YOU ARE BLESSED TO BE A BLESSING by Gary Wilkerson
“And [Jesus] told them a parable, saying, ‘The land of a rich man produced plentifully’” (Luke 12:16, ESV).
God is a generous, gracious Father who loves to lavish gifts on His children. But I want to show you the contrast here because this story takes a turn into the wrong direction. Verse 17 says, “And [the rich man] thought to himself.”
God begins to bless and you start thinking to yourself, “What am I going to do with this? Where do I go next?” This thought process will lead you down the wrong course and usually leads toward selfishness. In Genesis 26, we read about Isaac, who wisely asked the Lord what he should do with his resources, in contrast to this foolish rich man Jesus talks about.
When we start thinking to ourselves, we lose the Holy Spirit’s discernment. When we start thinking about what we desire, we go astray—and that is exactly what happened to this rich man. Look at the language here: “And he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’” (Luke12:17, ESV).
Whose crops were they? They belonged to God. Everything belongs to God! So this man was getting selfish. He was beginning to see this gift from God, all his talents and relationships, as things that could be used for his own benefit and selfishness, and these thoughts began to permeate the very fiber of who he was.
“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. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry”’” (Luke 12:18-19, ESV).
The problem with some types of teaching about the blessing of God is not the reality that God wants to bless, it is why God wants to bless. Is the blessing of God all for me? Is it to heap these goods upon myself? Is it to create for myself this perfect little cocoon of a world that I’ve always wanted?
You are blessed! From the very beginning of God’s covenant of blessing with mankind, you are blessed to be a blessing, Church.
I’ll say it again. You are blessed to be a blessing!
God is a generous, gracious Father who loves to lavish gifts on His children. But I want to show you the contrast here because this story takes a turn into the wrong direction. Verse 17 says, “And [the rich man] thought to himself.”
God begins to bless and you start thinking to yourself, “What am I going to do with this? Where do I go next?” This thought process will lead you down the wrong course and usually leads toward selfishness. In Genesis 26, we read about Isaac, who wisely asked the Lord what he should do with his resources, in contrast to this foolish rich man Jesus talks about.
When we start thinking to ourselves, we lose the Holy Spirit’s discernment. When we start thinking about what we desire, we go astray—and that is exactly what happened to this rich man. Look at the language here: “And he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’” (Luke12:17, ESV).
Whose crops were they? They belonged to God. Everything belongs to God! So this man was getting selfish. He was beginning to see this gift from God, all his talents and relationships, as things that could be used for his own benefit and selfishness, and these thoughts began to permeate the very fiber of who he was.
“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. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry”’” (Luke 12:18-19, ESV).
The problem with some types of teaching about the blessing of God is not the reality that God wants to bless, it is why God wants to bless. Is the blessing of God all for me? Is it to heap these goods upon myself? Is it to create for myself this perfect little cocoon of a world that I’ve always wanted?
You are blessed! From the very beginning of God’s covenant of blessing with mankind, you are blessed to be a blessing, Church.
I’ll say it again. You are blessed to be a blessing!