If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me

Rich Young Man, Armenian Illuminated Manuscript - T'oros Roslin (active 1256-1268) c. 1262, Hromklay.  Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, Maryland

 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them.  But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."  And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.

Now behold, one came and said to Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"  So He said to him, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God.  But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments."  He said to Him, "Which ones?"  Jesus said, " 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not commit adultery.' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love neighbor as yourself.' "  The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"  Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

- Matthew 19:13-22

Yesterday we read that, after Christ's teachings on the "littlest ones" and discipline within the Church (see readings from Friday and Saturday), He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?  So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together; let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them.  But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."  And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.  My study bible suggests the comments of Theophan here, that the disciples rebuked the mothers for bringing little children to Christ both because their manner was "unruly" and because they thought that children "diminished His dignity as Teacher and Master."  It notes that Christ rejects this thinking, and sets little children as an example of those who inherit the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore children are invited -- even as possible example to adults -- to participate in the Kingdom via prayer, worship, baptism, chrismation, and (in many denominations, and especially the Eastern churches) Communion.

Now behold, one came and said to Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"  So He said to him, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God.  But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments."  He said to Him, "Which ones?"  Jesus said, " 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not commit adultery.' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love neighbor as yourself.' "  My study bible comments that this man does not come to test Jesus, but to seek advice from one he considers to be no more than a good Teacher.  Christ's response, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God" is not a denial that He is God, but is rather designed to lead the rich man to his knowledge.

The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"  My study bible notes that formal observance of commandments does not make one righteous before God.  This man has an earnest desire for eternal life, and therefore senses that he still lacks something.  Therefore, he continues to press Jesus for an answer.

Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.  My study bible tells us that to be perfect, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  It adds that this must be given freely; implying that what is compulsory is not truly helpful.  But the specifics of how each one follows Christ will be different for each.  This man is not simply wealthy, but wealth has a deep hold upon him; in some sense he is enslaved to his possessions.  Therefore, his hope is to sell and give away those possessions and be free to follow Christ.  My study bible cites St. John Chrysostom here, who says that giving away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions to the man.  It is a far more difficult calling to follow Christ in all things.

In yesterday's reading and commentary, we discussed the concept of sacrament in the context of marriage.  In today's reading, there is again a hint about the life of sacrament as given in the Church.  This is a concept in this context not so much about the formal mysteries of the Church and its rites, but the meaning behind them.  That is, in a very simple way of putting things, we seek to live a "sacramental" life by turning to God the things of this world, of our lives, of ourselves all these gifts we have been given, and we receive in return a grace conferred of how we will live in relation to all these things.  In other words, we offer ourselves and all we own or have in our control to God, so that they are given back to us for good use with God's purposes.  That's a rather simple way of explanation, and perhaps some very erudite and well-versed theologians might take issue with how I word it, but it is the basis for our lives in Christ, as well as the practices of the Church.  It is a mirror of the Cross and Jesus' Passion, whereby He gave His life for us and through the love of the Father, and God the Father in return through Christ bestows the capacity for eternal life and communion which includes the whole of the faithful in the body of Christ and the gift of the Spirit.  In today's reading, Christ's request of this man with many possessions is not a selfish request, it's not a punishment, it's not even sacrifice for the sake of sacrifice.  Neither is it simply an instruction that he must share what he has with the poor.  (He already follows the commandments -- which include loving neighbor as oneself and presumably commands for practicing charity, and we are given to understand his innate goodness of character and conduct.)   What is asked of this young man is a willful giving up of the things which keep him from fully and freely following Christ.  His possessions act as a kind of stumbling block, something to which he is chained and because of which he is not truly free.  They hold him back from becoming the person he can be, from the promise of eternal life in Christ.  Let us note that by suggesting he sell those possessions and give to the poor, it is not simply helping the poor, but it is also ridding himself of possessions which in a real sense tie him down and make him not free -- Christ does not simply suggest giving them away but even selling them first and then distributing to the poor, a double emphasis on truly parting from the possessions themselves and not even retaining the money to purchase again.  This is for the purpose of being more free to follow Christ, and who knows what would come out of such a life of freedom?  Perhaps he may have become someone once again with wealth to control, perhaps in service to the poor or to the Church or both.  The point is that whatever blessings we have in some sense belong to God in the first place, and through a sacramental life we return those things to God for God's purpose and goals and guidance.  This is also the idea of leading a prayerful life, which places all things in the hands of God, and seek to live life in a way pleasing to God.  We do not know what purpose God will find for us or for the things we have been given in life.  But we do know that in God's hands, and through that transformational power of the Cross, even the hard and difficult things in life may be transformed into blessings and benefits.  A difficult experience of hardship may be returned to us through a prayerful life as compassion for others, an ability to help or even to pray for others as needed.  Think about the power of making such a sacrifice as was asked of this young man put into the hands and leadership of Christ.  When we do that -- and if this man had done so -- there is no telling what might have come out of such a tremendous gesture combined with the potency and help of grace.  Mark's Gospel, in fact, tells us that Jesus loved this man (Mark 10:21); therefore, His subsequent directive to sell all he had and give to the poor was a commandment given in love.  When we face our own lives and take stock, of all that we are, all that we have, and all that we have been given in life -- both the good and the bad -- let us consider how we can free ourselves through putting all of it in the hands of God.  Giving up a debt (possibly in the form of a hurt or sin against us) is also practicing forgiveness -- putting even the harmful things in life in the hands of God.  This is how we are taught to live both through Jesus' example and teachings, and especially in the Cross, in His Passion.  It is what marks us, and also what sets us free.  The example of the children takes us to the humility entailed in such freedom, through the gesture of letting go of all that defines us, so that we find ourselves in Him.