A Self-Made Fool

Parable of the Rich Fool, Part 2

This Week's Bible Reading:
Luke 12:13-21 (focus on verses 16-17)
Supporting Passage:
Colossians 1:15-23

Parables are an effective way to approach a topic indirectly. Jesus often used money as a stand-in to talk about something else. 

In the parable of the Vineyard Workers, Jesus uses wages to talk about God's generosity to people who enter his kingdom. In the parable of the Unforgiving Servant, financial debt describes our sin. And in the parable of the Talents, bars of gold become opportunities to extend God's kingdom to the world. By speaking indirectly, Jesus gives his audience space to think about these topics.

But Jesus doesn’t always follow this formula. There are a handful of parables where Jesus takes on a topic directly. The Rich Fool falls into this category. The man's abundant harvest is not a metaphor for something "deeper." (It might be more comfortable if it were!) In this tale, Jesus addresses our relationship with money and possessions head-on.

The Rich Fool is one of Jesus' shorter parables, but he packs a lot of information into each line. Let's take a look at the introduction of the story and see what we discover:

And he 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.' (Luke 12:16–17, NIV)

From this brief amount of information, two things stand out to me.

The first is that the man was already rich before this particular crop. He had hit the "jackpot" harvest before. Maybe many times.

The second is that the man has quite an ego. He seems proud of himself for his good fortune. Every time he opens his mouth, it's to talk about himself!

As I researched this parable, I came across an insight that made me chuckle. Jesus emphasizes that the ground did all the hard work to produce the harvest. And yet, the man pats himself on the back as if he were the sole reason for his prosperity.

Success can be dangerous if we forget how much we depend on God and others. Maybe the first time this man had an abundant harvest, he thanked God for it. He probably had servants who worked the land, and maybe he thanked them, too. Maybe he gave his surplus to those in need.

But as the ground kept producing for him, he began to take things for granted. He saw himself as the main reason for his success. Everything became about my crops, my barns, and my grain. He bought into the lie that he was a "self-made man."

In our culture, the illusion of the self-made man or woman is alive and well. We all love a good rags-to-riches story. It's inspiring to hear about someone who built a business out of their garage. After years of pouring in sweat equity, they are now reaping the rewards of their hard work. It's why Shark Tank is one of my favorite shows! Determination is a worthy quality to have.

But no matter how hard I work, it's impossible—literally!—to be self-made. God created and breathed life into me. He provided me with parents who fed me and clothed me when I was a fragile child. There are no self-made babies. Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk wouldn't be here today if no one had changed their diapers!

More than that, God placed us where we are in this moment of history. A pastor I knew used to talk a lot about the myth of being "self-made." He would quip, "You could have been born a beet farmer in medieval times." If you were born a serf in that time and place, no amount of "bootstrapping" would make you rich. Personally, I feel blessed to have been born in this era of technology. It has given me opportunities that a person with a disability might not have had even a generation ago.

So, how do we avoid the mistake of the Rich Fool? Well, when we take our focus off God, we grow bigger in our own eyes. But when we focus on God, we realize he is the source of all good gifts. It reminds me of one of my favorite Bible passages:

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:15–17, NIV, emphasis mine)

God is the one who sustains us. He holds every molecule of this wondrous universe together. And yes, it is good to work hard in life and do our best. But if we're not careful, success can make us self-reliant and blind to the generosity of God.

The first step to using our money and resources well is to recognize that it all comes as a gift from God. If I think I've achieved it myself, I become like the man in Jesus' parable.

I become a self-made fool.

Questions to Ponder:

What information do you gather about the rich man from Luke 12:16–17?

Why is it easy to lose sight of God in times of abundance and blessing? How can you remind yourself of his generosity during these times?

Why is the allure of the "self-made man or woman" so prevalent in our culture? What are some ways God has provided for you in your life?


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