Mills Memorial Baptist Church
Sunday Evening Worship - 1/11
  • It's Just Like His Great Love
  • Make Me a Blessing
  • Luke 12:13-21
    There are certain moments that expose what is really driving a person.
    One of the clearest is when money gets tangled up with family.
    It is amazing how quickly love can turn into leverage when someone thinks they are being shorted.
    It is amazing how quickly conversation becomes calculation.
    And it is amazing how quickly what sounded like “fairness” begins to sound like “I want what I want.”
    I remember hearing about a family that seemed close for years.
    They did holidays together.
    They laughed easily.
    They said, “We’ll always look out for each other.”
    Then a parent passed away, and the estate had to be divided.
    At first the conversations were calm and reasonable.
    But as soon as there was a number attached to it, something changed.
    Old memories turned into arguments.
    Every gift became “evidence.”
    Every past favor became a debt.
    And the saddest part was this.
    They did not just fight over money.
    They lost peace, trust, and even relationship along the way.
    When it was all over, some of them got what they wanted financially, but they were poorer everywhere else.
    That is exactly the kind of moment Luke brings us into.
    Jesus is teaching.
    A multitude is gathered.
    The disciples are listening close.
    And out of that crowd a man interrupts an important teaching on prayer, and the Holy Spirit with a request that sounds practical.
    “Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me.”
    In other words, “Jesus, I need You to step into my family mess and make it come out the way I think it should.”
    But Jesus will not let that man reduce Him to a religious referee.
    Because Jesus knows something this man does not yet know.
    The inheritance is not the biggest danger in the story.
    Covetousness is.
    So Jesus does not start by settling the estate.
    Jesus starts by warning the heart.
    And that is why this passage matters so much for us.
    Because we can come to church with our “inheritance issues.”
    We may not call them that, but we have them.
    We come with financial pressure.
    We come with plans and budgets.
    We come with needs and worries.
    We come with opinions about what we deserve.
    And if we are not careful, we use Jesus the same way that man tried to use Him.
    We will ask Him to bless our plan, fix our conflict, and secure our comfort.
    But Jesus loves us too much to only adjust our circumstances.
    He wants to address what is ruling our heart.
    So before we talk about stewardship as a church subject, Jesus talks about stewardship as a soul subject.
    He is going to teach us that life is not measured by abundance.
    He is going to expose the lie that “more” will finally make us safe.
    He is going to show us a man who planned carefully and still ended in tragedy.
    And He is going to call us to become rich toward God.
    So let’s walk into the scene.
    First, notice who speaks, what he asks, and why Jesus answers the way He does.
    Because in those opening lines, the Lord is already doing mercy-work on our hearts.

    I. The Warning That Exposes the Heart

    Before He ever tells a story about barns and riches, He deals with the moment that exposed the man’s heart.
    Look at the request that comes out of the crowd—because what he asks for tells us what he’s living for.

    A. An Earthbound Request

    The man says, “Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me.”
    He is talking to the Prince of Peace, and all he can think about is getting his portion.
    Proverbs 18:19 reminds us that broken relationships can become harder than strong cities, so money fights often reveal deeper heart fractures.
    Proverbs 18:19 KJV
    19 A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city: And their contentions are like the bars of a castle.
    After a funeral, a family gathered in a living room with coffee cups and casseroles still on the counter.
    They were tired, grieving, and trying to be kind.
    Someone brought up the will, and at first it sounded harmless.
    “Do we know what Dad wanted?”
    Then another voice said, “Well, I’m sure it’ll be split fairly.”
    And that one word—fair—opened a door.
    Within ten minutes, people were no longer talking about Dad.
    They were talking about receipts, past favors, and old wounds.
    One sibling said, “I was the one who helped him the most.”
    Another said, “That’s not true—I was the one who sacrificed.”
    Nobody planned to fight that day.
    But money has a way of turning grief into comparison, and comparison into accusation.
    When it ended, they didn’t just lose peace.
    They lost the sweetness of being family.
    So we see the Earthbound Request…

    B. A Clear Refusal

    Jesus will not be used as a tool for someone’s greed.
    Jesus says He is not there to be a “judge or a divider” at least not in that moment.
    He is after something bigger than a split estate.
    Matthew 16:26 confronts us with the eternal question of profit and loss, so Jesus refuses to help a man “win” and still lose his soul.
    Matthew 16:26 KJV
    26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

    C. A Direct Command

    In verse 15 Jesus says, “Take heed, and beware of covetousness.”
    Life is not measured by abundance, so the Lord tells us to watch the things that lie to us about what “life” really is.
    Colossians 3:5 KJV
    5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
    Paul calls covetousness “idolatry,” so this is not a budgeting issue primarily, but rather it is a worship issue.
    Here is a helpful diagnostic question.
    What do I think I must have in order to be okay?
    In order to be satisfied?

    D. A Needed Contrast

    Jesus does not condemn work, saving, planning, or providing.
    He condemns the heart that trusts possessions the way we are supposed to trust God.
    1 Timothy 6:17 KJV
    17 Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
    The issue is not having things, but things having you.
    This is where stewardship begins.
    Stewardship is not “How much do I own.”
    Stewardship is “Who owns me.”
    Secondly, Jesus addresses …

    II. The Plan That Excludes God

    Now Jesus doesn’t just warn us about covetousness in theory.
    He puts flesh on it with a story.
    So watch how this man’s success becomes a stumblingblock—because Luke starts the parable with the very thing we usually celebrate.
    Prosperity…but we see in reality, it was…

    A. A Prosperity That Produced Pride

    “The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully.”
    The man did not create the rain, the sun, the soil, or the seasons, but he talks like the whole harvest is his achievement.
    Deuteronomy 8:18 KJV
    18 But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.
    God is the one who gives the increase, so every increase should produce gratitude, not arrogance.
    And here’s where the real danger shows up.
    The harvest isn’t what ruins him.
    It’s what he does next—he turns inward, shuts out every other voice, and starts making plans with himself instead of with God.
    So we see him have…

    B. A Private Conversation With Self

    “He thought within himself.”
    Notice how many times the man says “I” and “my.”
    17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
    His world is one voice, one will, one plan…but it is not the one that it should be.
    Proverbs 3:5–6 KJV
    5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; And lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he shall direct thy paths.
    God is calling us to trust the Lord and acknowledge Him in our plans, so in other words planning without prayer is one of the loudest ways to ignore God.
    Many organizations, when something important comes up will have closed door meetings.
    A problem hits, or an opportunity opens, and the leader says, “Alright, let’s meet.”
    They call a closed-door meeting.
    Only a few people are allowed in.
    The door shuts.
    The conversation is private.
    And whatever is decided in that room shapes everything that happens outside that room.
    Now imagine the heart doing the same thing.
    A financial decision comes up.
    A job offer.
    A raise.
    A big purchase.
    A plan for the future.
    A fear about the economy.
    And you can almost feel the heart say, “Alright, let’s meet.”
    So the mind gathers its trusted advisers.
    Pride shows up with confidence.
    Fear shows up with “what if.”
    Greed shows up with “more would fix this.”
    Comfort shows up with “you deserve this.”
    Control shows up with “make sure you’re covered.”
    And the meeting starts.
    But here is the telling part.
    The chair at the head of the table is left empty for God.
    Or worse, God is not even invited.
    The Bible is not opened.
    Prayer is not offered.
    Counsel is not sought.
    The question is not, “Lord, what would please You.”
    The question is, “What do I want, and how do I get it.”
    So we come out of that inner meeting with a plan that sounds wise, responsible, and practical.
    But it is a plan with one fatal flaw.
    It was built without God.
    That is exactly what Luke says about this rich man.
    “He thought within himself.”
    He had an inner meeting.
    He had a strategy session.
    He had a planning retreat.
    And the only voice in the room was his own.
    And that is why a person can be religious in public but godless in private.
    Because you can sing on Sunday and still run your life Monday through Saturday with closed doors.
    You can say, “God is first,” and still never consult Him in the decisions that reveal what is truly first.
    Proverbs 3:5–6 calls us to acknowledge Him in all our ways, so the question is simple.
    When you plan, does God have a seat at the table.
    Or is He only called in afterward to bless what you already decided.

    C. A Bigger Barn Solution

    “I have no room where to bestow my fruits.”
    So he says, “I will pull down my barns, and build greater.”
    His solution to a spiritual danger is a construction project.
    Ecclesiastes 5:10 KJV
    10 He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.
    So bigger barns never cure a hungry heart.
    A modern parallel is when those who have say they “just need a little more” but soon that becomes the permanent plan.
    Just a little more storage.
    Just a little more upgrade.
    Just a little more cushion.
    Just a little more, and then I will finally rest.

    D. A False Sermon to His Soul

    “Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years.”
    He preaches security to himself based on supplies.
    He assumes time is guaranteed, health is guaranteed, and tomorrow is his servant.
    James 4:14 KJV
    14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
    Our life is just a vapour, so any plan that assumes control is already built on sand.
    Here is the tragedy.
    He talks to his soul, but he never speaks to God.
    He comforts his soul with things that cannot follow his soul.
    Job said…
    Job 1:21 KJV
    21 And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return thither: The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.
    Possessions can never be a true refuge.
    John Wesley’s old counsel is simple and searching.
    “Gain all you can, save all you can, give all you can.”
    That kind of stewardship admits God is not only the giver of increase, but the Lord of the increase.

    III. The Night That Ends the Illusion

    Up to this point, the man’s plans sound successful, even sensible.
    But Jesus now pulls back the curtain and shows what no spreadsheet can predict.
    Watch how quickly God interrupts his “many years” with one sobering word—“this night.”

    A. A Sudden Summons

    “But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee.”
    God does not call him a fool because he farmed well.
    God calls him a fool because he planned for everything except the one appointment no man can cancel.
    Hebrews 9:27 KJV
    27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
    Wise stewardship always plans with eternity in view.
    And once God announces the summons, He follows it with a question that cuts even deeper.
    Because it isn’t just that the man will die.
    It’s that everything he trusted will immediately belong to someone else.
    So we see..

    B. A Simple Question With Crushing Weight

    “Then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided.”
    The barns stayed.
    The soul goes.
    The accounts remain.
    The owner changed.
    Psalm 49:17 KJV
    17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: His glory shall not descend after him.
    Wealth is always temporary and always transferable.
    You never see a Uhaul following a hearse…and even if you did …it would do no good.
    You can store it.
    You can insure it.
    You can upgrade it.
    But you cannot keep it.

    C. A Final Summary That Demands a Decision

    “So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
    This is the dividing line.
    Treasure for self.
    Or riches toward God.
    Matthew 6:19–21 KJV
    19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
    Jesus is calling us to relocate our treasure so our heart can follow.
    This is where the gospel comes in with clarity and kindness.
    If you have never been saved, the most urgent stewardship decision you can make is to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
    Mark 8:36 KJV
    36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
    Nothing is more “worth it” than coming to Christ while you have today.
    If you are saved, the most urgent stewardship decision you can make is to turn from covetousness and become rich toward God.
    The Bible Says…
    2 Corinthians 9:6–8 KJV
    6 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. 7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
    God supplies grace for generous living, so you don’t have to be ruled by fear when you open your hand.
    Here are three practical steps for this week.
    1. Name the covetous desire you have been excusing, and confess it plainly to the Lord.
    Proverbs 28:13 says confession is the path to mercy, so honesty is the first act of freedom.
    Proverbs 28:13 KJV
    13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: But whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.
    2. Re-label what you have as God’s trust, not your trophy.
    1 Corinthians 4:2 KJV
    2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.
    Ask, “What does faithfulness look like with what God put in my hands.”
    3. Choose one intentional act of generosity that costs you something, and do it as worship.
    Acts 20:35 KJV
    35 I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
    Generosity trains the heart to treasure Christ above stuff.
    When we stop trusting riches to secure us, we are finally ready to hear Jesus say, “Take no thought,” and we will obey it.
    Worry and greed are often two sides of the same coin of unbelief.
    Both say, “God won’t be enough.”

    Conclusion

    The rich man was not condemned for having crops.
    He was condemned for living like God was irrelevant.
    He was rich in storage and poor in surrender.
    C. T. Studd captured the urgency of this with one line.
    “Only one life, ’twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.”
    So here is the question Jesus wants us to answer.
    Am I laying up treasure for myself?
    Or am I becoming rich toward God?
    And what will I do today to show my answer?

      • Proverbs 18:19KJV1900

      • Matthew 16:26KJV1900

      • Colossians 3:5KJV1900

      • 1 Timothy 6:17KJV1900

      • Deuteronomy 8:18KJV1900

      • Proverbs 3:5–6KJV1900

      • Ecclesiastes 5:10KJV1900

      • James 4:14KJV1900

      • Job 1:21KJV1900

      • Hebrews 9:27KJV1900

      • Psalm 49:17KJV1900

      • Matthew 6:19–21KJV1900

      • Mark 8:36KJV1900

      • 2 Corinthians 9:6–8KJV1900

      • Proverbs 28:13KJV1900

      • 1 Corinthians 4:2KJV1900

      • Acts 20:35KJV1900

Mills Memorial Baptist Church
millsmemorialbapt@gmail.com
989-843-6433
https://millsmemorial.faithlifesites.com
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