21Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
22At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth."
Mark 10:21-22
The rich young ruler posed a great question to Jesus? He asked him, What shall I do to inherit eternal life? As I read this particular conversation between Christ and the rich young ruler, one thing that really caught my attention is that even though Christ knew the rich young ruler's heart, Jesus still had a love for him. What is particulary sad in this story is that the man walked away grieving. One may wonder why? The man had everything he ever wanted, he was rich, popular, understood the Old Testament, yet he could not pass the ultimate test. This man's possessions meant more to him than a personal relationship with Christ. As I thought about this passage, I wondered if the "stuff" I have carries more value to me than my relationship with Christ. If Christ asked us to give up everything for Him, would we be willing or would we walk away saddened???
Father, I pray that You would forgive me for putting the things of this world in place of my relationship with You. God, I pray that You would become not only the focal point of my life but Lord of my life as well. Teach me to value my relationship with You above anything else I could possibly have or want.
Your Servant
Chris
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Jesus is again in the sights of the Pharisees. They wanted to test Him with the divorce question. Jesus’ answer was based on God’s plan. When two become one, they are no longer two that can be separated. Let not man separate what God has joined. Jesus then blesses the little children and tells the crowd that they need to become as little children to see the Kingdom. The rich young ruler speaks to Jesus about what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus pointed out the one thing that held him back--his riches. This seemed to confound the disciples because the young man had kept all the commandments. Jesus is always leading us closer. He will identify whatever stands in our way from being a fully devoted follower. In this case, the young man had followed the law but his heart was focused on his wealth. Where you heart is you will find your treasure. On the way Jesus tells His disciples for the third time about how He will be taken, beaten and killed. James and John ask Jesus for a special favor. They were still pursuing the first place and highest honor. When the others found out they were indignant with them. Jesus reminds them that the greatest will be the servant of all. Only this time He uses the word slave. We should always be able to determine the greatest among us by the service that they do, not by the lording over that they attempt. Serving is still the code of the Kingdom. Isn’t it amazing how loud a person can get when he knows where help is and does not care what others think? Bartimaeus had the faith and persistence to receive the help he needed. Bartimaeus even threw off his earthly possessions and walked blindly (but with faith) toward Jesus. He was willing to leave everything. What a different story it would have been if the rich young ruler had wanted the Kingdom as much as Bartimaeus had wanted to see. Even though he asked the right question, he would not follow the answer. One made the best choice while the other made a bad choice. We all must wrestle with the same choice.
ReplyDeleteReflective Question ~ Who was the richest in the end – Bartimaeus or the rich young ruler?