It is from this deep sense of knowing who we are and whose we are that we should approach our money and wealth and whatever it is that captivates our fantasy life.  In knowing who we are – that we are buried with Christ in his death, and raised with him in newness of life – we are able to begin to see money and possessions for what they really are – gifts from God over which we’ve been given temporary stewardship.  Yes, God provides our daily bread – everything we need – but we’ve been entrusted with the gifts we’ve been given to return some to God and to care for those in need.

Friends, let us set our minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For we have died, and our life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is our life is revealed, then we too will be revealed with him in glory.  Amen.
 
[1] This concept is from the Theological perspective for this text in David Lyon Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, eds., Feasting on the Word. Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary. (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2008).

[2] Colossians 3:1-11.

[3] Julian of Norwich.

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