Success Through God’s Eyes
“Then He said, ‘Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” – Luke 12:15
Last week during Nehemiah Week 2018, Pastor Anthony E. Moore conducted a series of powerful and inspiring devotional sessions. Due to the overwhelming response from his devotional sessions, we have decided to feature one more devotional from his book, One Moore Minute. If you’ve enjoyed reading our devotional specials from One Moore Minute, you can continue the rest of the book by clicking on the purchase link below.
What is life all about? Some people say it’s all about finding happiness. Some people say it’s all about achieving success. What does God say it’s all about? The man in our text thought more money could solve all his problems. He walked up to Jesus and said, “Make my brother share and divide the inheritance.” Jesus responded, “Your issue is not money; your issue is greed.” The man’s priorities were all twisted, so Jesus told him a parable about what life is all about.
A rich property developer had a business that was booming, inspiring him to expand. He said in verse 18, “I’m going to tear down these small facilities and I’m going to build larger facilities to house all of my resources in my bigger barns. I’ll have enough stored away for years to come, so I’ll take it easy! I’ll eat, drink and be merry.” According to our measurement, this sounds like success! His future sounds ideal! But notice God didn’t call him successful. Guess what God call him? God said, “You fool!”
This ought to be a wake-up call when what we think is successful, God calls foolish! What is Jesus teaching us? Notice the man in this story does not mention God at all. In fact in verses 17-19, only 3 short verses, this property developer said “I” or “my” 11 times! His success was all about what he was going to do for himself. He was trying to find success without God. Listen, you need to know, there is no life without God. Money without God is poverty. Education without God is ignorance. Logic without God is presumption. Love without God is lust. Life without God is death.
It’s not that God is against you having material things, but that’s not his primary concern. If your pursuit of money comes first, ask yourself this: Do you think that Jesus came all the way from Heaven to earth, died on the cross, shed His blood, was buried and raised three days later, and ascended to the right hand of the Father, just to give you an upgrade on a car, home, or some other material thing? Don’t be foolish! Jesus did all that he did because He has one concern: your spiritual life. Life is not about money! Everything that you can see is going to wear out. One sickness can wipe out all of the money you’ve accumulated. Losing your job for a significant period of time can dry up all of your life’s savings. But that which is spiritual is eternal – it will never wear out.
Jesus is saying, real life comes from getting your soul right with Him. He’s saying real wisdom comes from living for things that have eternal value. If you want real security, real significance, real status, and real satisfaction don’t look to money. Life does not consist of the abundance of your possessions. Real life is found when you nurture an eternal relationship with the Lord. So, check your priorities and put your stock in the Savior and not in stuff.
Reflective Minute
Take a minute and look closely at what is most important to you. Are you getting too caught up in what’s visible, tangible, and physical? Think about your life from an eternal perspective. How can you prioritize deepening your relationship with Jesus Christ?
Meditative Minute
1 Timothy 6:6-10
For we brought nothing into the world and can take nothing out of it.
Prayer Minute
Dear God, I don’t want to live my life focused on the temporary pleasures of earth. I repent of any greed or selfishness in my heart. Please open my eyes to see the spiritual reality around me and Your eternal purpose for me. Give me wisdom to pursue You as my first priority. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.
Responses