Homily 665 – 24 APE
Holy Transfiguration, Ames, Iowa
November 23, 2025
Epistle:  (221) Ephesians 2:14-22 and (213) Galatians 5:22-6:2
Gospel:  (66) Luke 12:16-21 and (43) Matthew 11:27-30

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God.

Why do we accumulate stuff?

That is the question at the heart of the Gospel reading for today.  The gospel presents an image of a man who is extremely wealthy, so much so that he cannot contain his wealth in the current storehouses he has.

In these days, biblical times, storing one’s harvest was an essential part of farming and cultivating land.  It is important even today, but many times, farmers may sell their harvest, and make storage someone else’s problem.

I don’t know how the economics worked in biblical times, but apparently, storage was the primary issue.  So this guy would have a problem.  An abundant harvest – and nowhere to put any of it.

He commits to a strategy of wealth accumulation.  He’ll build bigger storage bins.  And then, he will retire.  Take his ease.  Eat, drink, and be merry.

Except if you want to make God laugh, share your plans with Him.

God calls this man a fool.

Now this is not a lesson in wealth accumulation, at least not the accumulation we understand it to be in this world.  Because this world only understands planning and self-sufficiency.  What this guy did, in fact.  He was a good steward, according to the world.  He had savings to last for many, many years.

Now imagine that wealth in today’s lifetime.  We have multi-billionaires and soon we will have trillionaires.  There are many ways to illustrate this.  We have a difficult time to conceive of such wealth.

Let’s say, for example, that we have $2,000,000 in the bank earning 5% interest.  That will produce roughly $100,000 per year.  That’s enough to support a pretty comfortable lifestyle in Central Iowa, and in most parts of the US.  That will allow us to spend about $274 per day.  Per calendar day, including weekends.  $1,918 per week.  That’s the equivalent of making $47.95 an hour for 40 hours a week.  Without any effort on our part.

Certainly not a poor living, for sure.  No effort.  Not the wealthiest lifestyle, but one hopefully we can agree on as pretty comfortable.

Now, Iowa State just hired a new president, and he is reported to have a salary of $700,000 per year.  For a 40-hour week, that’s $336.54 per hour.  Maybe they work more than 40 a week, most of us do.  That is still a rate six or seven times what our comfortable standard of living is.

Now, let’s take a guy like Jeff Bezos, who is worth an estimated $200 billion (conservatively).  Forbes magazine lists his wealth at $230 billion, but let’s use $200 billion.  At the same 5% interest, which I guarantee he can get a ton more than that from his investments, but at 5% minimal, he will earn just in interest $10 billion a year.  That is $27,397,260.27 per day.  Every calendar day.

Now, beloved, I’m not trying to pass judgement on Jeff Bezos.  But with the wealth he has now, living only on 5% interest, he earns $1,141,552.51 per hour.  24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  That’s $19,025.88 per minute.  That is $317.10 per second.

And understand this – he can spend $1,000,000 per hour and still not exhaust just the income from this wealth.  $24 million per day, without even touching the principal of his investments.  What is $5 for us, is $114,000 to Jeff Bezos.

Now – what does all that have to do with us?  And more particularly, with this Gospel passage this morning?

The world considers Bezos, and those like him, role-models to be emulated.  To strive to be wealthy like them.  But Christ calls them fools.

Fools!

That’s a really harsh word.  Yet Christ explains it like this.  In the parable, before the plan can be completed, the man will die.  And then to whom will the wealth belong?  People who didn’t work for it.  For sure.

We can disagree about what level of income is sufficient, what level of wealth is sufficient, but we had a saying in the south that you should have just enough wealth to write a check to the undertaker and that you hoped it bounced.

In other words, just enough to meet your needs.

Christ reinforces this in other places, like in the Sermon on the Mount, where He tells us that self-sufficiency is an illusion anyway, that we are provided for by God, and our needs, like those of every single other creature in the creation will be met.

And the rest belongs to others.  The rest belongs to the poor – the truly poor.  The ones who cannot meet their needs.  The homeless, the hungry, the widow, the orphan.

In the kingdom of God, nothing belongs to us.  In the days of the Acts of the Apostles, people actually gave everything they had, and then were given what they needed.  Everything was held in common.

We don’t do that anymore.  What we do today is trust that the individuals involved will use their resources wisely.  And by wisely, we mean in accordance with the kingdom of God.  So what does God tell us?

Use what you need to provide for your needs and those of your family.  Not future needs – today’s needs.  And with the rest?  Be generous.  Give with abandon.  Share with others.  Giving to the Church is part of our needs, by the way.  Supporting the temple with the tithe is part of our need, because the Church, the body of Christ, the worship of God, is essential to our life and our well-being and healing as humans.

But the rest?  It belongs not to us, but to the needy.  The storehouses of God are the stomachs of the poor.  Invest wisely.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God.  Glory to Jesus Christ!