They sound like first graders on a playground.   “Teacher,” one of them says, “Make my brother share.”    You ever been around children who think the way to get what they want is to have a big person get it for them?

        “Mom, make her share her toys!”   “Dad, make him give me my baseball.”   “Teacher, make him share.”

        But this wasn’t a first grader.  It was a grown man in the crowd who had been listening to Jesus teach.  “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”

And Jesus responds, “I’m not a judge.  I’m not an arbitrator.”   And then he says, “Watch out.   Be on guard against all kinds of greed—life isn’t about what you have.”

All kinds of greed.   Jesus illustrates with a story about a farmer.

         A farmer?  Yes, a farmer.

         But farmers aren’t greedy.  Farmers—they’re the salt of the earth sort of people.  They feed the world.  Where would we be without farmers?  True.

         But when even a farmer can be seduced, when a salt of the earth sort of person can be seduced, when someone who feeds the world can be seduced by greed, then it’s apparent that Jesus is dead serious when he says, “Watch out!   Be on guard.”  If it can sneak up on a farmer, well then…the rest of us had better be on guard.

The well-to-do farmer had a windfall.  A bumper crop!  So big of a crop, that he didn’t have a place to store it all.   It’s quite a problem to have, don’t ya think?   When the crops produce so abundantly, you don’t even have enough bins to put it all up for storage.

He invents a creative solution to his big problem.  He says, ‘I’ll tear down my barns, and build bigger ones so I can store up my grain and all of my goods.’  Then, he said, “I’ll say to myself, ‘self, you’re all set…you have enough for years to come.  So, sit back, relax, and eat, and drink, and be merry.”

         Now, I notice something here in Jesus story.  Did you notice?   That the man here, the farmer, is having a conversation with himself?  No one else, just himself.   “Self,” he says.  “Relax, eat, drink and be merry.”  And a picture comes to my mind.  It’s a lonely picture.  A man sitting at a table by himself.   A luscious meal set upon the table, a beautiful prime rib roast, surrounded by vegetables, a hot, fresh loaf of bread, with lots of butter to slather on, and pies, fruit pies, cream pies, meringue pies.  Am I making you hungry.   I see this remarkable, tempting, bountiful meal laid out at the table, but there is just one plate.  A bottle of the finest wine.  But there is only one glass.  I see a man, his abundance, and only himself to share it.  Go ahead, eat.   Drink.   I don’t know how merry he’ll make with only himself to party.  One man, his enormous possession, and not a soul around to enjoy it with.  His only dinner companion, with whom he makes conversation, is himself.

         I wonder if Jesus isn’t making a point here, that that’s where greed will eventually leave us?  Alone.  As we push relationships out of our lives to make room for wealth.  As we push people out to make room for things.

         “Self,” the farmer says.  “You’ve got it made.”

          He may have been speaking to only himself, but someone else answers in the empty room.  It is God.

         God calls the man by name.  Oh—not his birth name, but the name God has given him.  Did you catch it?   God calls, “Fool!”  I’ve talked before about God’s call for each of us, that God calls us by name.   One had better be listening closely to hear exactly what name God uses when He calls.   When God calls the wealthy farmer, he says, “Fool—tonight you will leave this earth.  What good will your abundance do you then?” 

         “That’s how it is,” Jesus says, “when folks are rich in things, but not rich toward God.”

        Rich in things, not rich toward God.

Great story--told some two thousand years ago.

        Why do you suppose Luke wanted to make sure we all heard this story?  

Last week, a couple of you came up to me and said you were starting to recognize something that you thought might be Luke’s concern.  The two stories we’ve had up to today, the Samaritan and the story of the rich man and Lazarus, some of you believed there is an imperative to take care of others when you see their need.   The Levite and the Priest did not care for the man lying along the road, while the Samaritan did.   The Rich man did not care for the beggar, which resulted in him being in hell for all of eternity.  

        Well, there’s no person in need mentioned in this story.   Just a man who builds bigger barns to hold his crops.  And the realization of the old adage: “you can’t take it with you.” 

When my daughters were younger, we lived in a small town where they could ride their bikes to the local store.   It made them feel very grown up to be able to go to the grocery store and buy something.  Once they approached me about going to the store.   They needed money.  Typically, I would pull out a dollar for each of them and send them off.   I opened my wallet, and only had a five.  So I gave it to my eldest daughter, and told her that she and Taylor both were to get something with the money.  What I didn’t take time to communicate was that they were to each have about a dollar to spend, and to bring me back the change.   You know where this is going, don’t you?

The two took off, the older with the five dollars and the younger with dreams of popsicles and candy.  When they returned, the older daughter had a small bag, and big smile on her face.   The younger, tear-stained cheeks and an angry pout that let me know things were not well in sister-ville.

It seems my older daughter, all of maybe 9 years old, hadn’t yet heard of trickle down economics.   The five dollars was a windfall, and she proceeded to plan all the way to the store how she would spend it.  “Self,” I can almost hear her say, “you have ample goods for all that you want.   Eat, drink and be merry.”

And that’s what she did.  Now, I don’t think she had any malicious intent against her sister.   Indeed, when I investigated the situation, I learned that Sydney had told her sister to pick out an item, as she always had been able to do when she had her own dollar.   But Sydney clearly believed the windfall was all for her.

You see, the problem wasn’t the goodness or the badness of my children.   It wasn’t that Sydney wanted to hurt her little sister.   In fact, I don’t think she was even thinking of her little sister.   Ah—that’s the issue, isn’t it?   She wasn’t even thinking of her little sister.  Or. . .her dad.   She only saw the windfall, and assumed it was all for her. 

Nothing more to share with someone else, nothing more to return to her father in duty and thanksgiving . . . just more to indulge herself.  She had been seduced by the windfall, believing it was all meant for her.  

“Watch out,” Jesus had told the brother who wanted his share of the inheritance.  “Be on guard against all kinds of greed.”   Jesus knew. . .the seduction of having too much is often too much to handle.

The seduction happens to even good people.   To get and acquire and grow and accumulate. . .believing that is the secret of life.   But it’s only the secret of greed.   The secret of life, is something else again. 

It’s learning to see God’s hand of provision in all that we have.   That we might share it, freely.

        I’ve used the word “windfall” a few times this morning to describe the bumper crop of the farmer, as well as the five dollars that was handed over to my young daughter.   A windfall has come to mean any sudden, unexpected fortune.  A personal gain that is largely unearned.   We talk about oil companies and their windfall profits.   We talk about lottery windfalls.   Inheritance windfalls.   You know where that word comes from?

            Originally, a windfall referred to ripe fruit or nuts that are blown from the trees by the wind, making it much easier to harvest and to collect the produce.   Not having to climb and pick, the produce on the ground is a “wind fall.”  No work, no effort.   Just eat what you want.  A gift from God.   The church has a word for that…what is it?   Oh yes, grace.

        A windfall is grace.   A gift from God.   An unexpected, unearned fortune.   That’s what Sydney was handed that day.   That’s what the rich farmer experienced.   A windfall.   And failing to recognize it as grace, an unearned, unexpected grace, both my daughter and the rich farmer were seduced into believing the windfall was all for them.

          God provides resources. . .and we each make choices how we use that provision.  The Samaritan used what he had for the needs of another.   The rich man failed to use what he had for the needs of another.  And today, we have a man with abundantly more resources than he could ever hope to use for himself, but he can think only of building bigger barns to store it all up for himself.

        Interesting choice that fellow made.   You see, his crop wasn’t something that could be sold at market, or bartered or traded.  His crop was for his own consumption.   It was food for his household.  And that’s what makes God’s words so ironic.   Tonight, your life will be demanded from you.   What good is it all then?  Indeed. . .what good is it all then? 

        Next week. . .we find Jesus offering compassion to a couple of folks, and heals them, helps them.   You wouldn’t think there’d be any controversy in that?   Well, you’d be surprised.