The theme of this fourth week of Lent is possessed by possessions. While the Bible sees wealth and material things as the gifts of God, it also repeatedly warns us that wealth and possessions are potentially idolatrous traps for us. If we are to be faithful to Christ, we simply must take these warnings seriously. If anything, these warnings are all the more necessary in a society like ours, where are continuously told that we always need more and more possessions in order to be happy and fulfilled and that a person’s worth is measured by their wealth and possessions. In such a setting few, if any, of us are immune to the deadly temptation of being possessed by possessions.
The scriptures for this week in Lent all sound this warning. One of the most powerful statements in all of scripture is Psalm 49, which tells us bluntly that we can never buy our way out of death; only the grace of God extended to those who put their trust in him can redeem us from the power of sin and death. Until we truly recognize these twin truths, we will never rightly value world wealth – or the grace of God. In Luke 12:13-24, Jesus focuses first on the deceptive danger of possessions and then upon the faithfulness of God to provide for our needs. His final statement in this passage goes literally to the very heart of this matter: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Then in Luke 18:18-30, the story of the rich young ruler challenges us to face the fact that our attitude toward possessions and wealth also shows our attitude towards God. Finally, James 3:13-4:12 reminds us that our struggles with wealth and possessions is rooted in the idolatry of our own hearts. May these scriptures and our meditations on them this week cause us to seek the grace of God, for it is only as our hearts gripped by his grace and love that we can be freed from being possessed by possessions.