Worship Helps for Pentecost 11

Artwork: Parable of the Rich Fool

Artist: Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn

Date: 1606-1669

Worship Theme: Earthly wealth is meaningless without God.  The meaning of life cannot be found in the abundance of earthly possessions but in the abundance of heavenly blessings. The believer recognizes that everything the world seeks and offers is meaningless. Rather, he sets his heart on the treasure found in the fullness of Christ.

Old Testament: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:18-26  

²“Nothing but vapor,” Ecclesiastes said. “Totally vapor. Everything is just vapor that vanishes.”

^2:18I also hated all the results of my hard work, for which I worked so hard under the sun, since I must leave it all to the man who comes after me. ¹⁹And who knows—will he be wise, or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the results of my hard work, for which I worked so hard and so wisely, under the sun. This too is vapor that vanishes.

²⁰So I changed my course, and my heart began to despair over all my hard work at which I worked so hard under the sun. ²¹Sure, there may be a man who has worked hard—wisely, aptly, and skillfully. But he must hand over whatever he accumulated by all his hard work to a man who has not worked hard for it. This too is vapor. It’s so unfair! ²²For what does a man gain through all his hard work, through all the turmoil in his heart as he works so hard under the sun?

²³Bah! Pain fills his days. His occupation is frustration. Even at night his heart does not rest. This too is vapor.

²⁴There is nothing better for a man than to eat and to drink and to find joy in his work. This too, I saw, is from God’s hand. ²⁵For who can eat or enjoy himself apart from him? ²⁶Yes, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and happiness to the man whom he considers good, but to the person who goes on sinning God gives the task of gathering and collecting, but only so that he can give it all to a person whom God considers good. This too is vapor, nothing but chasing wind.

1. What attitude does Solomon have about the things of this world?

2. Whom did Solomon recognize as the giver of all blessings, both worldly and eternal?

Epistle: James 5:1–11  

Come now, you who are rich, weep and cry aloud over the miseries that are going to come upon you. ²Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. ³Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have stored up treasure in these last days. ⁴Listen, the wages that you failed to pay the workers who reaped your fields are crying out! And the cries of the harvesters have entered the ears of the Lord of Armies. ⁵You have lived for pleasure on the earth and led a life of luxury. You have fattened your hearts on the day of slaughter. ⁶You condemned and murdered the Righteous One. Does he not oppose you?

⁷Therefore, brothers, be patient until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the valuable harvest from the ground, patiently waiting for it, until it receives the early and late rain. ⁸You be patient too. Strengthen your hearts because the coming of the Lord is near.

⁹Do not complain about one another, brothers, so that you will not be judged. Look! The Judge is standing at the doors! ¹⁰Brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord as an example of suffering with patient endurance. ¹¹See, we consider those who endured to be blessed. You have heard of the patient endurance of Job and have seen what the Lord did in the end, because the Lord is especially compassionate and merciful.

3. The rich are tempted to rejoice in their riches. James says they should weep and wail. Why?

4. James is giving wealth a voice and putting words into its mouth. How will rotting and decaying wealth testify against the rich person?

5. James makes some very pointed statements. What is so ironic about the wealthy person hoarding wealth in the last days? (verse 3) A couple verses later, James makes an equally ironic statement, “You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter” (verse 5). What does he mean by this?

Gospel: Luke 12:13–21  

¹³Someone from the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” ¹⁴But Jesus said to him, “Man, who appointed me to be a judge or an arbitrator over you?”

¹⁵Then he said to them, “Watch out and be on guard against all greed, because a man’s life is not measured by how many possessions he has.”

¹⁶He told them a parable: “The land of a certain rich man produced very well. ¹⁷He was thinking to himself, ‘What will I do, because I do not have anywhere to store my crops?’ ¹⁸He said, ‘This is what I will do. I will pull down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and goods. ¹⁹And I will tell my soul, “Soul, you have many goods stored up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry.”’

²⁰“But God said to him, ‘You fool, this night your soul will be demanded from you. Now who will get what you have prepared?’

²¹“That is how it will be for anyone who stores up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

6. Jesus states that “a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” In what does it consist?

7. How does Jesus illustrate the truth of this principle?

Answers:

1. He calls them meaningless. Even though King Solomon was a very rich man, he understood how fleeting the things of this world really are.

2. He realized that everything was “from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?” In faith a Christian comes to realize that all of our riches are hidden with God.

3. James is looking into the future. What the rich are so happy about will someday rot and be eaten by moths. Even gold and silver will corrode and pass away. They should weep and wail when they see this happening, knowing they will be destroyed if they depend on these things for lasting happiness. They should find something lasting in which they can truly rejoice.

4. Rotting wealth will say, “You thought you could find lasting happiness in me. You rejected the lasting happiness God offered you in Christ. Now see who made the right choice. Now see who rejected God. You are rotting along with us because you chose us over God.”

5. A wealthy person is like a foolish old man who works and works, hoarding up wealth, only to die and have it go to others. The end is coming soon! Why hoard wealth now? You will live only long enough to see your pile of riches destroyed. We fatten cows and pigs just so we can butcher them. The rich are fattening themselves for the day when God will “butcher” them, that is, when he will judge them.

6. Real life – a Christian’s faith-life – consists in being “rich toward God” (verse 21). Earthly possessions are fleeting and transient, but the heavenly riches that the Lord has stored up for us will last forever (2 Timothy 4:8). For now those riches are hidden with God.

7. Jesus illustrates his point by telling the parable of the rich fool. The rich fool believes that after attaining earthly wealth he has nothing more to worry about or gain. Jesus calls him a fool because one day he will face death and all his worldly riches will become meaningless.

A reading from the Book of Concord for Pentecost 11

Although in this life the good works of believers are imperfect and impure because of sin in the flesh, nevertheless they are acceptable and well pleasing to God.  The Gospel teaches that our spiritual offerings are acceptable to God through faith for Christ’s sake.  In this way Christians are not under the Law, but under grace.  For by faith in Christ the persons are freed from the Law’s curse and condemnation.  They act not by coercion of the Law, but by the renewing of the Holy Spirit, voluntarily and spontaneously from their hearts.  However, they still have a constant struggle against the old Adam.

The old Adam is still a part of them.  It must be forced to obey Christ.  It not only requires the teaching, admonition, force, and threatening of the Law, but it also often needs the club of punishments and troubles.  This goes on until the body of sin is entirely put off and a person is perfectly renewed in the resurrection.  Then he will need neither the preaching of the Law nor its threats, just as he will no longer need the Gospel.  These belong to this imperfect life.  Just as people will see God face-to-face, so they will—through the power of God’s indwelling Spirit—do the will of God with unmingled joy, voluntarily, unconstrained, without any hindrance, and with entire purity and perfection.  They will rejoice in it eternally. – Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, Article IV, The Third Use of God’s Law (paragraphs 22-25)

762  Consider How the Birds Above

1  Consider how the birds above Feed day by day with carefree ease—

Does God not keep them in his love? Are we not worth much more than these?

2  The lilies grow; they do not toil. How fair is their fragility—

If God clothes these, which quickly spoil, Will he not clothe both you and me?

3  Set not your heart on food or drink, Nor be weighed down by worldly care;

About such things the godless think, Yet never thank the Lord in prayer.

4  Be on your guard against all greed, For life is more than what we own.

Our Father knows our ev’ry need Before our needs to us are known.

5  Be not afraid to suffer loss Of all the things for which you pray;

For he who faced for you the cross Will give you strength to live each day.

6  Seek first God’s reign, his boundless grace, His holy name in all you do:

Christ first and last in ev’ry place; All else will then be given you.

This paraphrase of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount reminds Christians of God’s daily providence and encourages us to pursue his eternal treasures.

Text: Stephen P. Starke, b. 1955 © 1998 Stephen P. Starke; admin. Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved. Used by permission.