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Then he said to his disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, don’t worry about your life, what you will eat; or about the body, what you will wear.’

Luke 12:22

How can He say this? Surely we must consider what we will eat, and what we will wear. Are we meant to go through life with a completely ‘whatever will be will be’ attitude?

No. But notice the word worry. A young child with good parents has need of these things but does not worry. Children who are well taken care of are content to throw their concerns elsewhere. We are not meant to be laissez-faire, but to be dependent as is a young child.

Worry need not be part of our vocabulary. Instead, we are meant to live our life looking to Almighty God for our supply, support, and satisfaction. We are meant to trust Him, and He is indeed trustworthy.

Heavenly Father, thank You for being the best Father anyone could have. We know You have a plan, and that we can trust You in difficult times. You are good beyond measure or description! In our uncertainty, which is where we live, we can be certain of Your love. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

That’s how it is with the one who stores up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.

Luke 12:21

Here we have the true value we should seek, to be rich towards God. This is what is worth living for.

Heavenly Father, thank You for telling us the truth! Value is important to our short and frail lives. You are so kind and good. Your blessings are abundant and merciful. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is demanded of you. And the things you have prepared—whose will they be?’

Luke 12:20

This man had taken comfort in his possessions. He had forgotten about God, and was contented, thinking his supply protected him from everything. This was truly foolish.

The Lord refers to the man’s life as if it is on loan. And indeed our lives are on loan from God. He is in control.

All that this man had prepared for himself would now be consumed by others. Some who might benefit from this would be the poor and needy who this man should have been helping all along.

Heavenly Father, we can depend upon You for all that we need. But more than that, You know more than we do and we can look to You to guide our lives and give us purpose. You are altogether wonderful! You are holy and true! Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Then I’ll say to myself, You have many goods stored up for many years. Take it easy; eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.

Luke 12:19

This is the attitude of one who trusts in riches. They deceive themselves, thinking their riches will keep them from all trouble.

Heavenly Father, thank You, for You are the One Who can keep us from trouble. It is You Who are able to keep us safe and bless our lives. You are the joy and rejoicing of my heart! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

I will do this,’ he said. ‘I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones and store all my grain and my goods there.’

Luke 12:18

Bigger Barns are not bad in and of themselves. However, this man’s plans revolved around his favorite person, himself. He did not take into consideration how his extra supply might be used to help others.

The Biblical understanding of material prosperity is as a means by which to be a blessing to others. Riches are meant to be shared, not hoarded.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the exceeding riches of Your grace! You are so magnanimous and beneficent! I will praise Your magnificent goodness and mighty justice. You are Perfect! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

He thought to himself, ‘What should I do, since I don’t have anywhere to store my crops?’

Luke 12:17

This man was so rich that the only problem he could think of was that he didn’t have room to store all that he had. This is a classic example of someone who had put all of his confidence in material possessions.

Heavenly Father, thank You for showing us a better way! We can live for Your glory and for eternity. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Then he told them a parable: ‘A rich man’s land was very productive.’

Luke 12:16

Jesus has a lot to say about money and its deceitfulness. He was concerned about His rich hearers, who were by and large not understanding the truth about Him.

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us the right perspective in Your Word. The things of this world cannot satisfy anyway. We will live for You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

He then told them, ‘Watch out and be on guard against all greed, because one’s life is not in the abundance of his possessions.’

Luke 12:15

Jesus teaches very clearly against materialism. Indeed, this verse right here is the clearest word ever said on the subject in all of history. A person’s life is not in how much that individual possesses.

Greed will lead to need. A person that lives for possessions will finally realize they are bankrupt, whether in this life or after it. Greed is a hard master that pays little.

Heavenly Father, thank You for telling us the truth about these things! I know Your way is perfect. You alone have the answers for life. I will look to You to find the right balance. You are the Center of it all. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Friend,’ He said to him, ‘who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?’

Luke 12:14

Jesus had been speaking of His spiritual authority. His acknowledgment of a person will indeed matter. And He is The Judge over all.

However, in this case He knew this man wanted Jesus to get involved in material squabbles among the people. This Jesus had not come to do. As He states to this man, He was not in a position legally to judge in these matters.

But, in the verses to follow, Jesus gives this man and the others there listening an idea of how He, as The Judge of All, views greed.

Heavenly Father, thank You for this day! Thank You for another opportunity to live for You! You are glorious and wonderful beyond all that I can imagine. Your Word is so amazing and brings to our lives wonderful things. I love You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

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

Luke 12:13

This individual was very clearly hoping to capitalize on Jesus’s teachings. This person had possibly heard some other teachings of Christ and assumed they knew what He would say in this case.

There are many people who will misunderstand or misapply the teachings of Christ. Why? Jesus is the most effective teacher in history. As a result, His message is hard to ignore. So, if a person can appropriate His words to their ends, they have a big supporter in the eyes of others. So to be able to identify Christ’s message as source material is very desirable.

Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your truth! You make it available even though it gets misinterpreted by those who are out for their own gain. You are merciful to even allow us to know You. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.