Saturday after the First Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on June 8, 2024 by under
Scripture: St. Luke 12:13-21 (NKJV)
12:13 Then one from 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 an arbitrator over you?” 15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”
16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Devotion
In today’s reading the Lord calls on us to be rich toward God. What does that look like, though? You might ask, “how do I accomplish this very important aspect of the Christian vocation?” This week’s meditations do a good job of presenting what God finds worthy of the faithful believer’s time and energy; they should focus on the Word and the Sacraments. Those holy Means of Grace serve to focus our attention on Jesus Christ as our Redeemer and Lord, who has paid for every one of our wretched sinful acts and thoughts.
The second person of the Holy Trinity humbled Himself to come down in incarnate flesh, born of the Virgin Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit, that He might die an atoning death for all your sins. This is foremost, for contrary to what the world tells you related to earthly temporal value, your Lord teaches: one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses, and you must instead “Take heed and beware of covetousness.” We are rich toward God on account of His Spirit and the faith He creates in us as we cling to our Savior Jesus Christ and all that He commands us!
Collect: O God, the Strength of all them that put their trust in Thee: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because through the weakness of our mortal nature we can do no good thing without Thee, grant us the help of Thy grace, that in keeping Thy commandments we may please Thee, both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
