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Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to Him and said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it."
Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'" And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth." So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich. And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For 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." And those who heard it said, "Who then can be saved?" But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."
Then Peter said, "See, we have left all and followed You." So He said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life."
- Luke 18:15-30
Yesterday, we read that Jesus spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.' And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to Him and said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it." My study bible tells us that infants are the standard of faith by which adults receive the kingdom of God, and not the other way around. It quotes Theophylact: "A little child is not arrogant, he does not despise anyone, he is innocent and guileless. He does not inflate himself in the presence of important people, nor withdraw from those in sorrows. Instead, he lives in complete simplicity." We might also understand this teaching to the disciples as yet another admonition to humility, to how they are to guide His Church after He is no longer in the flesh.
Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'" The first thing we notice about today's reading is that Jesus is speaking to a "ruler," a person of power and stature in the Jewish society. Jesus first refers to the only good -- that is God; and then the Law, affirming its righteousness.
And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth." So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." Here's the gospel message, that the kingdom is worth everything we have, and that whatever we have in this world is at the disposal of the kingdom in our faith. "Follow Me" is the command that teaches us how to be truly free, how to enter into that kingdom. For this man to sell all that he has and to distribute to the poor is to accept the great wealth of the kingdom, to exchange one life for another. It's a call to a radical commitment.
But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich. And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For 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." And those who heard it said, "Who then can be saved?" But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God." My study bible tells us that to be perfect, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ. It says, "Nothing is gained unless this sacrifice is given freely. The specifics of how one follows Christ will be different for each person. Because wealth had such a grip on this rich man, his only hope was to sell and give away all his possessions. St. John Chrysostom tells us that giving away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions here; following Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling." But the things which are impossible with men are possible with God: God gives us a way to let go of even the things we cherish most, in order to find a greater life in Christ, real freedom and true riches.
Then Peter said, "See, we have left all and followed You." So He said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life." Peter affirms the commitment to Christ that these disciples have made. And Jesus affirms a kind of exchange: one kind of treasure for another. There are others whose commands from Christ were not to "leave all." But everything in our lives is put in His service, nevertheless.
It's important to consider the attitude toward wealth in the Gospels. For Jesus' purposes, wealth is something we spend far too much time thinking about, chasing after, worrying about, spending endless anxiety upon, and indeed, putting first before all else. Instead, Jesus repeatedly asks us to cultivate an attitude of what we might call detachment; that is, something else has to come first, and we can't do that unless we consciously make and affirm the choice to do so, with God's help. That "something else" is the kingdom of God, its righteousness, His commands for us, His love. The far greater wealth is the treasure of the Kingdom. I think it's important to note that there are wealthy men in the Gospels; men who are both wealthy and hold powerful positions, and that these men serve the Kingdom in their own way and are considered righteous. Joseph of Arimathea was a wealthy member of the Council who donated an unused tomb (something quite expensive and rare) for Christ's burial. He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body, an extremely courageous thing to do. Nicodemus, a Pharisee, is a disciple who studies with Christ (to whom He taught about baptism and the Spirit), and who sought to defend Him before the Sanhedrin. There are women of obvious means who travel with Jesus and, we're told, support His ministry out of their own means. All of this would indicate that Christ's purpose in telling the rich ruler to give away what he had to the poor wasn't a command for everyone, but specifically given to this particular man for his needs, as my study bible suggests. So, we have to conclude that it's not wealth in and of itself that is the problem here. The problem is our attitude to it, and how it gets in the way of following Christ. Really, if we look at the disciples, and Peter's comment that they have left all behind to follow Him, what we see is that even the things we treasure most in life must come second to that commitment. Whatever we have, whether that be wealth, or talents, or gifts of any kind, our intelligence, our love, all of these things are in service to Christ, at His disposal, and that means shared in the ways He teaches us to share. There's just such a far greater plan for us than anything that we could consider for ourselves. We don't know what this rich ruler was capable of becoming as a committed disciple of Christ. We don't know what possibilities are inherent for ourselves in a life fully devoted to Christ. But we do understand that all things work to the good if our heart is committed to Christ, that every good gift we have is from above to begin with, that we are all stewards of what we have and are taught to be good ones. Let us remember that there is a Kingdom to be made manifest in this world; it's a mystical reality in which we can participate, and put everything we have in its service. That includes all our ties, whatever it is we cherish most, and however we -- each one -- are called to serve. Let us keep in mind today's teaching on the "little ones." So often the poor and humble, which may include anyone in need, are likened to dependent children. Let us remember His love and commands to care for them! We may not know of ourselves the best way to put any of this into practice properly, but the things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
