A wealthy man approaches Jesus and asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus asks if he has kept the laws. “Yes, ever since I was a child,” replies the man. The man here acknowledges that following the law (see all my previous posts about rule-following) does not give him assurance of eternal life. Jesus sees that. He loves him.
So what is the roadblock in the way of the man from the assurance of Life? Jesus sees the symptoms. This man cannot live a life with God because his wealth occupies too great a part of his life. He needs to focus first on God. Remember Jesus’ two “commandments.” First love God, then love other humans. It’s very simple, but very hard to do. For this man, there was a roadblock to living with God. He needed to put God first, his wealth second. He could not do that.
This passage is often rationalized these days. We in the West are wealthy beyond the dreams of ancient (and not so ancient) people. We know from other stories in the Bible that mere wealth is not the stumbling block. But having wealth–many things, money, possessions–can occupy too much of our time and attention. We need to remember where our attention needs to be.
Now, I’m preaching in that last paragraph. But, I’m a very busy person. I’m trying to build a business. Traveling much (today, it’s Dallas, last week Detroit, before that Phoenix, before that Los Angeles…). When I have much to do, it’s hard to remember my time with God at the beginning of the day. I’m sure that it’s similar for many. We have much to do, livings to earn, money to invest, shopping for more things to do. And so on. The real question is how do we make an appointment for ourselves to be quiet, alone with God, focus on eternal things?
This man? He couldn’t. He went away sad. Outsiders would think he’s perfect from the way he lives his life. But inside, he just can’t open a space to live with God. How about me? How about you?
Tags: Christianity, lifestyle, Spirituality
Faith Venture 
Leave a comment