Luke 12:14

In order to teach us how little we should care about worldly affairs and occupy ourselves with earthly things, the Lord sends away from Himself the one who asked Him to settle the division of a paternal inheritance, and therefore says: "Who made Me a …

As these two brothers were contending concerning the division of their paternal inheritance, it follows, that one meant to defraud the other; but our Lord teaches us that we ought not to be set on earthly things, and rebukes him that called Him to the division of inheritance; as it follows, And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?

And since, as Bede says in the Gloss, "Christ is not the God of dissension, but of peace and unity," therefore he refutes the aforesaid petition, when he adds: But he said to him, namely Jesus: Man, who appointed me a judge or a divider …

Note, Jesus Christ was no usurper; he took no honour, no power, to himself, but what was given him, Heb. v. 5 . Whatever he did, he could tell by what authority he did it, and who gave him that authority. Now this shows us what is the nature and constitution of Christ's kingdom.

And he said unto him, man,....

A judge - Without some judgment given in the case, no division could be made; therefore Jesus added the word judge. Pearce. A minister of Christ ought not to concern himself with secular affairs, any farther than charity and the order of discipline require it. Our Lord could have decided this difference in a moment; but the example of a perfect disengagement from worldly things was more necessary for the ministers of his Church than that of a charity applying itself to temporal concerns.

The passage we have now read, affords a singular instance of man's readiness to bring the things of this world into the midst of his religion. We are told that a certain hearer of our Lord asked Him to assist him about his temporal affairs. "Master," he said, "speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me." He probably had some vague idea that Jesus was going to set up a kingdom in this world, and to reign upon earth. He resolves to make an early application about his own financial matters.

The influence of religious teachers in the external relations of life has ever been immense, when only the INDIRECT effect of their teaching; but whenever they intermeddle DIRECTLY with secular and political matters, the spell of that influence is broken.

The passage we have now read, affords a singular instance of man's readiness to bring the things of this world into the midst of his religion. We are told that a certain hearer of our Lord asked Him to assist him about his temporal affairs. "Master," he said, "speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me." He probably had some vague idea that Jesus was going to set up a kingdom in this world, and to reign upon earth. He resolves to make an early application about his own financial matters. He entreats our Lord's arbitration about his earthly inheritance. Other of Christ's hearers might be thinking of a portion in the world to come—but this man was one whose chief thoughts evidently ran upon this present life. How many hearers of the Gospel are just like this man! How many are incessantly planning and scheming about the things of time—even under the very sound of the things of eternity! The natural heart of man is always the same. Even the preaching of Christ, did not arrest the attention of all His hearers. The minister of Christ in the present day, must never be surprised to see worldliness and inattention in the midst of his congregation. The servant must not expect his sermons to be more valued than his Master's. Let us mark in these verses—the solemn warning which our Lord pronounces against covetousness. "He said unto them: Take heed and beware of covetousness." It would be vain to dogmatically decide which is the most common sin in the world. It would be safe to say that there is none, at any rate, to which the heart is more prone—than covetousness. It was this sin which helped to cast down the angels who fell. They were not content with their first estate. They coveted something better. It was this sin which helped to drive Adam and Eve out of paradise, and bring death and damnation into the world.

Who made me a judge? - It is not my business to settle controversies of this kind. They are to be settled by the magistrate. Jesus came for another purpose - to preach the gospel, and so to bring people to “a willingness to do” right. Civil affairs are to be left to the magistrate. There is no doubt that Jesus “could” have told him what was right in this case, but then it would have been interfering with the proper office of the magistrates; it might have led him into controversy with the Jews; and it was, besides, evidently apart from the proper business of his life. We may remark, also, that the appropriate business of ministers of the gospel is to attend to spiritual concerns. They should have little to do with the temporal matters of the people. If they can “persuade men” who are at variance to be reconciled, it is right; but they have no power to take the place of a magistrate, and to settle contentions in a legal way.