A story about a wealthy young ruler.
In Mark 10:17 we come across an intriguing story of Jesus' encounter with a wealthy young ruler. Three different gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, record this story. Matthew is the one who tells us that the man was young. Luke is the one who tells us that he was a ruler. But all three gospels mention his wealth.
There is something corrupting about all these things. When you are young, you can be so passionate and idealistic. Young people can go after things with such zeal and ambition. Think about how consumed young people become these days with their sports, their academics, mastering a piece of technology, perfecting their appearance, playing an instrument, or even playing video games. Young people have a tendency to immerse themselves in an activity. Jesus is about to meet a young man who immersed himself in religion. This was a young man who was really, really good at being religious, and excelled, as measured by his own standards.
Luke mentions that he was a ruler. He was a young person of status and power, accustomed to getting what he wanted. Does this not describe a lot of young people these days? Does it not describe a lot of older adults? Are we not all a bit presumptuous at times? Do we feel a bit entitled? Do we feel that it's our right to simply demand whatever we want of others? That's not a young-old thing. That's a people thing. It's an ugly attitude. It's an exploitive attitude. "I've earned it. I deserve it. It's mine because I have power to take it and power to demand it." When we feel powerful, we tend to take people for granted and abuse them. Ruling over others is a result of the curse on Adam and Eve. God's nature is that of a servant.
And of course, all three gospels mention that he had great wealth. This past week I was reading about a lady who was studying chimpanzees. Normally, chimpanzees are rather docile and cooperative. They climb around, eat their bananas, and life is peachy. But when researchers introduced a surplus of bananas into the chimps' environment, their behavior changed radically. They became contentious. The chimps became domineering, chasing off the weak. And the weaker chimps would watch at a distance, coveting the bananas, and begging.
Wealth was toxic to the rich young ruler.
Wealth is toxic. Consider James 4:1-2 (NIV) which says, "What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God."
And this is the fundamental issue with the rich young ruler. His relationships are suffering because of his utter self-sufficiency. He doesn't need others. He doesn't even need God. He's self-made. He's powerful. He's got enough bananas to feed an entire community of chimps, but is keeping them all for himself. And on top of all this greed, he believes that he is righteous, even though he is greedy.
In Mark 10:17 (NIV) we're told that he runs up to Jesus and falls on his knees saying, " 'Good teacher,' he asked, 'what must I do to inherit eternal life?' " So on the one hand, he is barging into Jesus' presence, with a full head of steam, and yet he's putting on this grandiose, and rather awkward, display of respect. He was kneeling, trying to flatter Jesus by saying, "Good teacher..." He's a bit insincere. He wants something. At this point, you can imagine the disciples muttering under their breath, "This ought to be interesting."
The first thing Jesus does is to ask him a question. Mark 10:18 (NIV) says, " 'Why do you call me good? Jesus answered. No one is good-- except God alone." Don't misunderstand Jesus' question here. He's quoting one of the foundational teachings of all Judaism-- that God alone is good. And if that is true, the young ruler must surely believe the opposite to be true too. He must believe that, as Paul says in Romans 3:10-12 (NIV), "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one."
The rich young ruler lacked humility. He was proud and self-sufficient. He might have said, "What do I need to do to inherit eternal life? I don't need it given to me. I can seize it for myself. I am powerful, I have the means, and I am young and ambitious enough to attain it. Just tell me what to do."
Jesus instructed the rich young ruler to obey the commandments.
In Mathew's gospel, in Matthew 19:17-18 (NIV) Jesus next tells the man, " 'If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.' 'Which ones?' the man (the rich young ruler) inquired." You might imagine him thinking, "Which ones? I'm good!"
But notice how Jesus answers in Mark 10:19 (NIV). "You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother."
Let me ask you, how many commandments are there in the ten commandments? Now look at this verse. How many commandments are in this verse? And why does Jesus only mention six? And what do all six of these six commandments have in common? Why does Jesus only mention the commandments having to do with loving your neighbor like you love yourself?
Let me ask one more question. Have you ever seen the phrase, "Do not defraud" in any listing of the ten commandments? Instead of saying, "Do not covet", Jesus instead mentions a more specific application of this command, "Do not defraud." The rich young ruler immediately picks up on this! Notice how he changes his tune in Mark 10:20 (NIV). " 'Teacher,' (not good teacher, just teacher) he declared, 'all these I have kept since I was a boy.' "
Now one of two things is happening here. Either the rich young ruler is self-deceived, or he's flat out lying! It's kind of like that old joke when you ask someone, "Have you ever broken one of the ten commandments? No. Well you just did. You just lied."
It is hard for us to love like Jesus loved others.
All this didn't matter to Jesus. Mark 10:21 (NIV) says, "Jesus looked at him and loved him." I am not sure who it is harder to love. Is it the person who is begging, and needy, and victimized, and miserly, and marginalized, and outcast? Or is it the person who defrauds, and exploits, and quarrels, and fights, and demands, and hoards, and is proud and self-sufficient? In the gospel of Mark Jesus loved both the weak and the powerful, the poor and the rich, those of low standing and those of status. Jesus never put this man in his place. Instead, he's trying to break this man and bring him to repentance!
Of course, sometimes we never get the point. In Mark 10:21 (NIV) it says, "Jesus 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.' "
Let me put this different terms. Stop hoarding all the bananas! Stop defrauding your fellow chimps of the things that were intended for the whole community! Stop causing your fellow chimps to covet your banana stash from a distance! Stop making your fellow chimps beg, fight, and quarrel. Stop chasing them off to the fringes of your community!
Did you know that we have homeless people in Springfield living in tents in the woods in various locations around Springfield? Do you realize there are two, three, and even four families living on top of one another in tiny houses a fraction of the size of the mansions most of us live in? I was in a home about a month ago that had a dozen high school and college-aged kids living in different rooms in wretched conditions. Do you realize that every ministry in town that is trying to address the needs of the poor is left begging for bananas, while we stock our cupboards, closets, drawers, cabinets, garages, storage units, and second homes full of stuff?
No, we cannot inherit eternal life by giving away our bananas. No matter what, we'll always come up lacking at least one thing. Yet one thing we can do is to store up some eternal treasures. We can make some eternal deposits that will net us a hundred-fold return on investment, guaranteed not by the FDIC, but by God himself.
It takes incredible faith to give of our wealth.
It takes incredible faith to give away our bananas. It requires that we trust in God, and not in power, not in status, not in wealth, not in our youthful vitality, not in ambition, and not in what is material and seen. But to truly trust in God. It takes faith to give!
Mark 10:22 (NIV) tells us, "At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth." Not a single one of us should judge the this rich young ruler-- because in so doing we're really judging ourselves. You see, God's expectation for our generosity and compassion and goodness and faith far exceeds anything we'd ever demand of ourselves!
Mark 10:23-25 (NIV) continues, "Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, 'How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, 'Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.' "
Why is this true? Because we cannot let go of this illusion of self-righteousness and self-sufficiency, and trust God with our wealth!
Mark 10:26-31 (NIV) finishes the story. "The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, 'Who then can be saved?' Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.' Peter said to him, 'We have left everything to follow you!' 'I tell you the truth,' Jesus replied, 'no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields-- and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.' "
Love for others is what the rich young ruler lacked.
I told you earlier that Jesus' motive was love. Love for others was the one thing the rich younger ruler lacked. So Jesus looked at him and loved him. This is our calling as Christ's disciples. It's to love others with generosity and in faith. And to love, not out of some misguided notion of earning our salvation. Because we cannot earn our salvation, yet with God's help we can inherit eternal life. But we're called to love just as Christ loves us. We are called to serve just as Christ served. Not jockeying to be first, but willingly becoming last. Jesus was the servant of all. And notice Christ's promise in Mark 10:29, that you will not fail to receive a hundred times as much.
Generosity is not about earning salvation. It's about being a conduit of God's goodness, love, and compassion for all people.