NOTES for Luk 12:16-21
The rich man about whom the Lord speaks in today's parable rejoices in an abundant harvest because it gives him the chance not to worry about daily bread or be anxious about his future. This wealth creates the illusion of independence, and it feels as though there is no need to be afraid. At the same time, no room remains at all in the person's heart for the grace-filled experience of dependence on God. The size of the wealth in this case is not so important: you can feel like a rich man dependent on no one on the day of a microscopic paycheck; the only difference is the length of this illusion.
Yet a person's life is still essentially dependent on the Creator, and therefore the Lord calls the attempt to free oneself from this dependence madness. A person who relies on earthly wealth tries to drown out the feeling of dependence on God. If, however, one does not do this, then the experience of knowing that you live only because God so wills can become for you a truly exceptional means of finding humility, and therefore of finding God.