…It's not unusual for people to start early, planning what they want their life to look like after they have set down their careers and callings. We get advice, sometimes from our parents, sometimes from our friends, and sometimes from people we pay for that advice. And much of that advice centers on how to save enough money—of course! So that we can enjoy our retirement. So that we can, travel, if we want. Or pursue other interests. But surely, crucially, so that we can survive—have a roof over our heads, eat and drink. Maybe even be merry. You see where I’m going with this. At first glance, it’s pretty hard to fault with the guy known as the foolish rich man, who is at the heart of the parable Jesus shares. What did he do, except the same thing most of us have been told it’s wise to do, and foolish not to do? What did he do wrong?
Image: Watts, George Frederick, 1817-1904. For He Had Great Possessions, 1894, Tate Britain, London, U.K., from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=58462 [retrieved July 24, 2025]. Original source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/oxfordshire_church_photos/413448324 - Martin Beek.
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