Freedom From Debt – I Owe, I Owe, It's Off To Work I Go Series

FREEDOM FROM DEBT – I Owe, I Owe, It’s Off to Work I Go

Luke 12:15-21 (NIV)

[15] Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

[16] And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. [17] He thought to himself, ’What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

[18] "Then he said, ’This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. [19] And I’ll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." ’

[20] "But God said to him, ’You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

[21] "This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."

INTRODUCTION:

A. For many of us our theme song as we start a new work day is, “I owe, I owe! It’s off to work I go. (whistle) I owe, I owe, I owe.” Unfortunately few of us will “Whistle While we Work;” instead we are more likely to sing the blues!

B. Many of us live our lives like MONOPOLY. You know how the game works. Players accumulate property, build houses and hotels, and then wait for the other players to land on their property so they have to pay up. Eventually you hope to bankrupt everyone else and have all the money and property. Truly, American Capitalism at its best!

1. Unfortunately, many of us end up like Pearl did the other day. She lost the game. Her cousin Amber had everything and Pearl was bankrupt. However, here is the good news! When the game was finished, the board was folded up, all the game pieces were put away, and the lid was put on the box. It was only game.

2. Owning expensive cars, an extravagant house, and living a “more-is-better” life will yield no more joy for eternity than winning at MONOPOLY. When your life is over, the game pieces are put away, and the lid is closed on your coffin. It won’t really matter who owned the railroads or Boardwalk. Earthly wealth doesn’t guarantee earthly happiness or heavenly treasure.

E. John D. Rockefeller Jr. was one of the richest men in the world. Shortly after his death, someone asked his chief financial advisor, “How much did Rockefeller leave behind?” To which the advisor answered, “Everything!”

F. It’s like the story of the man who decided that when he died he wanted to take it all with him, so he instructed his wife to burry him with all his money. Being a loving devoted wife she followed through with his instructions. When he died she delayed his funeral for one month. During that time she cashed in all of his stocks and bonds, sold all of his property, his cars and other belongings, emptied his checking and savings accounts, collected his life insurance money. She liquidated everything and had a pile of cash—literally millions of dollars. Finally on the day of the funeral she put it all in the coffin with her beloved husband just like he had asked. They closed the lid and buried him. A friend heard what she had done and asked why she would just bury all that money with him. She said, “I wrote him a check. If he can cash it, then he can have it.”

I. What is financial freedom?

1. Financial freedom is not living the American dream!

a) This morning we are going to look at six biblical principles that will give us financial freedom. Applying biblical principles to your money will not help you win at Monopoly or the game of Life. Accumulating more stuff and having a big bank account is not what it means to be financially free.

• Luke 12:15 (NIV)

Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

b) If you only hear one thing this morning then hear this: Financial freedom is not the accumulation of wealth and the stuff that money buys. You can have lots of money and things but be held captive by it all. We need real financial freedom.

ILLUSTRATION: Henry Ford was once asked, “How much money is enough?” His answer: “ONE DOLLAR MORE.”

• Ecclesiastes 5:10 (NIV)

Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.