It almost seems an abrupt interruption. Christ was speaking to a huge crowd (v.1) when suddenly a man calls out! 'Teacher, my brother won't give me what I want'. Christ replied briefly (v.14) then went on to warn the crowd about greed, 'There is more to life than money'. Again he used a short story to drive home that truth. In the parable, the rich successful farmer had a totally wrong perspective. He preferred his body to his soul and he preferred time to eternity. The world would have considered him a smart man, an outstanding success. He had planning ability. He had bumper crops. He had the capacity to extend his storage barns. He was on the way up! What were his thoughts? 'I will say to myself you have plenty of good things laid up for many years!' But a man's soul cannot be satisfied with 'goods'. One of the reasons behind the restlessness of this age is just that. Men and women are trying to feed and satisfy their inner beings by those things which only touch the body. He spoke about 'many years'. But how long is eternity? And what did God say? 'Tonight - now I' God broke in on his thoughts and his life-program. What he didn't realise was that he might own his barns and his land, but he had a permissive occupancy on life itself. Christ was wanting his hearers to realise that Eternity is more important than time. Knowing God, said Christ, is far more important than all the riches of earth. Christ said it again in Matthew 16:16, 'What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? What is your answer to that?' |
沒有留言:
張貼留言