Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

He puts them in mind of the spiritual resurrection, to lay aside all manner of corrupt living, and to be fruitful in all godliness and virtue. He shows all degrees of persons their duty.

3 If you then are risen again with Christ, seek those things that are above, where Christ sits on the right hand of God.  ² Set your affection on things that are above, and not on things which are on the earth. ³ For you are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ who is our life shows himself, then shall you also appear with him in glory.

⁵ Mortify therefore your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, unnatural desire, evil desire, and covetousness, which is the worshipping of idols. ⁶ Because of these things, the wrath of God comes on the children of unbelief. ⁷ In these things you walked once, when you lived in them. ⁸ But now put away from you all such things: wrath, fierceness, maliciousness, railing, cursing, and filthy talk out of your mouths. ⁹ Do not lie to one to another. Put off the old man with his works, ¹⁰ and put on the new, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him who made him – ¹¹ where there is neither Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian or Scythian, bond or free: but Christ is all in all things.

¹³ A man in the company said to him, Master, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me. ¹⁴ And he said to him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? ¹⁵ And he said to them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness. For no man’s life stands in the abundance of the things that he possesses.

¹⁶ And he put forth a similitude to them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth fruits plenteously, ¹⁷ and he thought in himself, saying, What should I do, since I have no room to store my fruits? ¹⁸ And he said, This I will do: I will pull down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my fruits and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have goods enough laid up in store for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry! ²⁰ But God said to him, You fool, this night they will call away your soul back from you. Then whose will be those things that you have laid up?

²¹ This is how it is with him who gathers riches, but is not rich in God.