Parable of the Rich Fool – A Wise Lesson From A Rich Fool
Categories: Bible Study Lessons
Jesus taught great moral truths by using great human tragedies. One such episode is His parable of the rich fool in Luke 12:16-21. Like many of us, this man nobly earned an honest living through hard work and toil, but unfortunately, like many of us, he failed to realize that God was the source of his blessings (Acts 14:15-17). Like many of us, this man was not openly involved in immoral or unholy conduct, but unfortunately, like many of us, he failed to realize that God expects not only abstinence from evil but active involvement in doing good (Romans 2:7). Yes, like many of us, this man enjoyed an abundance of wealth in this life, but who, like too many of us, failed to use his great physical means for great spiritual gain. Thankfully, the Savior uses this story to teach us wise lessons from a foolish man. What do we learn from this parable?
Give Glory To God
First, we learn the importance of giving God the due glory for our physical blessings. The man greedily harvested his abundance without recognizing God as the ultimate source of “every good and perfect gift” (James 1:17). He was too concerned about where he would put his goods. This attitude led him to a disposition of selfish thinking and spiritual inactivity. A similar episode is seen in Daniel 5 when king Belshazzar failed to glorify God for his great kingdom. For this failure he was found spiritually wanting (Daniel 5:27). James warns about those who live presumptuously before the God of heaven and then go so far as to make further plans for prosperity saying, “we will go . . . we will continue . . . we will profit” (James 4:13, 16). He explains that we are to view our physical increase in light of God’s will saying, “If the Lord wills” we shall do this or that (James 4:15). In the parable of the rich fool the man failed to give the glory to God by using his physical goods in spiritual service.
Use What God Has Given You To Gain Spiritual Increase
Secondly, in the parable, we learn that God views our lives in terms of spiritual increase, not physical increase. The Lord promises to give good gifts to His children (Matthew 7:11). However, the Lord expects much more from those who have been greatly blessed (Luke 12:48). The five-talent man of Matthew 25 was not rewarded because he had many talents, but because he used them to God’s glory. The one-talent man was considered “wicked and lazy” because he failed to produce the increase possible through the talent that was given him (Matthew 25:26). In the same way, the “Rich Fool” had not used his goods for growth and they would eventually waste away in His “bigger barns” (Luke 12:18). If he would have given them to the poor, the Lord would have given him more (Luke 6:38). This is the increase that God desires in each one of us. Let us learn this “wise lesson”, and not waste our opportunities for spiritual growth.
Thirdly and most importantly, we learn of the grievous sin of covetousness. The Lord began the lesson with the admonition to “beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses” (Luke 12:15). This is the main failure in the parable of the rich fool. He was guilty of what may be the worst form of covetousness – he coveted his own goods! Instead of using them to relieve the hunger of the needy, to clothe the bodies of the poor, and to comfort the sick (Matthew 25:42-43), he hoarded his goods to himself and sought to take his own comfort (Luke 12:19). The Lord correctly designates him as a “fool” (Luke 12:20). His goods may have comforted his physical life, but his misuse of them proved his perdition in the afterlife. So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God (Luke 12:21).
Conclusion
In the parable of the rich fool we can learn these wise lessons from the foolish man, but what is more important is applying these lessons to our everyday lives. Like the Lord said, “If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them” (John 13:17). James states, “to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin” (James 4:17).