Money Doesn’t Make You Rich—Jesus Does! – February 16, 2024

Read: Luke 12:13-32

[Jesus] told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 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 my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain 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?’”
Luke 12:16-20

Money Doesn’t Make You Rich—Jesus Does!

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

When a parent dies, they sometimes give whatever money they have left to their children. That’s called an inheritance. Parents do this because they know that their children and grandchildren will be alive for many years after they die, and they want to help their children with whatever they need, even after they have died. If they have a lot of money, they might also give money to help other family members, their church, or their community. Here’s a really good question for you to think about: What exactly makes someone rich?

Jesus tells a story about a hardworking man who probably worked long hours and had lots of grain (which means he had a lot of money). When he saw that a bumper crop was about to come in, he undertook a massive barn expansion project. From the outside, there’s nothing wrong with working hard and building barns and saving up for the future. His problem was on the inside. His grain was his gold—not God. Instead of thanking God or thinking about how he could help others, he thought only about himself. Notice how many times he used the words “I” or “my” or “myself”! He thought he was going to live for a long time. But he was wrong. God decided that that man would die that night, and all the things that he had were given to someone else.

Do you understand what Jesus is teaching us in this story? If you are living for the things of this life, then every day you live is one day closer to the day when you will lose everything. He’s teaching us that one way or another, we are going to give away everything we have. Either we will give it away on purpose, or God will force us to give it away when we die. The rich farmer thought he was wise. God called him a fool! So, which are you?

Well, someone might think that Jesus is saying that we have to give away everything we have. But that’s not what he’s teaching. He’s teaching that when you think about the things that you have, you think of him because he’s behind everything we have in life… and so much more! Remember how we started this devotion? It was about a parent who dies and leaves behind an inheritance for their children. When Jesus died, he gave us heaven. He gave us the love of God the Father. He gave us eternal life and happiness. He promised us perfect bodies when we rise from death on the Last Day.

We have something so much better than big barns and lots of money. We have Jesus! And when you possess Jesus, you have real treasure!

Closing Prayer:

Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee. Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of your love. Take my silver and my gold, not a mite would I withhold. Take my love; my Lord, I pour at thy feet its treasure store. Take myself, and I will be ever, only, all for thee. Amen. (from Christian Worship 695)

The questions below are to help families discuss this devotion. The questions are divided by age group as suggestions, but anyone could reflect on any of the questions as they desire.

Questions for Younger Children

• What is something that if you lost it, you’d be really sad?
• What is more important: Having that or being with Jesus forever?

Questions for Elementary Age Children

• Does money make people happy?
• How can you be happy, even if you don’t have a lot of money?

Questions for Middle School and Above

• Some people say, “More money means more problems.” Is it wrong to be rich?
• Check your heart: How important are things like name brands and what you own and wear? Discuss the name brand of Jesus. How best can you wear him in your life?