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Copyright © 2012 J. Neely. All rights reserved.
Chapter 20 - Rich Fool
Luke 12:20-23
20 But [de] God [theos] said [epo] unto him [autos] , Thou fool [aphron] , this [taute] night [nux] thy [sou] soul [psuche] shall be required [apaiteo] of [apo] thee [sou] : then [de] whose [tis] shall those things be [esomai] , which [hos] thou hast provided [hetoimazo] ?
21 So [houto] is he that layeth up treasure [thesaurizo] for himself [heautou] , and [kai] is [plouteo] not [me] rich [plouteo] toward [eis] God [theos] .
22 ¶ And [de] he said [epo] unto [pros] his [autos] disciples [mathetes] , Therefore [dia] [touto] I say [lego] unto you [humin] , Take [merimnao] no [me] thought [merimnao] for your [humon] life [psuche] , what [tis] ye shall eat [phago] ; neither [mede] for the body [soma] , what [tis] ye shall put on [enduo] .
23 The life [psuche] is [esti] more [pleion] than meat [trophe] , and [kai] the body [soma] is more than raiment [enduma] . KJV-Interlinear
20 'But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?' 21 'So is the man who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.' 22 And He said to His disciples, 'For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, as to what you shall eat; nor for your body, as to what you shall put on. 23 'For life is more than food, and the body than clothing. NASB
First we will add to our study for today, a few more verses.
1 Cor. 4:4
the one who examines me is the Lord. NASB
Psa. 10:3
3 For the wicked boasts of his heart's desire, And the greedy man curses and spurns the LORD. NASB
Psa. 49:18
18 Though while he lives he congratulates himself — And though men praise you when you do well for yourself NASB
Psa. 49:13
13 This is the way of those who are foolish, And of those after them who approve their words. NASB
Psa. 49:17
17 For when he dies he will carry nothing away; His glory will not descend after Him. NASB
The greatest mistake (bar none) that anyone can have in life, is to ignore God. We are not the masters of our destiny. There are but two choices in this life which affect our future life in eternity. We can believe in Jesus Christ and go to heaven. We can choose to ignore Jesus Christ and go to hell. There is an infinite difference between the two.
We did not create heaven, nor did we create hell. We did not call ourselves into existence, nor will we have any independent control over our life after we die. We cannot control the moment of our death. We cannot prevent it. Once we die, then we are absent from this earthly body, and we are free floating as it were, and at the mercy of the destiny we have chosen for ourselves. We cannot navigate anywhere else, except to heaven (under the guidance of angels) or to hell (again under the guidance of angels). How so?
This verse teaches us the result of our death and why is comes to us.
God states that the rich man was a fool. A fool is one who lacks Gods wisdom in his soul. Then God states, 'your soul is required of you.' 'Required,' is a very technical word. It means 'arrested by means of force.'
In the due process of life there is first the thought, decision, and action of the individual person. Simultaneously, in heaven (see our study in Daniel), there is evidence gathering concerning the persons life. Sooner or later there is enough evidence and then an indictment is issued. Charges are made. Again see our study of Nebuchadnezzar in the book of Daniel. Warnings are issued along the way, and once the indictment is issued, then those warnings become intensified in the life of the individual.
Again, sooner or later, an arrest warrant is issued, and that is it. Your time is up and your soul is called out of this life. Required also indicates a forceful arrest. Your soul is jerked out of your body, just as a police officer might jerk violently a bad guy out of a vehicle and slam him down on the pavement. So too the fool is jerked out of this life, and angels are present to carry the person off to the proper destination - heaven or hell.
The believer goes to heaven. The unbeliever (anyone who has not believed in Christ) goes to Torments and there awaits the final judgment of the Great White Throne which will occur at the end of the Millennium. And from there is thrown into the Lake of Fire forever.
The believer in heaven then awaits the Judgment Seat of Christ, where he will receive his evaluation from Christ, and the results of that evaluation will be more blessings because the believer has advanced to maturity, or the cancellation of those 'more' blessings because the person has been a fool and has not grown up spiritually.
So the rich man is a fool. And, by the way, you do not have to be a rich person in order to become a fool in life. Anyone who ignores God and His Word, is a fool. Wisdom is Gods Word resident inside of your soul and available to you for use in its proper form. That is from your having grown up spiritually and from your being resident in fellowship.
Wise people are few and far between. Fools are numerous in this world. They are the vast majority. Which are you?
The rich man in our parable, sought his wisdom and comfort from the things of this life. Things which have limited purpose and limited life. He should have sought Gods Wisdom, because it is eternal and the foundation and environment and format on which his entire future depends. The foundation - doctrine. The environment - heaven. The format - blessings beyond imagination (or lack of them).
When we compare our life of a few decades of this earth, perhaps 70 years on average give or take, to our life in eternity which will continue on for trillions and trillions of gazillions of years, then which of the two is the greater time frame? I'll wait while you get out your calculator.
Ok, times up. The eternal life is far longer of course. Our life here on earth by comparison is but a blink, if even that. So which portion of your life should you focus on? One hundred percent of your time on this short life, or at least something which will improve the definition of your future life?
Life is far more than anything you can acquire here on earth. Life is far greater than any situation you might find yourself in, in this life. Some of us live charmed lives. Most of us have problems of one type or another. Both situations are irrelevant, because we will all leave them behind when we die.
Whatever you accumulate (earthly things) in this life will not go with you into the next. Someone else will take over the fruits of your hard work whatever it is, once you are gone. Over that you have no control. Even with wills, and trusts, and administrators you cannot control your wealth from the grave. Your life's work can be greatly enhanced, or squandered, or even destroyed by bureaucracy, and you will never know its outcome.
If your emphasis in this life is social rather than wealth accumulation, if your emphasis in life concerns your health, if your emphasis in life concerns your pleasure, if your emphasis in life is centered around approbation, or power, or lust of any kind, or anything else which interferes with your study of Gods word, then this parable applies to you.
Do not be the fool and leave this world without any spiritual growth (or very little). Once you are gone, then you cannot come back to do it all over again. Get it right the first time. If you are still here and reading this, then God has given you time to succeed in your spiritual life. Once God stops giving you time, then you'll never know what hit you. Don't miss out on the greatest opportunity you'll ever have.
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Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.
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