13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 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.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.
This man cried out: "I want what is fair! Jesus, If you want to be king, make my brother give me some of the inheritance." This encounter was an exact illustration of what Jesus was talking about: covetousness - always wanting more stuff, never being content, desiring to live selfishly off the fat of the land without responsibility or concern for others. You can almost imagine Jesus, when He gets to the part of His parable where he says: ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ He just happens to look back at the man who asked the question. The big picture of the lesson of course is that there are many ways to live selfishly in this life, and if we want to follow Jesus, none of them are appropriate. Loosen your grip on stuff - not just with your hands, but with your heart. Look more at the people around you than the stuff you have or want, and think about what they need. Love God by making Him the treasure that you seek above all others.
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