Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses

 

As we're all aware, we're in the midst of a national election season and one of the points being debated (ad nauseam) is the economy. I think that most of us can agree that it's definitely not good, but I'd like to use our economic situation, combined with the words of a prophet of old and a parable told by Christ to bring forth an editorial lesson today.

First, a quick thought on the economy. Yes, it's bad in a lot of ways BUT, most Americans have never had it so good. When you compare the material possessions of most Americans today with a large part of the world, even our poor would be considered to be blessed. I just do not think that Americans have a grasp on what real poverty is and this is what makes this applicable to our lesson.

We have so much, material-wise, in our lives that I feel that our material possessions, and the gaining of them, becomes the most important thing in our lives. God especially takes at least second place and maybe even lower than that. Perhaps if we, as a society, weren't so materialistically motivated, didn't have it so good, we might be more concerned with having God in our lives instead of possessions. Just my way of thinking anyway.

Back in the days of ancient Israel they had reached the situation that I think this country has reached - they were so affluent and absorbed in their material possessions that they had forgotten God. Like America today, they had probably never had it so good, life was pleasant and enjoyable and they seemed to be consumed by their possessions. Yeah, life was good at that time. Didn't need God.

But good old Amos had a message for Israel and we can read some words he said to them that speaks to what God thought about their current situation. In Amos 6:1 he said, "Woe to them that are at ease in Zion." I don't how you feel about that word "Woe," but I don't see it as being very pleasant, especially if it's aimed at me. The Hebrew definition of that word mean things like "alas" or "oh no" or is said to be an expression of "lamenting." I don't think one "laments" over something good, do they?

Doesn't it seem that when times are not so good, when people are lacking in the worldly material things, that they are closer to God. It was that way with Israel and I fear that it's that way with us today. People just don't seem to need God when things are going good, do they? God was concerned with His people back in Amos' day and I have faith that He is still concerned about us today.

Yep, Israel was sitting there pretty good in Amos's time. They had taken their "ease" as the verse says. Interestingly, the Hebrew word translated in English as "ease" means "to be secure" but in a bad context. As in "haughtily" secure. Amos knew that their souls were in danger with God by their false security, based on their possessions. Why I say "false security" is because that's where their faith lay and not in being concerned with being secure in God.

In the 12^th chapter of Luke, verses 13-21 we find a situation similar to Israel and we read what Jesus Christ had to say about it. The situation: a young man comes out of a crowd and asks Jesus for a favor. He wants Jesus to tell his brother to share his inheritance with him. In response to the young man's request, Jesus tells him and the crowd a parable, sometimes referred to as the parable of the rich fool.

Important to note though is that before starting the parable, He makes the statement that I used as a lead-in to our lesson: "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses." He then goes into His story about "the rich man" who had all the good things of life in abundance.

Yes, he had so much of the world's goods that had run out of space to store anymore "things." So, his solution was to build himself some more and bigger barns and storage facilities and amass more goodies. After he spent his efforts at doing this, gaining more and more things, when he felt that he was economically secure, he could tell his soul "take thine ease." Remember how the word "ease" applies here?

He had spent his life's efforts at gaining the good things, the material possessions that would make him "economically secure." And when he had reached that plateau he could "take his ease" and he'd be secure (haughtily). Or, so he thought. Look at what God had to say about his plan. "Fool! This night your soul will be required of you, then whose will those things be which you have provided?" (Vs. 20)

Back a few paragraphs ago I mentioned that many people seem to have made the most important thing in their life the gaining of material possessions. Yes, we have to have the necessities, but we don't stop there, do we? It just seems like the more we get, the more we want. Are we ever satisfied? Shouldn't we really understand that it's not "the abundance of things" that make us rich?

The last verse of Jesus' parable answers the question I just asked. He closed his story about the "rich fool" with these words: "So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." (Vs. 21)

I think that we need to seriously consider whether we've gotten ourselves into the situations that Israel and the "rich man" had arrived at. In the sense of material possessions, have we gotten ourselves so rich as a nation, as a society, that we've forgotten the character and spirit that established us as a nation? Are we now "sitting at ease" and have forgotten God?

When you look back at history, yes Israel was "haughtily" secure and "at ease." They had left God and in that condition, they had set themselves up for a fall. And, the fall came. In parallel, can we, as a nation, be doing the same thing? I have a great fear of that happening.

As a closing thought, spiritually speaking, just like we can't trust in our riches and "take our ease" neither can we, as Christians, "retire" from our duties. We can't think that our soul is so secure that we can "take our ease" and rest on whatever we've already done for the cause of Christ. We only have a short time, whatever our life span on earth is, to make our "calling and election sure" and then we can rest, "take our ease" for eternity. As John tells us in Rev. 2:10 "Be faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life."

Ron Covey