This is nothing more than my personal reflection from our last sermon on the Parable of the Rich Fool. The text is Luke 12:13-21 and my hope is that you'll take a quick read through that passage (text below) and consider with me this question:.
What thoughts run through your mind when the church talks about money?
My thoughts immediately turn to the idea that I should be giving more. My wife and I don't give 10% - it's quite a bit less than that. Not that it makes me righteous by any means, but we got into the habit of giving a consistent amount. No percentages or calculations, just a set amount that we write a check for each week. While it's still not up to the common (but no longer required) standard of 10%, our goal is to contribute 10% of any increases we see in income moving forward. Hey, it's a start.
I know that you're supposed to give from your first fruits. I'm happy to give the entire amount from our first paycheck of the month. My wife likes to be able to put something in the offering each week. What do we do? Compromise. We budget our giving from the very beginning, but we give each week as a way to participate in that form of worship.
Even with our meager giving, I always think to the things that I could really do without in my life and my mind wanders to how easy it would be to give up some of those luxuries to give more. That also leads to how my time is spent. Giving up some of the luxuries would also free up time that could be spent volunteering or serving in other capacities. I workout probably 5 - 7 hours a week. How much could I contribute in both time and money if I were to sell my bike and ditch the cycling/running habit?
From the side of me that I'm not so proud of, I often think to the support that I send monthly to a single mom from my former hometown. That's actually 23% of my income if we're going to be counting. It's no secret that I'm divorced and that "donation" is child support.
It's easy to think that I shouldn't have to give to the church when I'm already giving so much off the top, but that's a lie. There are consequences to sin, and child support is one of them. I have a responsibility to provide financially for my children whether the state sets the amount or not. Giving over and above that is where I'm worshiping God, not when I legalistically attempt to rationalize it otherwise.
I'm still left with more questions at this point and I'm sure you may be as well. That's okay - getting answers to those questions and applying them is part of our growth process.
There are three more questions to consider as we work through this text. We'll hit those in the next three days. For now, I'd love to hear what you have to say about this first question! Head over to Facebook and let's chat about it!
Luke 12:13-21 English Standard Version (ESV)
The Parable of the Rich Fool
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
Interested in hearing Pastor Dave Martin's sermon on this text?
Listen online here or download the file.
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