Jan
5
Written by:
HeartlandBaptist
1/5/2012 7:01 PM
Some may recognize this phrase from the story of the prodigal son from the Gospel of Luke in the Bible. The young man in the story asked for his inheritance in advance and took off to the big city where he soon began to have a good time with lots of friends. But when the money ran out, so did his friends and he ended up working for food on a pig farm. We Iowans should be able to relate to that.
The main point of this parable that Jesus told was, of course, a message of forgiveness. The young man eventually “came to himself”, realized his mistakes, returned to his father and repented of his sin and was welcomed home. And though I simply love that primary point of the parable and preach that theme throughout the year at my church, there’s also some very practical lessons concerning our finances in the parable too.
So what can we learn to help us in 2012? I find several things. First, don’t insist on having it all now. The young man in the story couldn’t stand to have something that wasn’t in his pocket. And so instead of allowing his inheritance to accumulate in the family business, he demanded an immediate payout. What a great principle this is, not only for adults but to teach to our children. But sadly, there are a many people who don’t understand that wealth for the future never accumulates in their hand. My wife and I often ask ourselves, ‘Do we really need this now?’. And I’ve taught my two teenagers to wait before making a purchase. After seeing and looking, there needs to be a time of thinking before buying. And many times, my teens will decide a day or two later that they rather save their money than spend it.
I notice secondly, that he was tired of working. He quit his day job, perhaps thinking he’d get by on his wits and charm, not counting the cost (that’s another Bible phrase). I love the Cosby show episode where Bill Cosby, playing Cliff Huxtable gives his son Theo a month’s pay in his hand and then takes almost all of it back, as he cites the expenses of life. At the end, Theo thinks he’s got spending money but is reminded by his dad that he hasn’t allocated any money to eat with yet. There are many people that see any gain in life, as an opportunity to quit working but don’t realize that when you quit adding to your finances, you immediately start to subtract.
Thirdly, he assumed he knew how to manage his money. Thomas Tusser, the English poet said ‘A fool and his money be soon at debate, which after with sorrow, repents him too late’, which is where we get the phrase ‘A fool and his money are soon parted’. A common mistake by many is an assumption that they understand how to handle money. When I teach on financial principles from the Bible, I remind folks that the entire world is after every dollar they have and cares not when they are broke. It is literally the purpose of business, stores, commercials, deals, specials, etc. to get the money in your pocket out of your pocket and into theirs. And they will use shiny things, and any promise that sounds good to part a fool and his money.
And lastly, the young man wanted to party. In fact, it must have been a good one for Jesus said he had a riot. The Greek word translated as “riotous” means there was a good time, undisciplined though it was. The same root word just happens to be used in Proverbs in describing someone who just can’t stay at home but has to be out and about. Of course, we all know that it cost money to be out and about all the time.
Now, fortunately, in this parable, the young man had a wealthy dad to come home to and get a job with. But not everyone has that. And so as we start another year, because I care about our community, I hope you might take away a few lessons or principles that will help you end this coming year a little better off than where you started it. We should all try to be good stewards of what we have for when we are, everyone around us benefits.
Rev. R. A. Abell
Senior Pastor
Heartland Baptist Church