Messages

13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inher­it­ance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbit­rator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all cov­et­ous­ness, for one’s life does not con­sist in the abund­ance of his pos­ses­sions.” 16 And he told them a par­able, say­ing, “The land of a rich man pro­duced plen­ti­fully, 17 and he thought to him­self, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 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. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have pre­pared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treas­ure for him­self and is not rich toward God.”

22 And he said to his dis­ciples, “There­fore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than cloth­ing. 24 Con­sider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither store­house nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? 27 Con­sider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomor­row is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be wor­ried. 30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 Instead, seek his king­dom, and these things will be added to you.

32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleas­ure to give you the king­dom. 33 Sell your pos­ses­sions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with money­bags that do not grow old, with a treas­ure in the heav­ens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth des­troys. 34 For where your treas­ure is, there will your heart be also. (ESV)