With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible

 

 Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may 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,' 'Do not defraud,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'  And he answered and said to Him, "Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth."  Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "One thing you lack:  Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me."  But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!"  And the disciples were astonished at His words.  But Jesus answered again and said to them, "Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches 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."  And they were greatly astonished, saying among themselves, "Who then can be saved?"  But Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible."  Then Peter began to say to Him, "See, we have left all and followed You."  So Jesus answered and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel's, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time -- houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions -- and in the age to come, eternal life.  But many who are first will be last, and the last first."

 

- Mark 10:17-31 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus and the disciples departed from Capernaum and came to the region of Judea by the other side (east) of the Jordan.  And multitudes gathered to Him again, and as He was accustomed, He taught them again.  The Pharisees came and asked Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" testing Him.  And He answered and said to them, "What did Moses command you?"  They said, "Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept.  But from the beginning of the creation, God 'made them male and female.'  '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."  In the house His disciples also asked Him again about the same matter.  So He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her.  And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."  Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them.  But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, "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."  And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them.   

Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?"  So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God."  My study Bible notes that this man does not come to test Jesus, but rather to seek advice from one whom he considers to be no more than a good Teacher.  Jesus' response is not to deny that He is God, but rather designed to lead the rich man to this knowledge.  

"You know the commandments:  'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Do not defraud,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'  And he answered and said to Him, "Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth."   My study Bible comments that formal observance of commandments does not make one righteous before God.  It says that this man had an earnest desire for eternal life, and sensed that he still lacked something; therefore, he continues to press Jesus for the answer.  

Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "One thing you lack:  Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me."  But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.  It's very important that Mark tells us that Jesus loved him.  Therefore His next word to the man, to "sell whatever you have and give to the poor," and have treasure in heaven, and to take up the cross, and follow Him, is a product of Christ's love.  In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus tells him to do these things "if you want to be perfect."   To "be perfect," my study Bible comments, one must willing sacrifice all and follow Christ.  Nothing is gained unless this is a sacrifice which is given freely.  The specifics of how one follows Christ will be different for each person, it says.  As wealth had such a great grip on this rich man (and his identity), his only hope was to sell and give away all of his possessions.  In the commentary of St. John Chrysostom on the similar passage in Matthew, he tells us that to give away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions here.  To follow Christ in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling.

Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!"  And the disciples were astonished at His words.  But Jesus answered again and said to them, "Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches 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."  And they were greatly astonished, saying among themselves, "Who then can be saved?"  But Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible."  My study Bible comments that various interpretations have been suggested for the impossible image of a camel going through the eye of a needle.  For example, that the word was not camel, but "rope" (which sounds similar in Aramaic); or that the eye of a needle was a city gate through which a camel might barely squeeze if it were first unloaded of all of its baggage, which symbolizes wealth.  In the Talmud there is the expression "for an elephant to go through the eye of a needle."  Whatever this phrase is referring to, it shows the impossibility of salvation for those who are attached to riches.  This is clearly evidenced, my study Bible says, by the disciples' response, "Who then can be saved?"  But by God's grace, what is impossible for human beings can come to pass.  

Then Peter began to say to Him, "See, we have left all and followed You."  So Jesus answered and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel's, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time -- houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions -- and in the age to come, eternal life.  But many who are first will be last, and the last first."  My study Bible comments that Christ is not commanding believers to divorce spouses and abandon children.  St. John Chrysostom says that this refers to keeping faith under persecution even if it means to lose one's family.  It also means to accept that unbelieving family members may cut off ties because of the believer's faith (see 1 Corinthians 7:12-16).  Believers are promised a hundredfold of houses and relatives not in an earthly sense, but rather in a spiritual sense -- the fathers and mothers of the Church, our brothers and sisters in Christ, and houses of worship and fellowship.

What do possessions mean to this man?  Certainly the disciples understand the great difficulty of salvation as reflected in today's story, as indicated by their question to Jesus, "Who then can be saved?"  The disciples, also, would go on to leave family and possessions behind for the sake of the gospel.  But this young man, whom we're told Jesus loved, is clearly tied to his possessions in a way that makes it impossible for him to think about parting from them.  Perhaps his whole identity, including that of his family and place in society, is likely bound up in those possessions, as we might assume they take the form of inherited wealth and property.  He is sincere, but the sacrifice Christ asks of him is something from which he doesn't want to part, and is dear enough so that he cannot make this decision.   If we look with a close eye on this text, we see that Jesus is reminding the disciples of words that He's said to them before:  "But many who are first will be last, and the last first."   In Monday's reading, we were told that the disciples were disputing among themselves while they were on the road about who would be greatest in the kingdom which they no doubt expect will be established by Jesus as an earthly kingdom of Israel.  Jesus said to them then, ""If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all."   He then went on to vividly illustrate (in Tuesday's reading) the kinds of sacrifices they would have to be willing to make to be truly great in His Kingdom, and as those who will serve His Church as its leaders.  So, with this statement that "many who are first will be last, and the last first," He's reminding them of the sacrifices it takes to fully enter this Kingdom, and what will characterize those who will be "first" in it.  It is the attitude necessary for those who will be its most prominent members, its greatest and "first."  St. Peter adds a sobering statement that seems to take all of the apostles to the recollection of what their lives are now about, that they have left all and followed Him.  But then Jesus promises the "hundredfold" bounty of the Kingdom, the reality of His promise.  For me, this reality has proven true; although disappointed in "earthly" family or life in many ways, I have found great treasure in the Church, including the joy shared with many brothers and sisters and the love between them which is given by Christ, houses of worship numerous and more beautiful than one could have imagined, the glory of the saints and the illuminated beauty of holy books and holy art, and all the richness found in the Church in so many ways, so many languages, so many countless believers.  This is the glory of God and the Kingdom that we are given, but it does come with a responsibility, that we are asked to mature in Christ, to be willing to give up the things He wants us to leave behind, including those things that would seem to define our identity, things even that are precious to us.  As He illustrates in Tuesday's reading by speaking about amputation of hand, or eye, or foot, there are things that seem to be so deeply a part of us that they are inseparable, and yet we must decisively leave them behind.  These include selfish habits, those that hurt others, or in the case of this young man, the wealth that so has him in its grip, especially while he is yet unaware of the great joy to be found in faith in Christ.  Jesus does not minimize the difficulty!  We can be assured that He understands what He asks of each of us, and our own struggles in faith.  And yet, He calls us forward with Him, where all things become possible.