Jesus had just talked about the need to have
childlike nature to experience the effect of the Kingdom of heaven. What Jesus
was referring to was about coming under the sovereign rule of God. Childlike trust
and dependence on God are certainly needful to entering that realm of God’s
rule. What we see in these verses is not a man who was living a life trusting and
depending on God, but in himself and his riches. Matthew tells us that he owned
many property, implying that he was wealthy. From the way he said that he had
kept the commandment regarding his relationship with man, we know he was
essentially a good person. He must have been listening to Jesus and was impressed
with the moral excellence the Lord had presented and wanted to go for it.
He came to Jesus addressing Him as teacher and
asking Him how he could have eternal life. He probably expected Jesus to
prescribe some steps for him to follow. Having eternal life is not about following
a program. It is about following a person, the Lord Jesus. His response to him
was like pouring cold water over his enthusiasm. But He wasn’t. He was seeking
to wake him up to the spiritual realities. Jesus first asked him a question, “Why
are you asking me about what is good?” Then He followed-up by saying there is only
One who is good. Essentially Jesus was redirecting his perception. He was
looking at doing good things to obtain eternal life. Jesus wanted him to see
that it was not doing the good things that He needed to gain eternal life. It
is knowing God, the only One who is good that he could experience eternal life.
Jesus continued by telling him to keep the
commandments, referring to the Ten Commandments given through Moses. Elsewhere,
Jesus had summarised it to two – you shall love the Lord with all your heart,
and soul, and mind; and you shall love your neighbour as yourself. Notice that
when the man asked Jesus which one he should do, the Lord only pointed him to those
that had to do with loving his neighbours. So cocksure that he had kept all
that the law requires, he answered saying that he had kept them since his
youth. Then Jesus challenged him, “If you wish to be complete, go and
sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure
in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
Why did Jesus tell him to divest of
all his wealth to follow Him? He knew that despite of all his praiseworthy
piety, he had one major obstacle – his wealth. It was the preoccupation of his
life, so that he was living in continual transgression of the first commandment
– to put God first in his life. His wealth had caused him to shift his trust
from God to materialism. He needed to turn away from his wealth and follow
Jesus. On hearing that, the rich young man went away grieving, for he loved his
wealth more than eternal life that he came seeking for.
The fact is this: having a right perspective
of wealth can be spiritually beneficial. Wealth shows us how hollow material things can
be, but when we handle and use it rightly for Christ, we can enhance our spiritual
growth. As we imagine the rich young man trudging sadly and slowly away, we are
reminded that wealth is deceitful. Remember what Paul told Timothy, “Instruct
those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their
hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all
things to enjoy.”
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