LUKE 12 (PART 2): RICH FOOLS

Luke 12
is going to be divided up,
at least into four parts,
because these messages
ARE for THIS season,
and these WORDS
are what Holy Spirit
wants to me to exhort.

Part 1 was about Hypocrisy,
intended for the religious spirit
that focuses on the falsity
“of you instead of me.”

These spirits 
like to hide behind walls
and draw lines in the sand.
They judge, kill, destroy and condemn.

Their mission 
is to mix fear and dominion,
with tradition and rigid opinion
to intimidate their fellow man.

Yes.
Modern-day Pharisees exist today.
Instead of being a lamp stand
and reflecting God’s love,
they sit under baskets,
and whisper condemnations
about all the Christians
who have  been led astray.

I pray for increase
in Followers of the Way -
for zealous Christians 
who keep their eyes 
faithfully focused
on Jesus!

Let me say,
the poetic sermons,
in Luke Chapter 12
set the stage
for the end of age!
I believe these are the signs
that describe the end times,
so please pay attention,
and keep a sober mind!

Hypocrisy and love of money
is rampant in our streets!
Our generation is driven
by anarchy and apostasy -
where rebellion,
and religious spirits
have been actively pursuing men.
While God can intervene,
at any time,
His word is clear.
He is patiently waiting
for humanity to draw near.

He has already sent His Son,
to redeem us from our sin.
And He sent Holy Spirit
to live on the inside
of hearts of men.

He has not left us,
or taken away His love.
In fact, it is just the opposite!
He is administering
the corrective discipline
referred to in Hebrews 12.

This is what the author
of Hebrews said,
“And have you forgotten
the encouraging words
God spoke to you as his children?"

He said,
My child,
don’t make light
of the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t give up
when he corrects.
For the Lord disciplines
those he loves,
and he punishes each one
he accepts as his child.
As you endure
this divine discipline,
remember that
God is treating you
as his own children.
Who ever heard of a child
who is never disciplined
by its father?
If God doesn’t discipline you
as he does all of his children,
it means that you are illegitimate
and are not really his children at all.
Since we respected
our earthly fathers
who disciplined us,
shouldn’t we submit even more
to the discipline
of the Father of our spirits,
and live forever?”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:5-9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Discipline?
You may ask what
what we need discipline from.
Perhaps this a good time
to share Romans, Chapter 1.

But before I do,
let me just say,
that in my flesh,
His thoughts are not my thoughts,
and His ways are not my ways.
I had a very hard time
coming to terms with God,
for so long I walked in rebellion.
I believed in parts of His Word,
but I made excuses and justified
most of what I heard.

Then the Lord
allowed me to come to the end of myself,
and this is when I contemplated suicide.
There was consequence to my sin
that He allowed me to endure,
but He is such a Good Father
that He sent Jesus
to rescue me from the pit.
In that moment, 
I died to myself;
and in that moment
I understood His love - 
and this is when I decided
to fully surrender my will to Him.

Romans 1 says,
“So God abandoned them
to do whatever shameful things
their hearts desired.
As a result, they did vile
and degrading things
with each other’s bodies.
They traded the truth about God
for a lie.
So they worshiped and served
the things God created
instead of the Creator himself,
who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.
That is why God abandoned them
to their shameful desires.
Even the women turned
against the natural way to have sex
and instead indulged in sex
with each other.
And the men,
instead of having normal
sexual relations with women,
burned with lust for each other.
Men did shameful things
with other men,
and as a result of this sin,
they suffered within themselves
the penalty they deserved.
Since they thought it foolish
to acknowledge God,
he abandoned them
to their foolish thinking
and let them do things
that should never be done.
Their lives became full
of every kind of wickedness,
sin, greed, hate, envy, murder,
quarreling, deception, malicious
behavior, and gossip.
They are backstabbers,
haters of God,
insolent, proud, and boastful.
They invent new ways of sinning,
and they disobey their parents.
They refuse to understand,
break their promises, are heartless,
and have no mercy.
They know God’s justice
requires that those
who do these things deserve to die,
yet they do them anyway.
Worse yet, they encourage others
to do them, too.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭1:24-32‬ ‭NLT‬‬

As you can see,
all of humanity is in need, 
because not one of us walks
in His purity.
Evil is the intent of our heart,
until we receive Jesus,
and are set apart.

Lust gives birth to sin,
and sin gives birth to death.
Human unrighteousness
is a progression -
rejecting one aspect of God
leads to even greater
rejections of Him.

The Parable of the Rich Fool
is just another example
of humanity's plight,
where we foolishly think
that we have it all right.

This is a message
that everyone needs to hear -
especially the wealthy
who live throughout the world.

And in America
we teach individualism -
where self-reliance and
independent thinking
defines our human existence.

Most Americans
who say they are Christian
don’t even believe
that Jesus brought both unity and division.

They think that 
no matter what your religion,
all paths lead to Heaven.
They think
God is the Creator of Unity.
But you will see,
later in Chapter 12,
that Jesus himself says,
"I came to cause division." 

So, today, I pray
for people like me,
"the rich fools" 
who have been led astray.

Riches and glory
is not of this world,
yet, this is the story
we have all been told.

Greed and Getting
are the values we hold.
And Money and More
is what we have worked for.
Land and Homes,
Trucks and Cars,
Shoes and Clothes,
and Entertainment Shows -
This is the gold
the typical American heart
worships and longs for.
High salaries and pension plans,
retirement savings and 401K plans.
Climbing the ladder of success
while stepping on sisters and brothers -
this seems to be what many aim for!

This is the message of Part 2
in the 12th Chapter
of the Book of Luke.
The Parable of the Rich Man
is actually a destitute fool.

Do you think
God cares about our money,
our fame or our glory?
No!
He is not toting
the gospel of prosperity.
Jesus came, as a lamb
to model and preach
the gospel of suffering.
This is the TRUE testimony
that we much teach!
The gospel of dying to self
to pick up His cross, and follow Jesus!

Let’s get real!
Bible prophecy is not about you or me!
It’s about the fulfillment
 -of who Jesus is.
And it's not about spiritual gifts,
and it definitely is not about 
money and wealth.
Bible prophecy is all about
Jesus as prophet, priest, the king -
and our prosperity is His blood,
the key that gives access
to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Dominion -
is also not as you think.
Dominion is actually
the FREE Gift
of God’s grace.

The Independence and Democracy
that our founding fathers foretold
was not about separation from God.
Instead,
it was all about
being free from the greedy
kings of this world.

We are not meant
to be separated from God.
In fact, it is just the opposite!
We are to hide His Word
in our hearts,
so that we do not sin against him!
Psalm 119:11

How do you think
Jesus felt
when the rich fool got it wrong?
It must have totally
broken His heart
to see him foolishly absorbed
by this stronghold.

The rich fool said,
“Teacher, please tell my brother
to divide our father’s estate with me.”

Jesus replied,
“Friend, who made me a judge over you
to decide such things as that?”

Then Jesus said,
“Beware! Guard against
every kind of greed.
Life is not measured
by how much you own.”

Then he told them a story:
“A rich man had a fertile farm
that produced fine crops.
He said to himself,
“What should I do?
I don’t have room for all my crops.”

Then he said,
"I know!
I’ll tear down my barns
and build bigger ones.
Then I’ll have room enough to store
all my wheat and other goods.
And I’ll sit back and say to myself,
“My friend, you have enough
stored away for years to come.
Now take it easy! Eat, drink,
and be merry!”
“But God said to him,
“You fool! You will die this very night.
Then who will get everything
you worked for?”
“Yes, a person is a fool
to store up earthly wealth
but not have a rich relationship
with God.”

So here we see
Jesus getting angry
when a man wants equality
with dividing 
his father's estate.
For humanity,
this is a a really big thing!
Fairness and equity
are completely related to money,
civil rights and physical property.   
But Jesus calls this GREED,
and says,
"Life is not measured
by how much you own.”

After addressing the man,
He turned to his disciples, and said,
“That is why I tell you
not to worry about everyday life -
whether you have enough food to eat
or enough clothes to wear.
For life is more than food,
and your body more than clothing.
Look at the ravens.
They don’t plant or harvest
or store food in barns,
for God feeds them.
And you are far more valuable to him
than any birds!
Can all your worries
add a single moment to your life?
And if worry can’t accomplish
a little thing like that,
what’s the use of worrying
over bigger things?
Look at the lilies and how they grow.
They don’t work or make their clothing,
yet Solomon in all his glory
was not dressed as beautifully as they are.
And if God cares so wonderfully
for flowers that are here today
and thrown into the fire tomorrow,
he will certainly care for you.
Why do you have so little faith?
And don’t be concerned
about what to eat
and what to drink.
Don’t worry about such things.
These things dominate
the thoughts of unbelievers
all over the world,
but your Father
already knows your needs.
Seek the Kingdom of God
above all else,
and he will give you
everything you need.
So don’t be afraid, little flock.
For it gives your Father great happiness
to give you the Kingdom.
Sell your possessions
and give to those in need.
This will store up treasure
for you in heaven!
And the purses of heaven
never get old or develop holes.
Your treasure will be safe;
no thief can steal it
and no moth can destroy it.
Wherever your treasure is,
there the desires of your heart will also be.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭12:13-34‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Part 2 of Chapter 12
in the Book of Luke
is totally about wealth -
but not the way we think!

It's about
the faithfully devout
who are focused
on spreading the gospel of Jesus,
and promoting Kingdom glory and wealth.