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Killing The Most Seductive Idol – Part 2 (Luke 12:22-34 August 1, 2010)

When I lived in America – I found it ironic that one of the mottos on which the nation was founded was:

In God We Trust This is a great motto but to me the irony was that the place they chose to declare their trust in God was to declare it on their money!

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It really made me wonder if they meant – the god we trust is money. And it didn’t take long for me to realise that indeed the reality for most Americans – and for most Australians is – their god is money. The real motto is:

In God We Trust – All Others Pay Cash. The fact is that even for Christians – there is a struggle – who do we really trust – our money or our God?

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Where we place our time, our hopes, our trust – tells us the answer. The roots of this struggle go back to the fall. When God created Adam – he wanted for nothing. He owned everything. He had nothing to worry about. There was no illness, no poverty, no anger, no death. He simply served God and exulted in their fellowship. But the day came that Adam and Eve listened to the serpent and they fell. On that day – the heart of Adam and the heart of every man, woman and child was warped – it ended up with what I tend to think of as three buttons that did not exist before the fall.

I have called the first button – the Wanter After the fall – Adam, the man who once had everything was naked, ashamed and was cast from the garden. There were now things he did not have. There were now things he wanted. And despite God’s clear instruction that happiness would only be found in Him – the wanter in Adam’s heart whispered – if you desire to be happy – you have to have stuff.

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Any parent who has ever taken a child to Toys R’ Us knows about the wanter. You walk in and bang – they want – boy do they want. Every aisle has toys positioned in such a way to fan the wanter of your child. They have to have the purple tickle me Elmo or they will die. And the wanter knows that tantrums get results. We know all about the wanter. We walk into the Apple store and we have to have the ipad or the new imac. We pick up the luxury car magazine at the dentist’s and our car seems so inadequate. We watch Masterchef and we want to eat at a three hat restaurant. There is a second button – the Worrier. This button whispers – there is stuff you need – not just want – need. Food and clothing are essentials. No food – you die. You have to provide for your family. And the worrier whispers – you need to have money to make sure you have the essentials of life. So work hard and you will not do without. Lay up treasure on earth – so when the rainy day comes – you can provide for your needs. The economy turns down – and our worrier turns on full. The final button is – the Waiter. This button whispers – you will have time to do the things that really count – but that day is not now – so now you just wait. Today – your prime concern is not time with family, church, ministry – but work – may hay while the sun shines – get your stuff ready for the day that is coming when you can do the important things. But that is not today – today you work. Your life is work. Advertisers know all about these three buttons. Product placement – advertisements – jingles – all are designed to push one or more of your buttons. And the result of every button is the same – you work harder and harder. Life becomes work. And your real life – the kingdom of God – shrivels away. This whisper is so seductive – many, even many Christians find mild levels of greed to almost be a virtue. The Protestant work ethic of working so as to please God – becomes the revised Protestant work ethic of working so hard there is no time to please God in other areas of your life. Your soul shrivels. Greed is a socially acceptable idol. It is the most seductive idol.

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As Christians – we simply have to turn off these buttons. When an advertisement whispers – you have to have a newer car – even when this one you have is fine – you have to turn off your wanter. You have to tell your kids – when we go to the mall – kids turn off your wanter. You have to know the resources God gave us to turn off our wanters, our worriers and our waiters. We have to know this because the root problem is greed and greed is idolatry. Money becomes our god. Listen to Paul. Colossians 3:5:

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness – or greed – which is idolatry.

Greed whispers – seek me now and I will satisfy you. Greed whispers – seek me now and I will give you security. Greed whispers – seek me and I will give you your season to serve later. Jesus warns us about this idol. The whole section is introduced in Luke 12:13-15:

Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness – or as the NASB puts it – guard against every form of greed – for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. Jesus then tells us how to slay this idol. He tells us that the power of this idol lies in three lies.

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The Wanter is powered by – The lie of satisfaction The lie that money will provide satisfaction eternally The Worrier is powered by – The lie of security The lie that money will provide security temporally The Waiter is powered by – The lie of seasons The lie that money is the goal of this season And Jesus counters these lies with three truths – that will break the shackles of greed.

The lie of satisfaction The reality of heaven

The lie of security

The resources of God The lie of seasons

The return of Jesus Last week we looked at the first lie and the first truth.

The lie of satisfaction The reality of heaven

Here is the lie. Money satisfies. Money can buy you luxury, power, sex – anything your soul desires. So you should spend your life in the pursuit of money and things. That is a lie. That is a dangerous lie. Our souls were not created to find pleasure in money and stuff.

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Jesus says – If you want to kill the idol of greed – meditate on the reality of heaven. You will die. Your works will be judged. What did you do with your life? Fool! One night your soul will be required of you. Did you lay up real treasure in heaven or wasted treasure on earth? Only one life twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last. This morning we will look at the second lie and the truth that counters it.

The lie of security The resources of God

Here is the lie. Money is what will provide security. Money is what will protect you and provide for you in this life. If you have money – you will not want for the necessities of life. If you don’t have money – you are vulnerable. That is a lie. That is a dangerous lie. The security of money is an illusion. Money can be lost in a moment. Our lives can be lost in a moment. Jesus says – If you want to kill the idol of greed – the second thing you have to do is meditate on the resources of God. My God will supply all my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ. Look with me at Luke 12:22-31:

And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.

It is easy to read these verses and to miss the point.

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Jesus is not saying – don’t work – or even don’t work hard. He is saying – don’t make work your life or your God. I have heard this passage explained this way. Birds don’t work – they just pick up the worms God puts in the ground. Flowers don’t work – they just soak up God’s sun and photosynthesise. Christians – who are of far more value – shouldn’t spend much of their lives working. If we have enough faith – our God will simply give us food, clothes and more – while we get on with the important stuff of worship. I don’t think so. First we have to remember that – when it is done right – work is worship. Colossians 3:22-24:

Slaves, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

Hard, faithful, God-honouring work is worship – you serve the Lord Christ. Moreover, God wants us to work to provide our needs. Listen to Paul in 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12:

Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labour we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. … [we gave] you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.

Paul is clear – we are to work hard. He worked night and day for his bread. We aren’t to be like baby birds squawking for God to drop food down our gullets. So what is Jesus’ point in this passage? Work is not to become our life. The kingdom of God is to be our life. Watch how Jesus makes this point. Verse 22:

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Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.

Just pause here for a moment. Have you ever been truly anxious about where your next meal is coming from or whether you have any clothes to wear? If I went to your home – I would be fairly certain to find a refrigerator – stuffed to overflowing – a pantry filled on every shelf. You don’t have to worry about lunch or dinner – or any meal for the next week. Most of us you have a debit or credit card at the ready to buy a months groceries at Coles. For most of us – our problem is not whether we have clothes to wear – but which clothes in my wardrobe will I wear. We have so many clothes we can’t fit them all in and we still struggle to decide what to wear. The men and women Jesus addressed were different. It was an agrarian society. No refrigerators. You didn’t have weeks of supplies on hand. Most houses had some dried fruits, some figs, some oil, some honey, some flour to make bread. Enough for a couple of meals. Most had one tunic – two at the most. Rip one up – and you may not have something to wear. You had to work six days a week just to provide food and money to buy a robe. Most lived hand to mouth. This meant that one drought, one serious injury – and you could literally starve. There was no social security. No Salvation Army. If you were injured – a relative might help – or you could beg for alms – if not you would starve. When you live hand to mouth it is natural to worry about what you will eat or what you might have to wear. Jesus’ point is this – whether you are the governor of Judea or a leprous beggar on the street – you have to know that your next meal is entirely in God’s hands. Governor Pilate might fine Caesar dies and he is on the wrong side politically, he might be overthrown, there might be a famine. Similarly, God can move the hearts of men to provide food aplenty for the leper. Money does not buy security – only the resources of God are our security. Remember Daniel 4.

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King Nebuchadnezzar the greatest, wealthiest man in the world. The day came when he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, and he said this, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” You have to know God controls this world – not your wealth. Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws. At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?” At the same time my reason returned to me. ... Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble. We might have plenty – but God can take it. Economic downturn, losing your job, injury, war. Nothing is safe – except the resources of God. If we believe that God is our resource – then we will not spend our days consumed by work and worry. We were created for much more than that. We were created to have one all consuming passion – the kingdom of God. Seek first His kingdom and all these other things will be given to us if that is the best thing for us. Look at what Jesus says. Verse 23:

For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. This is a key verse. Jesus has just been talking about the reality of heaven. If heaven is real – if this world is not all there is – then it changes the way we live. But what if there is no heaven? Then this life would be food and clothing.

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John Lennon was very mistaken. In his song – Imagine – he wrote this:

Imagine there’s no heaven It’s easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky Imagine all the people Living for today Imagine no possessions I wonder if you can No need for greed or hunger A brotherhood of man Imagine all the people Sharing all the world

Lennon did not know the hearts of men. If there is no heaven – if this world is all there is – there is no way all the people are sharing all the world – thinking it is a great thing to have no possessions. If there is no heaven – if this world is all there is – then my joy comes from my stuff – my food, my clothes – my stuff. I don’t share because that will lesson my joy. But if the gospel is real – if there is a heaven – if this world is not all there is – then – our life does not consist in the food of this world or the clothes of this world. If real life is the kingdom – then I will pursue that with all my heart. When Jesus arrived at Samaria – Jesus stayed at a well while His disciples went to get food. There He met a woman of Samaria and He shared the gospel with her. When His disciples came back – they urged Him to eat some food. But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” Missing the point entirely the disciples wondered who had brought Him food – so Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.” Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. There is kingdom work to be done – far more important than eating and clothes. Paul put it this way – for me – to live is Christ, to die is gain.

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We are here to know Christ, to glory in Christ, to proclaim Christ, to prepare for eternity with Christ. That is life – to live is Christ – not work, money, clothes, stuff. But, unless God has decided our task in this world is done – we still have to eat and have clothes. And God knows this. Verse 30 – your Father knows you need them. God can send food from heaven – like the manna in the wilderness. But the usual way to get is – work. But even this is a gift of God. The point Jesus wants to make is this. The worrier inside us says – you need food to live. Without clothes you will freeze. Who knows when the next famine is – this could be life and death stuff – so work hard. The worrier inside whispers, doesn’t Proverbs 6:6-8 say:

Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.

Work hard today to be ready for the lean times? And our life becomes the grind of work – to provide food and clothing. Jesus says this is a lie. The ant teaches us that we don’t lie on the couch waiting for God to feed us – you have to work. But work is not to be your life. In Eden – Adam merely tended the garden – fruit hung on every limb. But after the fall – thorns and thistles populated the ground and he had to earn bread by the sweat of his brow. But this is not to be your life. Work has many purposes. Providing for your family. Providing for your church. Providing for the poor. Being a testimony to the world by working as unto the Lord. But if work becomes your life. If it takes your heart away from Christ. Then you become obsessed with this world. You lose track of what is truly important. We might have enough food and clothes – but our – wanter says – if enough is good – more must be better and our worrier says we need more just in case a day comes when we won’t have enough. And so we spend our days working to earn money to buy stuff hoping it fills the hole in us.

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This denies the reality that God will provide our needs. That He is the only security we really need. Jesus knows this struggle – so He says this. Luke 12:24:

Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!

Ravens sleep well at night. They don’t care about the Dow Jones, the el nino or the election. No raven spends their life sowing grain and reaping. None build barns. But God feeds them. Notice that Jesus does not say:

Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet they do not starve.

He puts it positively – God feeds them. Every day – the raven wakes up and flies from the tree searching out berries and worms and seeds. In their own way – they work hard – but ultimately – it is God who feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! God created the heavens and the earth. He filled the sea with fish, he filled the land with animals and the sky with birds. Finally, he took earth – breathed His Spirit into it and fashioned man – the pinnacle of creation – the King of earth – man – made in His likeness and image. He gave rulership of all the fish and animals and birds to man. Animals are not eternal beings. They are not created in the image of God. Jesus did not die for them. And yet – out of the love of God – He shows common grace to the animals – He provides food and necessities for them. If God does that for them – what about us – created in His image – immortal souls – His sons? Our God – our Father – will provide for us. Unless it suits the sovereign purpose of God – you will not go naked or starving.

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Understand this. The non-Christians out there wake up – they go to work – they tell themselves – I am working hard to provide for me and mine. The Christian says no. Apart from the grace of God – I do not draw another breath. God sustains the universe. He created food and drink. He sends the rain and the sun and the wind. He created agrarian cycles and pollination. He created me. If I have strength and intellect and abilities and drive – He gave them to me. Whatever I do – if I am a lawyer, a chef, a plumber – I can do that job only because of the grace of God. If I earn money that buys a roast and vegetables to feed my kids – it comes from the hand of God. When we bow our heads at the dinner table – the Christian mother does not first of all pray:

We thank you Dad because it is your hard work that provided this food.

And the Christian father does not chip in:

We thank you too Mum because it is your hard work that prepared this food. Yes we are thankful for Dad and Mum – but secondarily. They are a gift. Their abilities are a gift from God. First and foremost we thank God. We are sons of God – He will supply all our needs. But, don’t take this too far. Jesus is not saying no Christian can ever starve to death or lose everything. At times God allows us to suffer and even die – because that is His will. God knows what is best for us. Jesus is talking about the normal times in our life. While God deems it best for us to live in this life – He will provide us with what we need. Strength, abilities, opportunities, food and clothing. He may or may not give us our wants – but He will give us our needs. So if we are people of faith we will not be anxious about our needs. And anyway – it does us no good. Verses 25-26:

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?

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Anxiety is a warning sign that you may be trusting in the wrong god. Trusting in a god who can fail rather than a God who will never fail us or forsake us. Anxiety is like a rocking chair – lots of activity and nothing to show for it. God has set the hour of our death from before the foundation of the world. Worrying about it won’t change it one micro-second. We worry about so many things we can’t change. Our looks. What people think of us. Our past. What will happen tomorrow. I saw a study where someone analysed what we worry about.

55% of what we worry about and consumes us never actually happens. 20% of what we worry about concerns old decisions which can’t be changed. 7% of what we worry about is what others think of us – and we can’t alter that. 6% of what we worry about is related to our health, which is only made worse by worry. Only 12% of what we worry about are legitimate concerns – and worrying can’t change the outcome anyway.

When Abraham Lincoln had been elected President – the one question everyone wanted to ask him was: Are we really to have Civil War? He repeatedly chose to answer the question with a story. He told how in his days as a circuit lawyer, he and his companions were riding to the next session of court but they realised that to get there they had to cross many swollen rivers. The one river that really worried them was the Fox River. They said one to another, “If these streams give us so much trouble, how shall we get over Fox River?” When darkness fell, they stopped for the night at a lodging place, where they fell in with the Methodist presiding elder of the district who rode through the country in all kinds of weather, and knew all about the Fox River. They gathered about him and asked him about the present state of the river. “Oh, yes,” replied the circuit rider, “I know all about the Fox River. I have crossed it often and understand it well. But I have one fixed rule with regard to Fox River: I never cross it till I reach it.” Worrying about it won’t change whether it is flooded or not. We worry about so much that doesn’t come to pass or can’t be changed. Vertically challenged people worry about their height – it doesn’t make them any taller. Worrying about your health doesn’t make you live one second longer.

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Worrying about food and clothing can consume us – when we need to meditate on the truth – my God will supply all our needs according to His riches in Christ. And even if we have pantries full of food – they can be taken in an instant. Trust God – not money. And in case we missed the point that God provides. Verses 27-28:

Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!

You worry about clothes – if God can clothe the flowers (who wither so fast) in such glory – more glory than Solomon – don’t you think that He can give you (made in His image) a robe to wear.

O you of little faith! Do you trust God or money? God’s resources or your bank account? Don’t you trust that the God who sent Jesus to die for you – will give you bread and clothes? Verses 29-30:

And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.

It is not wrong to think about work and providing for your family. The point is that life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Jesus is talking about seeking these things to the point of being consumed by them – worrying overly about them. You need to work – but not to the point where it affects your marriage, your fellowship, your relationship to the Lord, your time with your kids. You are here for a purpose. Work is a tool to aid that purpose – it is not the purpose. If work is consuming you then you need to cut back our work. When I say this – those who are working too hard – may well think – not possible. I already struggle to pay my mortgage – my car payments – my school fees. Jesus would say – if that is your life – if you barely find time to read the Word – go to homegroup – share the gospel. If it affects your marriage – your family – then do not be like the nations – the Gentiles – the non-Christian world.

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Cut back. Live simply. Change the way you live. Fit your life to your new budget. You will still have food and clothes – God knows what you need. And you will have the joy that comes from living as you were designed to live. Verse 31:

Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. This is the key thought in this passage. Seek first His kingdom. I want to play a very short video that reminds us that every day – we face a choice how will I live. How we were created to live. Seek First – Video – A Drinking Problem. Seeking first our kingdom cannot satisfy us. It was never meant to. Too many of us live like this:

We seek first our kingdom, and then if there is any time lift we add in a bit of His kingdom.

We work because our wanter and our worrier drive us to the office. We tell ourselves – wish I had time to pray – wish I had time to share – wish I could get to fellowship meetings – but God knows my life is completely full of necessary stuff. That is a lie. We have to seek first – His kingdom. Fit in the big rocks of prayer, the Word, fellowship, discipleship, accountability, evangelism – and then fit the smaller rocks in – and amazingly – the necessities of life – perhaps not the luxuries of life – will be provided. If you struggle to do this. Jesus has some practical advice. Verses 32-33:

Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.

If you struggle to seek first His kingdom. If all you do is gather stuff. Then sell some of it – give it to the poor – and see how God meets your needs. Live simply. Do the kingdom things first. If stuff comes first – you may have to get radical. Tell your wanter and your worrier that God is boss. Give some stuff away. When you seek first His kingdom – not yours – you might not lay up mounds of treasure for a happy retirement in this life – but you lay it up for a happy eternal retirement.

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Think of the millions of retirees who have worked for years only to see their savings decimated. Then think of those who put the kingdom first – their eternal investment can never be taken away. Don’t get me wrong – this is not a call to sell everything – to get rid of your superannuation. No – God knows this is the normal way He provides. But if those are your gods – if that is what you trust in – turf them out today. Do not serve those false gods. You need to know that only one thing will provide security – the resources of God. How do you know whether these are your gods? Verse 34:

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Where is your time, your thoughts, your passions, your energy? Seeking first – His kingdom or seeking first yours? Do you trust in God or money?

Brothers and sisters. Where is your life? Food, clothing, work, stuff – or the kingdom? Where you spend the greatest part of your life – where you dream – where you worry – where you trust tells you who your God is. Jesus says this. One god can fail. The god of Dow Jones can fall. The god of superannuation can lose. The god of wealth cannot guarantee the necessities of life – let alone happiness or eternity. But there is a God who can never fail. His resources are without end. He provides your needs now, fills your soul now – and will bless you eternally.

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Which God will you trust this day? I beg you – trust in Jesus and His cross. He will never fail you or forsake you. He will supply all your needs. And He will bless you for all eternity. Seek Him.