Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30
Jesus has just finished blessing the children. A man (the word is One, but Jesus refers to him as "he" later) comes to Jesus and asks what virtuous thing he can do to earn eternal life. Jesus points him immediately to God, who alone is good. But if he really wants a place to start, keep the commandments. The man says which ones? Jesus lists 6 of the 10 commandments. The man says Yes! I've done that! Jesus says then the next step towards abundant life is to sell what you have and follow Him. The man was sad because he had a lot and wasn't willing to take the next step. The disciples were struck by Jesus' explanation of the difficulty a wealthy person has getting to heaven, and asked then who CAN be saved? Jesus says men are powerless to make these decisions on their own, but God is powerful to save. Peter is quick to point out that THEY have all given up everything to follow Jesus. Jesus confirms that this sacrifice will be richly rewarded, but the love of service, not the reward, should be the motivation.
Jesus lists 5 of the ten commandments, leaving out 'You shall have no others gods before me'; 'You shall not make idols'; 'You shall not take the name of the Lord in vain'; and 'Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy'. The 5 commandments Jesus lists are concerning behavior to other people--social common sense commandments. The young man (or ruler as Luke calls him) is an upstanding citizen and proudly marks them off of his list. Jesus, knowing that would be the case, says Ok that's a good life. Now to take the next step to abundant life that leads to eternal life, the treasures on earth have to mean less than the treasures in heaven. The man has prided himself in all he's done and all he possesses. His treasures on earth mean more to him after all. He's been faithful in little, but when Jesus invites him to be faithful in much, he walks away. (Luke 16:10-13) His power was in himself, which is no power at all. He traded first in this life for last in eternity.
Don't we get so frustrated with this man? He's kneeling at the feet of Jesus HIMSELF, and gets up and walks away because it's too much. We would never do such a thing, right? But I do. And I'm sure you do, too. Because we are human and we want what we want. We want to pick and choose what we obey and what we overlook. The commandments are whole. We can't just love God and mistreat people. We can't rightly love people without the power of God. 99% obedience equals 0% obedience. Sometimes it may seem too much. But that's the sacrifice Jesus is calling us to. I am changed by Mark 10:21 "And Jesus looking at him, loved him..." This is the same word used in John 3:16 "For God so loved the world..." May the love of Christ be our inspiration; may the commandments of Christ be our motivation; and may eternal riches, instead of earthly riches, be our destination. Bind my wandering heart.
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