Dear Luke,
I first heard this teaching long
ago, and I don’t know if I can give you a definite answer. I think you’re onto something when you say
that the world is so much bigger than a child and that they have much to
learn—I think we are in the same relation to God’s kingdom. It is so much bigger than we are, and there
is so much we don’t understand. Just
like a child depends on their parent for guidance and teaching, we’re called to
depend on God for leading us into a kingdom life. We can’t make it trying to figure it out on
our own—we need the guidance and love of God.
Also, the kingdom is not something that we do—God has already done the
work. We’re called to receive it, to let
it transform us, to welcome it with the same joy and laughter that are so free
in children. Our adult productivity that
we value so highly will not bring about God’s kingdom—only God can do
that. Our call is to follow God in all
we do, to receive the kingdom with complete trust and to grow into it. That’s what I think it means.
The next story provides a great
contrast about receiving God’s kingdom.
We transition from children receiving it to a rich man who seems to
think that he can earn it. This probably
isn’t going to make Christianity seem any more accessible to you, and it may
well feel like Jesus is simply raising the bar another level, but I would
encourage you to let your reactions form over time in relation to this
story. It’s easy to think that this
story is prescriptive, whereas I interpret it as descriptive—Jesus is
describing how easy it is to let things in our lives interfere with following
him.
Jesus was approached by a rich
ruler who wanted to know what it takes to enter eternal life. I think we can all agree that it is a fair
question, and one that, once heard, would cause us each to lean in a bit closer
to ensure that we heard every word the answer, nodding in agreement and
slinking off to ensure that we were in compliance with whatever the answer was.
Jesus redirects the question before
answering, though. The rich ruler had
called him Good Teacher, a compliment to my ears, but Jesus asks him why he
calls him good when only God is good.
From here, he dives into the question, reminding the ruler of the
commandments that were given to Moses many centuries ago, such as honoring
parents and avoiding things such as murder, adultery and lying.
Here is where the interaction gets
interesting. Most of us, if we are being
honest, would say that we have failed in keeping all of the commandments. Some of them, such as the prohibition against
killing, are easier to keep, while avoiding covetousness towards our neighbors
belongings is much more difficult. The
rich ruler, however, sees this as a chance to show off and tells Jesus (and
probably all those nearby, if this rich man is like the arrogant men in your
previous story!) that he has kept each and every commandment since his
youth. I do not know whether the
statement is true or not, but it’s a bold statement to make. I wonder what his parents would say about it!
Upon hearing this, Jesus replies
that the man should liquidate his estate, selling it all, and take the money
and give it all to the poor. This, Jesus
tells him, will bring about treasure in heaven, and then the man can follow
Jesus.
Dramatic words, Luke. For many Christians, this is the single
toughest teaching of Jesus. We all
wonder if it’s directed at us, too. The
rich ruler didn’t like it any more than I do, and his great wealth caused him
to react with great sadness. It’s
curious that Jesus had answered his question and given him a path to the
eternal life he so desired, but it wasn’t one he was excited to travel.
Jesus saw how sad he was and said,
“It’s so difficult for the rich to enter God’s kingdom. How hard is it? Imagine something very small, like the eye of
a needle. It’s easier for a camel to
pass through there than it is for the rich to enter God’s kingdom.”
Others who were gathered around,
those listening for the path into eternal life, piped up at this comment.
“Who can be saved?”
Jesus indicates in his reply that
obtaining eternal life isn’t about what we can do. He tells the crowd that God can do what
humans cannot.
Peter, though, can’t help but be a
little hurt. After all, the disciples
have left everything to follow Jesus and probably feel like if it’s possible to
earn their way into eternal life, they should be first in line. He reminds Jesus of what they have left
behind to follow him.
You’ll like this answer, Luke. It’s filled with compassion and love, and for
once is easy for us to grasp. Jesus
tells Peter that everyone who has left anything behind in order to follow God
will be richly rewarded not only in eternal life but also in this time.
I don’t know what he meant by
saying that they’d receive even more in their lifetimes, but I do appreciate
Jesus’ affirmation that whatever sacrifices are made for the sake of God will
be rewarded in heaven! It’s something
clear and concise, and I hold on tightly to those teachings in the midst of
what can certainly be complicated.
As for the best way to understand
the rest of the story, I think it’s important to remember that Jesus is
replying to someone who clearly has a lot of pride in his abilities to follow
God perfectly. Jesus seems to be
teaching him, and the crowd, that only God can save us. It’s not something we can earn, which is
exactly what this rich man is trying to do with his arrogant sense of religious
perfection. Jesus sees how his money and
pride is an obstacle that stands between him and God, and he wants the rich man
to set it down so that he’ll have a healthy relationship with God.
Now, does this mean that no one
else will ever need to sell everything they own? Not at all.
There may be many individuals for whom money and pride are major
obstacles between them and God. To each
and every one of them, I think Jesus wants them to set down these things so
they can fully receive God’s grace and love.
But what’s important here, I believe, is allowing God to do a work in
your life, rather than trying to do it yourself. That’s what I take away from the story,
Luke. I hope you don’t see this as
another impediment that might keep you from faith, but rather as a way to
challenge your heart and mind to understand what it means to be completely
committed to following Jesus.
Sincerely,
Theophilus
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