**Some people think being rich means owning a lot of things—when in reality, being “rich” often means a lot of things owning you.**

The signs of wealth are all around us—luxury cars, upscale neighborhoods, designer clothes, vacation homes. But do possessions really make people rich in a way that matters?

It’s hard to keep a Christ-centered perspective on wealth when our culture constantly pressures us to want more, buy more, and accumulate more. But this isn’t just a modern problem. Jesus warned in Luke 12:15, *“Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”*

Those words remind us that there is far more to life than material wealth. In the biblical worldview, money and possessions rank low on the list of what’s truly desirable—not because they have no use, but because they so easily lead to greed, selfishness, and discontent, pulling our hearts away from God.

**When Possessions Start Owning You**

Jesus doesn’t just warn against greed and envy—He gives us the key to a better life: Don’t make your existence all about *“the abundance of possessions,”* or your possessions will start to possess you. Proverbs 23:4–5 puts it plainly: *“Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone…”*

It’s a truth we repeat often because it’s God’s truth: material things can never give you the life your heart truly craves.

C. S. Lewis once said, *“Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth ‘thrown in’: aim at Earth and you get neither.”* That is exactly what Jesus shows us in Luke 12, through “The Parable of the Rich Fool.”

He tells of a wealthy man so obsessed with his possessions that he decides to tear down his storehouses to build bigger ones, telling himself he’ll enjoy a long and relaxing retirement. But before he can carry out his plans, God says, *“You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?”*

Jesus concludes with this warning—and promise: *“This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”*

**What It Means to Be Rich Toward God**

Jesus knows we live in a world full of desirable things. But God created us for more than temporary pleasures and short-lived achievements. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says He has *“set eternity in the human heart.”* That means what we really long for is an abundant life—life with meaning, purpose, and relationships that truly matter. Eternal things. 

Those good things begin with knowing our Creator. To possess a relationship with the Lord is to be filled with His abundance—to be *“rich toward God.”* And when we live in Him, our purpose naturally flows into loving others the way He loves us.

Jesus makes this promise in John 10:9–10: *“I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”*

The abundant life Jesus describes is nott about bigger barns or fuller closets—it is about abiding in Him. In John 15:5, He says, *“Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”*

The tragedy of the Rich Fool isn’t just that his life ended abruptly—it’s that he spent it chasing abundance in all the wrong places.

**A Question for Your Heart**

So let me ask you: What are you depending on to give your life meaning and purpose? Could some of those things be quietly taking God’s place in your heart?

If so, pray for the Lord to uproot those dangerous desires and refocus your attention on Jesus. Because true wealth is not found in what you own—it is found in who owns you. And real abundance is being rooted in Christ.

————————————

*That’s why we created [Rich Toward God](https://www.faithfi.com/shop/rtg)—a 4-week study on the Parable of the Rich Fool. It’s an in-depth look at what it means to live open-handed with your finances, showing how a biblical approach to money transforms more than your bank account—it transforms your heart.*

*You can order your copy or place a bulk order for group study by visiting [FaithFi.com](http://faithfi.com) and clicking [“Shop.”](https://www.faithfi.com/shop)*

FaithFi

Articles

Some people think being rich means owning a lot of things—when in reality, being “rich” often means a lot of things owning you.

VERSES | Sep 11, 2025

How to Find True Wealth

By: Carolyn Calupca

Where Faith Meets Finance

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