Prayer
Briefly prepare your heart in silence, and ask the Holy Spirit to awaken your sense of anticipation that God is about to speak to you through His Word. Then, before you read, I invite you to pray this prayer based on Psalm 43:3:
Lord, in my time of prayerful reading and reflection:
Send out Your light and Your truth.
Let them lead me.
Let them bring me to the place of Your presence.
Amen.
Reading
Luke 16 is clearly focussed on Jesus’ teachings on the right use of material resources. From Luke 16 we learn that Jesus expects His disciples to view our finances and worldly resources from a Kingdom point of view. They are meant to be means by which we serve God’s Kingdom, and not an “end” in themselves.
In Luke 16:13, Jesus really cut to the heart of the matter when He said:
“No servant can serve two masters … and … you cannot serve both God and Money.”
He wanted us to understand that either our whole lives will be orientated towards pursuing the things of this world (of which money and possessions are central) or our whole lives, including our money and possessions, will be orientated towards the LORD.
And then Luke records in 16:14 that the Pharisees, who loved money heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. And that was the context for today’s parable about the rich man and Lazarus. So, while we may be tempted to try to find a way to wriggle out of this parable’s very blatant truth and make it about something else, we cannot do so without doing a complete disservice to the context. This parable is clearly about the fact that how we use our money in this life is of eternal significance.
Let’s keep our wits about us here, though. The whole of the New Testament teaches clearly that no one can earn their way into God’s Kingdom by right living. And we certainly cannot “buy” our way into the Kingdom through the right use of our finances either. But, this parable does show that the way we use our finances will always reveal the state of our hearts. Our use of money will reveal what our true priorities are, and where our passions lie.
Even after death, the rich man’s behaviour showed that he was utterly self-absorbed. During his earthly lifetime it was all about him, and he did not spare a thought – or a crumb, and certainly not a denarius – for poor old Lazarus at his gate. Then, even after death, he wanted Lazarus to be his servant to make his life easier. This was his root sin – self-centredness/selfishness. His use of money was merely a reflection of the true state of his heart.
So today, let’s test our hearts by checking our behaviour, and ask ourselves: What does my use of money and other resources reveal about my true passions and priorities? Do I serve only my own interests with my money and material resources; or do I use them to serve God’s Kingdom and His priorities?
And then let’s determine to make the necessary changes to ensure that our hearts (and our finances) are centred on the Lord and His Kingdom.
Contemplation
Please take time to ponder what Jesus has commanded us. Turn this declaration over and over in your mind. Keep it in mind throughout the day and live in step with Your King, Jesus.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ:
- I will use my money and resources in step with God’s heart and in pursuit of His Kingdom.
Holy Spirit, once again I pray: Please infuse my heart with ever-increasing love for the Heavenly Father, and give me the necessary wisdom to be able to use everything at my disposal to extend his Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
Dave's Diary 