Sermon for August 3, 2025 (Luke 12:13–21) by Rev. David Domanski

About the rich man in our Gospel lesson, Jesus said, “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God” (v 21).

These are strong words of warning from Jesus. How it goes for the worldly rich man in the parable, who is spiritually poor, is the exact opposite of how it goes for the spiritually rich. When it comes to God’s way of judging, being worldly rich doesn’t help. In fact, what Jesus says is true: “How difficult it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven!” (cf Mt 19:23).

In Jesus’ parable, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 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” ’ ” (vv 16–19). The rich man is his own preacher. He has many things to say about what he’s doing in his life, about why he has so many things, and exactly what he’s going to do with them. “My crops,” “my barns,” “my grain,” “my goods,” all, because, as he put it, “My land produced plentifully!” “What am I going to do with my things?” “I deserve it. I’ve earned it. I’ve planted. I’ve harvested. I’ve put in the hours. I have the expertise. I’m better than others. I’m just so blessed. Life really couldn’t go any better.”

But no matter how much the rich man said his success was all about himself, it wasn’t true. Because none of it would be his in the end! Many were the plans of his heart, but God directed his steps—to his grave! Not decades or years or months later. The very night he’d supposedly gotten it all squared away, God said, “Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” (v 20).

What a farm sale that man’s heirs would have had! Auctioned off, maybe at bargain prices, to the highest bidder. The leftovers would be carted off to the scrapyard, the burn pile, the dump, or simply bulldozed under. The Psalms have some brutal words for people like the rich man:  “In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there” (Ps 37:10). “It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest” (Ps 127:2). “Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!” (Ps 39:6).

But the problem for us today is that our lives can look eerily similar to the life of that rich man. Our lives. Our homes, barns, garages, and outbuildings. Our cabinets, closets, attics, and basements. They’re often filled with things. Things that make us feel good or comfortable. Things that we like. Things that make us proud. Without realizing we’re doing it, we are often guilty of preaching to ourselves the same message that the rich man preached!

So the Father sends us a Preacher, a Messenger. He sends His Son to proclaim: “Be on your guard against all covetousness” (v 15). He says this because “covetousness . . . is idolatry” (Col 3:5). The gifts become gods in our hearts. There is great danger. “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world” (1 Jn 2:15–16). “Be on your guard!” Watch out!

This the rich man had missed. He was worldly rich but eternally poor—poor in the words of God. Worldly rich, spiritually poor.

Today, we must truly be thankful, not only for all things that we have in our daily lives. All of it is the daily bread we pray for in the Lord’s Prayer. “Daily bread includes everything that has to do with the support and needs of the body, such as” all the things listed the Small Catechism (Fourth Petition). For “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). But our flesh exchanges this truth for a lie and worships and serves the gift rather than the Giver (cf Rom 1:25).

Christ, of course, is Judge of the living and the dead, but He’s come to show that He is not some vending machine, nor is he some probate judge or executor for us, like the men in Luke 12 wanted, to mete out instructions and give directions.

No, Jesus instead comes to say, “Your family, your farm, your freedom, or whatever else you list after ‘faith in,’ are not your god. That I am not first on your list shows where your heart has placed me. I am your God. ‘You shall have no other gods before me’ (Ex 20:3), and ‘there is no god besides me’ (Deut 32:39). ‘My glory I give to no other’ (Is 42:8), nothing else in your life.” We need those words to be truly rich.

Christ delivers all the bounties of salvation to you. Always at the proper time. For what was hidden before the ages, he has manifested to you here and now. He comes to silence all our self-preaching by giving us His own: “I baptize you.” “I forgive you.” “This is my body and blood for you for the forgiveness of your sins.” From this comes forgiveness, true faith, and endless thanksgiving! See, where the rich man was poor, God makes us rich. God makes us rich—in the forgiving words of Jesus.

Those who desire worldly things DO NOT have not the Father’s love in them. They are eternally, inexpressibly (cf 2 Cor 9:15), and incalculably poor. No words of life can dwell with them. Jesus doesn’t leave much to the imagination as to what happens next after the rich man who trusted the creation met his Creator. But for those who are on the receiving and believing end of Jesus’ promises and gifts, who say,

“His blood is more precious than gold and silver” (cf 1 Pet 1:18–19), and who say,

“His Word is more precious than gold, even much fine gold” (cf Ps 19:10; 119:127), and who say,

“The washing of rebirth makes me an heir of eternal life” (cf Titus 3:5–7), and who say,

“The bread we break and the cup we drink are Communion of his body and blood” (cf 1 Cor 10:16), we are eternally, inexpressibly, and incalculably rich!

In Christ, You’re Rich in Words of Life!

For Christ Jesus is your mediator and redeemer. He is your God and Savior. He is your shield, your exceedingly great reward. And when you die, being rich in words of life toward God in Christ will reward you with what, “no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined—what God has prepared”—what he has treasured up, “for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9).

In the name of Jesus. Amen.