Sunday School@Home – The of the Rich Fool

Lesson Background This lesson is based on one of the many recorded of . Parables are sometimes seen as moral tales like fables but they have much more to offer than a simple lesson of right and wrong. The parable of rich fool speaks to greed, self-concern and lack of compassion and sharing.

Lesson Plan Read/Paraphrase: Jesus was a great teacher. He told stories using familiar objects and activities that the listeners of his day could understand. He sometimes told stories called parables. Today we are going to read and discuss The Parable of the Rich Fool.

Younger children – Read/Paraphrase the children’s Bible version of our parable. It is at the end of this email. We are using the text from The Read-Aloud Bible Stories by Ella K. Lindvall for this lesson. This parable does not appear in our usual Milton Bible.

Grades 1,2 – Show the children :13-21 in an adult Bible. Read/Paraphrase the story from the children’s Bible at the end of this email. Share: Jesus told this parable to the people of his time long ago. These people would understand being rich because as a farmer you were good at growing wheat and having much of this crop to store. Ask: Do you like this parable? What did the farmer do well? What are somethings the farmer did not think about? Do you think building bigger barns was a good idea? What are some other things the farmer could have done with his wheat? Share: We all have choices about how we use our blessings. In the time of Jesus, good wheat crops were a great blessing. Wheat was used to make bread, a major part of the diet of the people. In our time having money is one blessing. Ask: What are other blessings we have? From whom do our blessings come? Why wasn’t the farmer a friend of God? How could the farmer have become a friend of God? What did Jesus teach about sharing? Grades 3,4,5 – Have the children find and read Luke 12:13-21 in an adult Bible. (Older siblings could read the children’s Bible version to younger children.) Share: Jesus told this parable to the people of his time long ago. These people would understand being rich because you were good at growing wheat and having much of this crop to store. This is a story about values and actions that reflect our faith in God and our following the teachings of Jesus. Ask: What are your thoughts about this story? Why do you think Jesus told this parable? Why do you think it is called The Parable of the Rich Fool? What do you save and store? What else might you do with your savings? What does the word compassion mean? Did the farmer have compassion for the people of his community? How might compassion have changed his choices?

Activity Have a family meeting to discuss ways you might share your blessings as a family. What extra things do you have? Where do you store these things? What could you do with these to help others? Who are the others who need our help? Who could your family have compassion for, share with, and pray for now? Make a list of actions your family could take and begin!

Closing Dear God, We give you thanks for our blessings. We pray to remember that all of our blessings come from you. We pray to think of other people, to imagine their difficulties, and to share with them as your son, Jesus, asked. We give thanks for your guidance in all things. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen

The Parable of The Rich Fool from the Read-Aloud Bible Stories by Ella K. Lindvall Luke 12:16-21

One day Jesus told a story. This I what he said:

Once upon a time there was a farmer. He had a big garden. Lots of wheat plants grew in his garden. He had many helpers. They all worked for him. He had a nice house. He had many pennies.

Now, God gave him his garden. But the farmer didn’t think about that. God gave him his helpers. But the farmer didn’t think about that. God gave him his house. But the farmer didn’t think about that. God gave him his pennies. But the farmer didn’t think about that.

One day he said, “Look at my big garden. Look at all my wheat plants. It is time to cut down the wheat. But where shall I put it? My barns are too little.” The farmer thought and thought and thought. He said, “I know! I will tear down my barns. I will build bigger barns. Then I will have room for all my wheat.” The farmer was still thinking. He said, “And THEN I will not work anymore. I will eat. I will drink. I will play every day for a long, long time.”

But the farmer would not live a long, long time. He didn’t think about that. Somebody else would get the things in his barns. He didn’t think about that. He had many things, but he was not one of God’s friends. He didn’t think about that. He was a foolish, foolish farmer.