The richest man who ever lived gave a stern warning about riches. So, it was not a poor man making accusations against those who are rich. It was a warning from the Man who owns everything Himself—Jesus Christ.
The Owner of all things said, “Take heed and beware of covetousness” (Luke 12:15). The original Greek has the word “all” in the text, so it is best translated, “Be on your guard against all covetousness” (ESV) or “against every form of greed” (NASB). Think about that word “all” or “every.” Is there more than one form of greed or covetousness? Jesus indicated that there is, and He warns all of us to beware of every form that covetousness can take in our lives. What a concept!
In this context in Luke 12, Jesus tells the Parable of the Rich Fool. Jesus does not teach that this man was a fool because he was rich. There is nothing inherently wrong or sinful with being rich—the Bible never hints that there is. However, what we learn about this man in Jesus’ parable is that he was rich toward himself, having laid up treasure for himself. That was (for him) the focus, the purpose, the intention of his riches. It is obvious that he suffered from the debilitating disease called “The Love of Money.”
In this parable, the rich man was condemned because he did not use and focus his riches toward God and furthering the cause of the Lord. That sharp censure ought to grab our attention. Those who are rich, especially, need to examine whether they are rich toward self, toward family, toward the world, or rich toward God. Beware and be on guard against EVERY form of covetousness—which means, “Don’t be deceived into telling yourself that you’re ok!”
The reality is that God has made ALL of us rich! Think about that. ALL of us are rich IN God and BY God! I’m not talking about money! And I’m not talking about material possessions! I’m talking about every form of blessing we experience in this life—including the splendor of His creation, the relationships we enjoy, the abilities He has given to each of us, the influence that we have, etc., etc. We must be EVER on guard against EVERY form of covetousness that would make us lose sight of WHO blessed us with all of these things and TO WHOM we should be utilizing them on a daily basis! Friend, you are rich! The question is, are you rich (with these blessings) toward self or are you rich toward God?
The richest man who ever lived taught us much about the many, many riches that we have in this life. He owns the world and everything in it, including us. May we do everything we can to use what He has given to us (in every form of our riches) to be rich toward God!