And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
(John 3:13-16).
The story of the rich young ruler is recorded in three of the four gospels. The Gospel of Mark says this very enthusiastic gentleman runs to kneel down before Jesus with a question. It is the same question that was asked by a lawyer to trap Jesus in the gospel of Luke.
And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?(Luke 10:26).
This same question has been asked for centuries and debated ever since. What good thing shall I do to inherit eternal life? Is it a question you have asked? Let’s dig in!
And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. (Matthew 19: 16-22).
The Gospel of Luke calls this man a ruler. Mark and Matthew both refer to him as young. His question is sincere. The young man is not playing to the crowd or trying to trick Jesus. He obviously has heard of Jesus and sees a good master. However, he misses seeing the Son of God. In the youthful exuberance of his asking, Jesus shares that only God is good. Mankind, humans, are not.
There is none good but God and the rules of a “good master”, come through Moses. Specifically, Jesus calls out the commandments that pertain to loving your fellow man as yourself. How much do we really love our neighbor? Is it even possible to love others as much as we love ourselves? The young ruler answers quickly that he has kept these commandments. In his mind, he steps in the right direction to be deserving of eternal life.
Jesus proceeds then with a challenge. To sell what the young man has and give to the poor. To disassociate from his possessions, give it all away, and follow Jesus. Mark records Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. (Mark 10:21).
The young man is so close- he could have touched the answer! Jesus loves him. He is not angry at the ask. Jesus is asking this young man to do what He (Jesus) has done. Set aside the glory and honor that is rightfully his to take on the mission of Christ. Jesus shows us this by becoming a man.
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:7-8).
A status a little lower than even the angels. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. (Hebrews 2:9).
The young man leaves sorrowfully. He doesn’t understand. How can he give up everything? That is an awfully big ask. Exactly! Jesus gave it all up for mankind. Why? In obedience to God the Father who loves us that much. God’s gift is eternal life but only through Jesus. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23). It is not possible for us to earn it on our own.
Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
So, Jesus uses this as a teaching moment. It is impossible that anyone would be able to be saved and inherit eternal life by their own actions. God’s grace is truly amazing. To say that the rich shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven was a big statement. Abraham was rich. Joseph was rich. Many of the Old Testament patriarchs were wealthy. The Pharisees taught that being rich was proof of God’s favor and that because of that, the well-off would be the most likely to enter heaven first. To these humble fishermen, if the wealthy cannot get in, what will happen to the poor? And the analogy, a camel through the eye of a needle! Is He talking literally?
Some commentators suggest this “Eye of the Needle” as a narrow gate in Jerusalem that required camels to be unburdened and have their saddles removed before crawling through a narrow gate on their knees. Logistically, it is uncertain why anyone would want to navigate that kind of entrance. That is one train of thought, though no such gate is known to have existed. Most likely, Jesus was using a figure of speech that exaggerates for emphasis what He is trying to teach. This kind of teaching was used with the mote and the plank in the eyes (Matthew 7:3-5) and even with straining at a gnat to swallow a camel (Matthew 23:24).
The point is that although things are impossible for man, nothing is impossible with God. Riches are deceitful. We spend a great deal of our life trying to acquire enough to put us at ease. When we have plenty, we convince ourselves that we have prepared for everything and are in control or able to control situations on our own.
Some verses to ponder:
They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity (Ezekiel 7:19).
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: (Revelation 6:15-16).
Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; (1 Timothy 6:17).
He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. (Matthew 13:12).
Jesus is saying, however, that the amount of money has nothing to do with whether we have eternal life. Much or little is not the issue. The attitude we have toward the money is. Where is money in our priorities? Does having or not having money fool us into self-sufficiency? Does wealth or poverty take away our need for God? These are the important considerations.
Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.
Don’t you just love Peter? He says what we think! Well, what about us then? We have followed you, Jesus. That guy didn’t want to give up his wealth, but we gave up everything! Jesus lovingly says that following Him is never a mistake. Truly no one can outgive God. While here on earth, we are ranked by our wealth, intelligence, authority, philosophies, what area we live in, or who we are related to. We are rarely “first” in such categories. As Christians, the only opinion of us that matters is what God thinks. He supplies favor, blessings, and many benefits we daily fail to realize. Regardless of what you or I or Peter give up here, there is abundance in our eternal life there. Truly more than we can even imagine. Being last on earth, in the eyes of man, is no big deal. So stop worrying about that and trust the Way. The rewards of Heaven will never disappoint. The only good thing we must do to have eternal life is believing on Jesus Christ. Trust Him.
Thank you for studying with us! God bless!