"The High Cost Being Lost"
Luke 12:16-21
I. Introduction
There is an expression that we see a lot on popular youth clothing, it appears on our trucks and it even appears in some advertising. "No Fear" or as we say in the country, "Ain’t Skeered".
Now I am not exactly sure where that expression came from but there is one thing I do know, that those that do not have a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ can not brag that they have "No Fear".
In Business you are taught that every decision you make, every move your company makes will have financial implications either good or bad upon your company. Those decisions, if not carefully made, could set the fate for the entire company. Therefore there is a high cost for being wrong. Businessmen live in that fear.
Don’t believe me? Ask Coca-Coal when they tried to eliminate the Coke they sold for years with "New Coke". The buying public hated it and Coke nearly found itself on the soft-drink rocks.
Today, as we look at our sermon text, I believe we are going to see that there is also a high cost for being lost.
Our text deals with a parable about a Rich Fool. From the parable we can learn that he was prosperous, comfortable and of course rich. He had it made but in the end he ends his life in regret.
There 3 things I believe we can learn from this man, 3 things that we can all apply to our lives. So let us begin our examination of the Rich Fool.
II. A. #1 The Rich Fool’s Happiness was limited to the Happenings of Earth.
Luke 12:16
Everything seemed to be going very well for the rich man. In fact verse 16 tells us that he was successful as farmer. In Jesus day a very productive farmer who produced much food and produce was indeed a wealthy man.
However, as every farmer knows, that such things as weather, or insects, could just as easily turn that fortune into disaster. Therefore a farmer is to a great extent, at the mercy of the earth, the very thing he counts on to make him wealthy.
Today there is a very good parallel. Many of us remember or studied the stock market crash of 1929 that set off the Great Depression. For even more of us we can remember in the 80’s when the stock market crashed and retirement funds for many became worthless. Or that people had invested in junk bonds and S&L’s only to find out that they were worthless.
Today many people look for ways to invest their money to make more money. The greater the risk the greater return if it pays off. However, with greater risk comes greater opportunity for disaster.
The Rich Fool placed his trust in his ability to farm and grow crops to make him rich. I wonder how many sleepless nights he had wondering if it was ever going to rain, or wondering if it would ever stop raining. The truth is there was not a thing he could do about it.
How many of us lay in bed at night and worry that the morning might bring financial disaster and there is not a thing we can do about it?
There is only one way we can ever have inner peace to protect us when adverse disasters come, that way is faith in Jesus Christ. It is that very faith that equips us and strengthens us for the tough times.
All to many of us place our hope and trust in our own ability. When our ability fails we are dashed against the rocks of life and sink with our ship of pride.
Romans 8:37-39 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
No circumstance on earth, not one thing, can destroy us and separate us from the happiness we have in Jesus Christ.
What is your happiness built upon, wealth, independence, Wall Street? Or is it built on Jesus Christ?
B. #2. The Rich Fool’s wealth was limited to the Harvest of Earth.
Luke 12:17-18
Notice the statement of the Rich Fool, "What shall I do?"
His very prosperity had produced a problem. His bountiful crop had become more than his barns could hold. He had not way to store all of his new- found wealth.
Believe it or not his increased wealth had now complicated his life. He did not want to lose his crop and his only solution was to build a bigger barn so he could have more and more.
You may be thinking so what is wrong with that Bro. Mike? Take another look at these 2 verses. Did you notice that the thought never occurred to him that since he had been given more than enough he could share with others? The thought of sharing, of giving back, or helping to meet others needs never darkened his mind or his heart.
The Rich Fool suffered from a disease that many of us suffer today. He suffered from "I" trouble.
In V. 18-19 he says: "I will do this…",
"I will pull down my barns and build greater…"
"I will store all MY crops…" "I will say to My soul…"
In his mind he must have thought, "You the man".
We see the word "I" six times and the word "MY" five times in our entire sermon text.
This clearly shows the covetousness of this man, there is no doubt he is aggressively self-centered. Is there any question that this man’s sole attention was solely upon himself?
Look more carefully at what he said. He called the fruits of the ground and the possessions he had "my fruit" and "my goods". He had become puffed up and prideful with what he had done. In his statements we can see that he thought bigger and bigger of "I and My".
But look beyond this and we can get a glimpse of spiritual wealth. At no point in this parable did the Rich Fool ever thank God for his blessings.
In v. 19 he called his soul, "My Soul". I believe that this is a great indicator that he believed that he possessed his own soul. If that is the case he had never given his soul to God.
The irony here is that everything that the Rich Fool was trying to save, his wealth, was perishable. It would not stand the test of time. It would rot, decay and become useless.
Matthew 6:19-21 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
It is obvious that the Rich Fool had placed his heart in what he believes he did and his treasure was his earthly harvest. He laid up no treasure for himself in heaven. The treasure of eternal life with Christ Jesus.
John 3:16 clearly assures us that if we place our faith, if we put our heart with Jesus Christ, we will not perish, but have everlasting life.
C. #3 The Rich Fool’s hopes were limited to the horizons of earth.
Luke 12:19-20
The Rich Fool surveyed his harvest and thought he was on easy street. He thought he was set for retirement and he was looking to the future with confidence in himself.
In fact he told his soul, "take your ease; eat, drink and be merry."
This is one of the greatest lies of our age. Satan and the world would have us believe that our lives need to be devoted to ease of life, eating and drinking whatever we want whenever we want, and to find all of the fun and entertainment our debase minds can come up with.
Don’t believe me? Young people if you hear an add on TV or radio inviting you to go some place for a "party", do you really believe that there are going to be a bunch of people with pointy hats, streamers and noise makers?
No, if you listen to the radio carefully, all these "entertainment" places encourage you to come to their place for a good time and a party almost always means sex and alcohol. Young people, that is not a party, that is a self induced sin ritual that you spiritually can not afford.
The lie of this world is that it is OK to live your life just the way you want to. Be selfish, be self-indulgent, live an extravagant life. Go ahead get those tattoo’s and piercing, do alcohol and drugs, reach for all the gusto life has to offer, it’s your life you can do what you want, live it just the way you wish. Right?
Friends that is a lie straight from hell. You see the very life that you have, the very fact that you are sucking in air at all is a gift you did not earn. It is a gift of God. God created you, because He wants to commune with you and He wants to use you for His kingdom.
All of the extravagant garbage that I just mentioned does nothing to either help you walk and draw close to God or bring glory and honor to Him.
Luke 12:20
That night God spoke and the Rich Fool, the guy who thought he had it made and was about to get ready to "Party"… lost his life.
God knew the thoughts of this man’s heart. It was God who knew that this man was going to die that very night. The man did not know this, nor did anyone else, only God.
The Rich Fool’s soul was "required". God required it, He demanded it. The Rich Fools soul was not going to cease existing. No existence was not over for this man, the man’s body died but his soul was called before God.
The Rich Fool, would leave his riches behind to face a grave, to face a just God and to face a sinners hell.
This man was called a "Fool" by God. He had lived as a fool, though the world may have called him a success. He lived entirely for his pleasure and his wants. He lived for the moment, never thinking about the Truth and the uncertainty of life.
Luke 12:21
It is sad but we live in a world full of Rich Fool’s and the church has their share of them too. People who invest their lives in the thrills of this life and being a success of this world.
They never give it a second thought about being a success for Christ or considering that this life is temporal, and that we will spend all of eternity in either Heaven or hell.
Today you may be one of those that have bought the lie that the world sells. Party, because it is your life to live. If you have bought that lie you have invested all that you are in the here and now. You will be spiritually bankrupt when you face the grave. Can you really afford to Party with the world? Is it worth forfeiting all of eternity with Christ?
Today you can come and give your life to Christ and invest in your eternal treasure. Real riches are those laid up in Heaven by those who trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and live their lives for Him.
How rich are you today?
