“Gaining Everything But Gaining Nothing”
Luke 12:13-34
Sermon Series: “Don’t Waste Your Life”
Introduction: We can gain everything and end up with nothing because we waste our lives by accumulating things that are only temporary to the neglect of the eternal. Jesus tells us to not waste our lives by thinking that life is possessions but by living for the kingdom of God. Jesus was teaching a large crowd. A man in the crowd asked him a question about an inheritance matter. Jesus didn’t get sucked into the particular situation, but he used it as a teaching moment. He issued a warning, gave a principle, spoke a parable to illustrate it, and then taught his disciples the positive side of the truth.
Main Idea: Life is not defined by what we possess now but by what we possess eternally. I love the way Ed Young Jr. has stated it. He says, “Want to know your net worth? Simply add up everything money can’t buy and death can’t take away.”
Characteristics Of A Life Defined By What We Possess NOW
1. Covetousness (v. 15)
2. Unthankfulness (v. 17)
3. Sees himself as an owner instead of a steward (v. 17-18)
4. Trusting in self instead of God (v. 17-19)
5. Pride (v. 17-19)
6. Self-absorbed (v. 17-19, 21)
7. Only thinking about the here and now instead of eternity (v.
19)
8. Self-indulgence (v. 19)
9. Presumption (v. 19)
Characteristics Of A Life Defined By What We Possess ETERNALLY
1. Trusting God to provide (v. 22-30).
2. Seek the kingdom of God (v. 31). Hudson Taylor said, “If we are obeying the Lord, the responsibility rests with Him, not with us!”
3. Be generous (v. 33).
4. Invest our lives and treasures in eternity instead of the here
and now (v. 33-34).
Conclusion: This text makes it clear that God will judge us (v. 20). Part of that judgment is about what we do with our finances. Remember that money is a revealer of the heart. Jesus said (v. 34), “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Where will you be judged and how will that go for you? Let’s look at these two judgments that are pictured in Scripture:
1. The Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15)
2. The Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Corinthians 3:10-15)
