Not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth

Sometimes it is good to step back from the daily grind and consider the bigger picture. It never ceases to amaze me the depth of insight the Bible has into man. This shouldn't amaze me of course because the Bible itself told us it would have such insight.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

In my daily readings, I usually have the doctrines of grace reaffirmed and applied to my life, but every so often, I stumble across something that I just seem to understand better. Maybe it is because of how it relates to life or maybe it is something I'm supposed to learn.

Luke 12:15 was the latest verse that stood out to me like that.

Luke 12:13-15 And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

Christ has a way of going right to the heart of the sinner. He doesn't do a whole lot of dancing around the issue. Christ went right to the sin of greed and made it blindingly apparent to this man.

Of course by stating the negative about something, Christ directs us the the positive about it. The natural question to ask is “What does a man's life consist of?” I believe Christ answers that question in the next parable.

Luke 12:16-21
And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

A man's life does consist in being rich toward God. How exactly to be rich towards God could probably lead many places, but for some reason, I'm lead to the parable of the talents. Each man's task on earth is going to be slightly different, and some men are going to have more gifts (remember the 5, 2 and 1 talents?). We are to glorify God with what we've been given. Then we'll be rich toward God.