Bigger and Bigger barns
Numerous passages in the Bible speak to us about the God’s generosity to us and our response to it; do we invest our talents for his Kingdom or store up treasure pointlessly in our barns? Here are just a few passages you might reflect on:
"Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you have already given us! We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a shadow, gone so soon without a trace. O Lord our God, even these materials that we have gathered to build a temple to honour your holy name come from you! It all belongs to you!" (1 Chron 29, 14-16)
‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’ (Matt 6 19-21)
The Parable of the Rich Fool
Someone in the crowd said to him, Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.
Jesus replied, Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?
Then he said to them, Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. And he told them this parable:
The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'
This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God. (Luke 12, 15-21.)
The earthly riches entrusted by God to us are to be stewarded:
… for our families:
‘Those who won’t care for their own relatives, especially immediate family, have denied what we believe (1 Tim 5);
‘Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren (Proverbs 13:22)’,’
… for
the work of the Church:
the ‘collection for God’s people’ (1 Cor 16) and ‘service to the saints’ (2 Cor 8) to which Paul refers;
… for those more needy than ourselves:
'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. (Matt 25).'
… and for thanksgiving:
‘You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. (2 Cor 9)’
