Parable Of The Rich Fool: Berean Study

“An obsession with possessions enslaves us to the demon of worry. Jesus invites us to change our priorities, focus on the kingdom, and share with the needy” (Kraybill, 2011, p.101). A man’s wealth will be measured by the love, kindness and empathy he has for the poor and the hungry in Gods kingdom. For this matter Jesus wants the wealthy to humble themselves and receive their blessing by offering opportunities to the poor instead of being greedy and celebrating their own wealth.

In the “Gospel of wealth”, Andrew Carnegie argues that it is the duty of the wealthy entrepreneur who has amassed a great fortune during their lifetime, to give back to those less fortunate. Greed and selfishness may force some readers to see these arguments as preposterous; however, greed is a key ingredient in successful competition. It forces competitors to perform at a higher level than their peers in hopes of obtaining more money and individual wealth. A capitalist society that allows this wealth to accumulate in the hands of the few might be beneficial to the human race because it could promote competition between companies; it might ensure health care for everyone no matter their social standing, and parks and recreation could

"I am still a little afraid of missing something if I forget that, as my father snobbishly suggested, and I snobbishly repeat, a sense of the fundamental decencies is parceled out unequally at birth" (Fitzgerald 7), as stated by Nick, shows that, in The Great Gatsby, class determines the value of a person’s identity. Even between the rich, those with old money are more respected than those with new money, since there is a history of wealth associated to those with old money. Wealth holds great priority in society, since it provides more opportunities. However, while it provides more opportunities, the characters in The Great Gatsby shows the negative aspects of money. In the book The Great Gatsby, it is seen that rich people are powerful,

Greedy people are some of the most disoriented people on Earth. These snobby people may have a lot of “treasures” here, but when they die, most likely not. Keeping all of your items and possessions to yourself is weak. God should come first overall of the meaningless things you “own.” He put you here on Earth, to love Him, not put idols before Him. Greed is very selfish because you could give

Money brings the inequality of possessions, also called “the haves and the have not’s.” We may all be equal in the eyes of God, but here on earth some eyes grow green with envy. Children come home from daycare complaining that Little Jimmy’s truck was bigger than his, husbands and fathers are forever eying the Jones; new corvette, and entire wars have erupted over the “you have it and I’m gonna get it” mentality. Inequality of possessions is not bad though many passages in the Bible teach that even in heaven there are different degrees of rewards. Even God’s spiritual gifts are not given equally to each of us, but this does not mean He loves one person more than the other. It is what we do with

Today wealth could be considered a luxury, but in the bible wealth could be considered a great weakness. “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.” Wealth leads to greediness, unhappiness, and foolishness in the Bible. Jesus once said it was harder for a wealthy person to get into heaven than a camel passing through the eye of a needle.

They allocate their time, energy, and money efficiently, in ways conducive to building wealth. Millionaires budget and also plan their investments. They begin earning and investing early in life. The authors note that “there is an inverse relationship between the time spent purchasing luxury items such as cars and clothes and the time spent planning one’s financial future”. In other words, the more time someone spends buying things

In document 4 Gerontius, a Christian monk, wrote a biography on the Christian saint Melania the Younger in circa 450 CE, 11 years after her death in 439 CE. In the excerpt of the biography, The Life of Melania the Younger, Gerontius writes about the benefits of abandoning wealth and worldly possessions to become closer to God and to serve a greater purpose. He states that it would be “impossible to offer pure worship to God unless they made themselves enemies to the confusions of a wealthy life…” This was probably written to encourage the rich to give up their worldly possessions to experience more of God’s blessings. In document 5 the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam addresses wealth accumulation resulting in the resentment of an individual.

The author perpetuates his Christian viewpoint that it is not Godly to strive towards riches, or to obtain an abundance of material possessions on earth, but more important to seek the rewards in Heaven (Lines 27-28). Additionally, the Bible teaches, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have” (Hebrews 13:5 NIV). His perception is that every man should be being Christ-like by heading Jesus’ warning, “You, my

Since the nineteenth and twentieth century, there has always been a division between the wealthy and unfortunate. During these times the higher class continued to prosper while the lower class remained at the bottom, the separation continues to grow. Three men vocalize their views on the social division, capitalism, and individualism. Andrew Carnegie, an industrialist, believed the rich should distributed their wealth to benefit society while they’re alive. Carnegie elaborates this idea in his article, The Gospel of Wealth, written in 1889. Russell Conwell, a philanthropist, expresses in his speech, Acres of Diamonds, men should utilize their surrounding opportunities to make themselves wealthy. Edward Bellamy, a socialist, wrote Look Backward about a wealthy young man, Julian West, who enters hypnotic sleep in 1887 and awakes 113 years later. Although, the men state similar matters their views contrast, Carnegie and Conwell would most likely be critical to Bellamy’s vision.

When it came to the Theology of Prosperity we discovered that it boiled down to this: those who have money, health, and are essentially successful in every facet of life have been rewarded for their faith in God. This theology predicts that those who are not successful in every aspect of their lives, whether it be financially, martially, health, general well-being, have not been completely faithful to God. The Theology of Prosperity (Also referred to as ‘Prosperity Gospel,’

Benjamin Franklin is considered one of the most realistic and wisest men in the history of America. He is known for his stand on the necessity for the individual to work hard and to be frugal in order to reach success. In the presented essay, “The Way to Wealth”, he makes mention of various aphorisms and pieces of advice which express his views and opinions about morals, ethics, life, taxes, debts, etc. Among those pieces of advice that he offers his audience, we find the phrase “employ thy time well if thou meanest to gain leisure; and, since thou art not sure of a minute, throw not away an hour.” Although much of his work is devoted to the importance of industry and of frugality, here Franklin discusses the difference between being lazy and having leisure. He places emphasis on how without working hard and in a conscious way, the individual will never be able to have time for pastimes or leisure. Instead of viewing laziness and fun as the ultimate goal an individual must aim for, Franklin advices about using the time in a profitable way. To him, labor brings more comfort than idleness or laziness, as when the individual is idle or bored, he manages to commit mischief. Moreover, it is his belief that one cannot just be in a useless position the whole time, lest poverty and necessity strike. Therefore, Franklin argues, it is important to find useful things to do with one’s time, but things that bring enjoyment, in order for one to work hard at them. Once the

and live well but a just man has to live with what he has or earn his wealth

You cannot serve God and money” (The Holy Bible). The people of the time possibly thought that Jesus was talking of their money and wealth, but He was teaching a lesson in that God is our Master and all of our wealth is His. Wealth is to be used to do good for Him. Additionally, a great lesson is taught in this parable when Jesus states that if you are not to be trusted in all things, how can you be trusted in larger matters? The unjust steward could not be trusted to keep menial debtor records, so he will never survive as a higher level manager.

In Tolstoy’s short story, “How Much Land Does a Man Need” Pakhom becomes increasingly greedy as his wealth and materialism escalate, however, the idea of building up worldly wealth is counter to that of Jesus’ message. Again and again after obtaining more land, livestock, or livelihood Pakhom comes back to the notion of not having enough. For example, after Pakhom and his family moved the first time, Tolstoy writes, “The living was ten times better than before. There was plenty of arable land and feed and you could keep as many heads of cattle as you liked. At first, so long as he was building and setting up, all seemed well to Pakhom. But as soon as he settled down—this land, too, seemed cramped.” The more Pakhom owns, even after growing up and living poor, the more he desires to acquire. The Gospel of Luke also drives home this idea in Jesus’ encounter with a rich ruler. The ruler approaches Jesus asking about eternal life, Jesus’ reply is to follow the commandments, which the ruler quickly restores that he’s followed. The second is more difficult, “when Jesus heard this, he said to him, ‘You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Jesus looked at him and said, ‘How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God’” (Luke 18:22-24, New International Version)! As people secure more earthly possessions it becomes