Pastor Dan Mangler's Sunday Sermon

Eat, Drink, and be Merry

Luke 12: 13-21

August 5, 2007

Eat, Drink, and be Merry

I would bet that most of us harbor deep within the longing to eat, drink and be merry. But I am equally confident that even deeper within there is a Christian voice, a Christ-conscience that says, "No; that is a wrongful desire. To eat, drink, and be merry should not be a Christian goal." There is, then, this struggle inside between what our natural self wants and what our Christian self says that we should not want.

Our Christian conscience is quick to quote such stories as the one Jesus tells in this morning's gospel to support its side. After all, didn't the story of the rich man, who wanted to build another barn to hold the abundance of his possessions so that he could take his ease, eat, drink, and be merry, end with the condemnation of Jesus, "Fool. This very night your soul is required of you."?

I have good news for you this morning. Not only is "eat, drink, and be merry" a natural desire, (to eat, drink, and be merry is simply to have one’s physical and emotional needs satisfied) but the fulfillment of these needs is found in the Christian faith.

We have, for too long, misinterpreted Jesus condemnatory exclamation "Fool!" as a judgment on the rich man's longing for food, drink, and merriment. But that was not his sin. It was not that he sought peace and joy in life. It was rather that he sought it in all the wrong places. The seeking of physical security, peace, and joy are not only natural but noble desires. His foolishness was where he looked to find them. He would build bigger barns to hold-his ever growing hoard of possessions, and this, he believed, would give him the security, peace, and joy he sought. He would gain security by his own hand; he would achieve peace by his own efforts; he would find joy among the things of this world. And Jesus said, "Fool". Fool, not for his desires but how he tried to satisfy them. "So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

Does Jesus look down on us from Heaven and pronounce that same judgment? Does he shake his head in disbelief and utter "You fool" as he watches us try to satisfy our need for security, peace, and joy by OUR own hand? Are we, in our own life pursuits, just as earthbound as was the rich man in Jesus' parable? Where is it we turn for security, peace, and joy? In other words, are we, too, barn builders?

Barn builders are those who work 70 or 80 hours a week and come home too tired to play with their children.

Barn builders are so busy seeking security that they never achieve it. Barn builders are those who are so busy chasing the goal to "eat, drink, and be merry", that they have no time to enjoy any of it.

Barn builders seek peace in all the wrong places. The peace we seek reflects the restlessness of our inner being. Barn builders try to quiet that restlessness with achievements and work, the attempt here is to bury restlessness beneath frenzied activity.

Barn builders seek to calm their inner restlessness by Transendental Meditation, EST, and every human potential movement that begins on the coasts and moves inland.

Barn builders seek peace for restless souls at the feet of Indian gurus in the Himalayan mountains asking "What is the meaning of life?".

Barn builders seek merriment in all the wrong places. To make merry is just another way of experiencing joy in life. Barn builders seek their joy from a bottle, a needle, a pill, or a funny smoke.

The foolish barn builders of today make the same mistake the rich barn builder made in Jesus' parable. They entrust the security, peace, and joy they seek to their own efforts. They seek to satisfy their deepest longings on their own limited resources. To spiritual problems they look for earthly answers. They seek in all the wrong places.

What is it that deprives us of enjoyment of life? What stands between us and the life of eating, drinking, and making merry that we desire? Is it that we have all too few possessions? Is it that we don't have job security? Is it that the future is always uncertain? Is it that we might not live long enough to enjoy what we have accumulated? Is it that today our soul might be required of us?

No, it is not these possibilities that ruin our joy, that keep us from eating, drinking, and being merry. It is, rather, as Jesus tells us, the misfortune of not being "rich" toward God. We neglect the most the very source of life’s blessings.

To desire to eat, drink, and be merry - to know security, peace, and joy - these are the essence of life and therefore of heavenly concern. We cannot entrust them to limited earthbound pursuits. Life does not consist of what we possess but by whom we are possessed. It is not our goods that put joy into life; it is the goodness of God. It is found in being rich toward God. As Jesus said, “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.”

In the words of Paul in his letter to the Colossians: "Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth..."

Paul goes on to remind us that, through our baptism, we have died to the old, material way of living and have been born into a new way of life - a life with Christ in God. Our old world has become a new world. Through baptism we die with Christ and are removed from the sphere of elemental spirits and material things. We are raised with Christ to a new and heavenly relationship and are called to focus all our thought and desires upon the kingdom of God, so transforming our whole life, our goals and our needs. In Christ we experience true security, true peace, true joy. In Christ, and at his table, we can indeed eat, drink, and be merry. Such is the promise to those who are rich toward God. Amen.

May the peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.