David A. Kerr
This sermon is a risky attempt to get into the mind of the widow
of the rich fool who wanted to build barns to store his surplus materials.
The similarity to today’s society cannot be understated—Americans
are considered the wealthiest people on the planet. Sociologists believe,
in order to have barns like these, this man would have been in the top 1 percent
of the population monetarily.
The obvious need of this rich man is to reprioritize his life
before it is too late. Building the barns is not the problem, but the rich
man’s tongue lets us know his heart is black as night. He does not care
for others, especially the downtrodden and God. Nothing this man says or does
shows compassion towards his fellow human, or a desire to sacrifice for others.
He wants to hoard. God responds by calling the man a fool, and does so today
as well. God desires that we sacrifice towards one another. He does not call
for independence, but rather interdependence. God does not call for hoarded
investments, but rather a guaranteed “Return On Investment” that
is eternal!
(For the full manuscript
of this sermon go to www.preachersmagazine.org and click on “Sermons.”)
The sermon is to be delivered with emphasis upon the last two pages. You may want to share in a bulletin or media presentation the verses showing how much God has done for the listeners in preparing their hearts for transformation. God promises to complete in us the good work He started when we first repented. He also promised us great reward when we do to the “least” what we would have done to us. Our work is to yield to His desires rather than run back to our fallen human desire to hoard resources and avoid the finger of God pointing to the areas in which we need to invest more wisely.
