Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me

 

 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 ties more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life."

 

- Luke 18:15–30 

 

On Saturday, 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 comments that infants are the standard of faith by which adults receive the kingdom of God, and not the other way around.  It quotes the commentary of 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." 

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."  My study Bible comments that this young ruler comes to Christ not to test Him, but to seek advice from one he considers no more than a good Teacher.  Jesus' response does not deny that He is God, but is 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,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'"  And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth."   According to my study Bible, normal observance of commandments doesn't make a person righteous before God.  

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.  To be perfect, my study Bible notes, one must willingly sacrifice all follow Christ.  Nothing is gained, it says, unless this sacrifice is given freely.  Importantly, it notes that 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 says that to give away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions here.  To follow Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling. 

 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 there have been various interpretations suggested for this impossible image of a camel going through the eye of a needle.  Some have saig that the word was not camel, but a word that means "rope" in Aramaic; or that the eye of a needle was the name for a city gate so small that a camel might barely squeeze only if it were first unloaded of all its baggage, which symbolizes wealth.  The Talmud uses the expression "for an elephant to go through the eye of a needle."  My study Bible comments that, whatever this phrase refers to, it displays the impossibility of salvation for those who are attached to riches.  It says that this is clearly evidenced by the disciples' response, "Who then can be saved?"  Yet by God's grace, even what is impossible to human beings can come to pass.  

 

  Then Peter said, "See, we have left all and fallowed 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 ties more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life."  My study Bible indicates that Christ is not commanding believers to divorce spouses and abandon children.  According to St. John Chrysostom, it notes, this refers to keeping faith under persecution even if it means to lose one's family.  Moreover, it 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 in a spiritual sense -- the fathers and mothers of the Church, our brothers and sisters in Christ, and houses of worship and fellowship.  

Jesus gives us an image of the Cross in today's reading.  It is the Cross that leads to life, and in teaching this rich young ruler to sell his great possessions, and distribute them to the poor, Jesus is teaching this man about eternal life, and how to find it.  Even though he is perfect in following the commandments, this alone will not give him the eternal life he asks for.  St. Mark's Gospel tells us that, "Jesus, looking at him, loved him" (Mark 10:21) as He gives this advice to sell what he has and give to the poor.  We have come across this idea already several times in Luke's Gospel, regarding this type of exchange in which the good that we do in this world through charitable help to the poor becomes a currency of wealth in the kingdom of God, a treasure in the heavens.  As such, Jesus teaches this rich man the same principle.  But. St. Chrysostom also has an important contribution to make here in this particular case, when he suggests that to give away his possessions is the least of the commands of Christ; and indeed, this is, in the telling of the story, merely the first stepping stone to following Christ for this young ruler.  There's a popular expression one may have heard, that it's not in having possessions that there is danger, but in those possessions having us.  That is, it's more than likely that this man's possessions are linked to his status in his society and even an inherited wealth, for he is a ruler as described in the Gospel.  This may indicate that he was from one of the priestly landowning classes in Jesus' society of the time, a young member of the ruling Council, with inherited wealth being integral to his identity.  Jesus will know what will be required of His followers when He is persecuted and sent to the Cross, and what will come after His Passion.  Therefore, to be truly free to follow Christ, this young ruler would quite likely have to be free enough to leave behind the same things St. Peter and the apostles have, and will go on to leave after Pentecost when the gospel is spread to all the world.  In this quite tangible sense, this young ruler must allow himself to be freed of his great possessions to truly follow Christ in all things.  My study Bible is wise to suggest that the cross of each one of us is separate; each one will find things that bind us and form a stumbling block to following where Christ leads us to go -- and I would venture to say that each one must make that sacrifice in order to be truly free to do so (see John 8:32).  Finally, let us consider the love we're called to with Christ.  This is a love that asks total trust, and the freedom to truly love.  One sacrifices for what one truly loves, whether that be a spouse, a child, a parent who needs care, a friend, or a loved one of any kind.  Christ calls us to a depth of relationship of this type of reliance and of love.  He will go to the Cross out of love for each one of us; our love in return will be given with our own sacrifices from the heart, and in so doing we find ourselves, that our joy may be full.
 

 

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

 

 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on the 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 the 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 commit adultery,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love your 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 

 

On Saturday we read that it came to pass, when Jesus had finished His sayings on mutual correction and forgiveness in the Church, that 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 the 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 the and departed from there.  My study Bible comments that the disciples rebuked the mothers for bringing little children to Christ both because their manner was "unruly" and also because they thought that, according to Theophylact, children "diminished His dignity as Teacher and Master."  Jesus rejects such thinking, and sets little children as an example of those who inherit the kingdom of heaven.  (See also the readings from Wednesday and Thursday of last week regarding "little ones.")  Therefore, my study Bible notes, children are invited -- even as an example to adults -- to participation in the Kingdom through prayer, worship, baptism, chrismation, and 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."   My study Bible comments 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.  Christ's response is not to deny that He is God, but designed to lead this rich man to this knowledge.  

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 commit adultery,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"  The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"  My study Bible notes here that formal observance of commandments does not make one righteous before God.  This man had an earnest desire for eternal life, but sensed that he still lacked something.  So, therefore, he continues to press Jesus for the 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.  In order to be perfect, my study Bible notes, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  There is nothing gained except this sacrifice is freely given.  The specifics of how one will follow Christ, however, will be different for every person.  In this case, wealth had such a grip on this rich young man that his only hope was to sell and give away all his possessions.  According to St. John Chrysostom, giving away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions here.  To follow Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling.  

In tomorrow's reading, we will receive Christ's response and teaching to the disciples regarding this episode of the rich young ruler who seeks eternal life.  In it we will read Jesus' rather astonishing response regarding the pull of wealth, which will astound the disciples.  But for now, let us focus on this young man who comes to Christ with what seems a very earnest seeking for eternal life.  Although the young man does not understand that Christ is divine, he calls Him a good Teacher, which expresses sincerity.  But the great stumbling block here is his possessions, which are great in the description of the Gospel.  Although it is possible to read this passage as if Jesus' pronouncement that the young man must sell all his possessions and give to the poor is something standard and almost flippant, it is really nothing of the kind, as my study Bible and patristic commentary notes.  In Mark's Gospel, we're told that Jesus, "looking at him, loved him," before giving this teaching (see Mark 10:21).  Therefore this teaching to the young man is given by Jesus with love, and what we can understand as the deepest insight for him.  So the emphasis falls here on the type of hold that wealth can have on us, and also that in this case it forms a stumbling block to the young man's salvation, his hope of eternal life for which he asks.  Let us begin by noting that once again Jesus speaks of an exchange here.  He counsels this young man to sell what he has and give to the poor so that he will, instead, have treasure in heaven.  This is an important sense of exchange for each of us in our lives, for it is what taking up our own crosses means.  We make a sacrifice of the things that stand in the way of our own salvation, and in so doing receive the things of the Kingdom, treasure in heaven.  In this case, as my study Bible explains, wealth has such a grip on this person that it will form a stumbling block, and indeed it does, as this young man goes away sorrowful at Christ's teaching, unable to accept it.  We can surmise perhaps that, as we know he is young, his possessions are a hint that he comes from one of the wealthier landowning families, and therefore is connected through family position within the temple and the society.  Therefore his identity is at any rate -- as we can see from his response -- bound up with his wealth.  He considers it too far of a sacrifice for him, even for eternal life.  Possibly Jesus gives him this counsel because in the Church, there will eventually come a time when all of Christ's followers will be persecuted by the religious leadership, and they will necessarily need to make this kind of hard choice to remain in the faith, and part from what they know.  For even the nation, in this sense, will reject Christ at His trial before Pilate.  These are -- or rather they may be for each of us -- the kinds of hard choices that appear for us in following our faith, and therefore taking up our own crosses in order to follow Christ.  These are the sacrifices that come up in a life of faith, where whatever we are asked to sacrifice acts as an attachment and stumbling block to following in faith.  As my study Bible indicates, these things will be different for every person, and can involve just about anything.  But the key, as with this rich young man, is our attachment to them in opposition to the way Christ would ask us to go forward in life toward a deeper communion with Him and the life He offers and asks of us.  In the Bible, we can read of the sacrifices the disciples will undergo themselves as they become apostles and pillars of the Church, having to choose between the deepest ties of earthly life and where they will go as Christ's servants.  Jesus asks of us personal sacrifices in terms of our own habits and proclivities to selfishness as well (see this reading, in which Christ uses the example of amputation necessary to save the whole body).  For these are the ways in which we are transfigured in the image He offers us, to the person He calls us to become more truly as our Lord.  Let us consider how the sacrifices we might be called upon to make draw us more closely to Him and to the life He offers, to treasure in heaven, to more closely following Him.   Note that the young man has already made a great discipline in his life of following the commandments, and this one given by Christ is that which is given if he desires to be perfect.  Perhaps it is an example to us of Christ's teaching, "For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more" (Luke 12:48).  But then again, Christ has asked the disciples, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"    Today's reading suggests that we must each ask ourselves this same question.

 

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

 

 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 your 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 Jesus 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,' 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 cites the commentary of Theophylact, who writes that the disciples rebuked the mothers for bringing little children to Christ both because their manner was "unruly" and because they thought children "diminished His dignity as Teacher and Master."  Christ rejects this thinking, setting little children as an example of those who inherit the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, my study Bible notes, children are invited -- even as an example to adults, to participate in the Kingdom through prayer, worship, baptism, chrismation, and Communion.  In a commentary on a similar passage found at Luke 18:15-17, Theophylact writes about the characteristics of little children which suit the kingdom of heaven: "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."

 

 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."   My study Bible comments that this man does not come to test Jesus, but rather to seek advice from one whom he considers to be simply a good Teacher.  Jesus' response does not deny that He is God, but rather designed to lead the rich young man to this knowledge. 

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 your neighbor as yourself.'"  The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"  To observe the commandments formally does not make one righteous before God, my study Bible explains.  This man had an earnest desire to attain eternal life, and sensed that he still lacked something.  So, he continues to press Christ for the 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 says that to be perfect, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  There is nothing gained unless this sacrifice is freely given.  It notes that the specifics of how one follows Christ will be different for each person.  As wealth had such a grip on this rich man, his only hope was to sell and give away all his possessions.  According to St. John Chrysostom, to give away possessions is the least of Jesus' instructions here.  To follow Christ in all things, he says, is a far greater and more difficult calling.  

In tomorrow's reading, Jesus will continue speaking to the disciples about the statements He makes here to the rich young man.  If we note carefully, he's called a rich young ruler in the subtopic notations of our Bibles, and explicitly called a "ruler" in the text of Luke's version of this event (Luke 18:18).  This tells us that he is from one of the ruling parties of the Council, and it possibly makes him one of the landowning classes which formed the Sadducees, traditional aristocrats of the Jerusalem area.  His vast possessions -- at his time and place -- make it likely that his possessions are connected to inheritance, and thus his family name and place within the society.  So the first thing it might be necessary to consider here is that when we think of the importance of his possessions to him, they are deeply tied in to his identity and social position.  So while we may make a simple conclusion that this man was greedy or selfish, that doesn't seem to be the precise conclusion we should draw.  After all, he has already followed the commandments all of his life, which does not indicate a selfish disposition, or a lazy one.  Moreover, in Mark's Gospel, we're told that  "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'" (Mark 10:21).  It seems unlikely that Mark's text would go out of its way to tell us that Jesus loved this person if he had a defective character that was simply selfish or miserly.  Instead, what we are invited to do here is consider both the difficulty and necessity of what Jesus is teaching to one whom He apparently loved.  In other words, Jesus' word -- this difficult assignment -- comes because Jesus loves this young man, and therefore deeply desires to lead him to salvation.  He is not a lost cause, incapable of repentance or change, but one to whom Jesus would desire to open the kingdom of heaven.  In that light, what we find is that the Gospel is calling us to think about why this is difficult and why it is also necessary.  In yesterday's reading and commentary, we displayed the icon of Christ the Bridegroom, because although the topic was ostensibly marriage and divorce, in the traditional understanding of the Church, marriage asks us for sanctifying sacrifice which helps mold character.  Perhaps we are to see today's teaching by Jesus to this young man in the same light.  He also is asked for a sacrifice in order to come to a deeper communion with Christ, to attain the eternal life he seeks.  Sacrifice is not easy; in fact to one whom Jesus loves, and who is obviously dedicated enough to faith to follow the commandments all of his life, perhaps the next great step is just that much more difficult a sacrifice -- to leave his great possessions, which no doubt carry family ties and position within the society, behind him in order to more fully follow Christ and enter into that Kingdom.  Indeed, we will hear the disciples come to terms with their own sacrifices for following Christ as well -- and Jesus will have something to say about what it is that makes such sacrifices possible.  We might also note here that at the Siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD (within one generation), the entire group of the aristocratic landowning Sadducees would disappear into history, and ponder what this might have meant for this young ruler's future at any rate.  Christ's advice, if taken, would possibly have planted him in the early Church, and stood him in good stead for how to live through such a debacle.  To train one's focus on treasure in heaven rather than treasure on earth would prove no doubt of great value for such circumstances.  At any rate, it was ironically "treasure in heaven" that this rich man still lacked.  But in the meantime, let us stop to consider what we give up in order to become a part of this Kingdom, to participate as deeply as possible in the life of Christ, and to rely upon our faith as we grow in the identity that He offers us instead of what we already know.  In this sense, we are to become like "little children," who follow where Christ would lead them, and we are born again through His guidance and teaching for a new life and new identity. 

 

 

 

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"

 

 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 came to the region of Judea by the other side 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 comments that this man does not come to test Jesus, but instead to seek advice from one whom he considers to be a "good Teacher."  Christ's response does not deny that He is God, but is designed to lead this rich man to such knowledge.

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."  My study Bible suggests 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; thus, 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.   My study Bible states that to be perfect (see Matthew 19:21), one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  There is nothing 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, my study Bible notes, his only hope was to sell and give away all his possessions.  According to St. John Chrysostom, the giving away of possessions are the least of Christ's instructions here; to follow Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling.  Let us note also that Mark's Gospel explicitly tells us that this command was given as Jesus loved him.

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 there are various interpretations that have been suggested for the impossible image of a camel going through the eye of a needle.  One possibility is that the word was not "camel," but one that sounded similar in Aramaic that meant "rope."  Perhaps the eye of a needle was in fact a city gate, through which a camel might barely squeeze if it were first unloaded of all baggage, which symbolizes wealth.  In the Talmud, my study Bible says, there is an expression used "for an elephant to go through the eye of a needle."  Whatever it is to which the phrase refers, it shows the impossibility of salvation when attached to riches.  My study Bible adds that this is clearly evidenced by the disciples' response, "Who then can be saved?"  But with God's grace, even 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 says that Christ does not command believers to divorce spouses and abandon children.  According to St. John Chrysostom, it notes, 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 in a spiritual one.  That is, the fathers and mothers of the Church, our brothers and sisters in Christ, and houses of worship and fellowship.  

Jesus speaks today of what we would immediately term sacrifices.  But He does not do so with the understanding that sacrifice is good for its own sake, or in and of itself.  Rather, in Christ's perspective, there is something far better, infinitely preferable, that is only possible through what we see as sacrifice.  In asking this rich young man, whom we're told that Jesus loved, to sell whatever he has and give to the poor -- and then follow Christ -- He's telling the young man the answer to his question.  He's telling him what he lacked in order to find eternal life.  He's not telling him that he is in some way "bad," neither is He exploiting this young man for some personal, political, or otherwise-motivated reason, and neither is He giving him this advice simply because it would be a good or moral thing to do.  He's telling him how to find the life he wants, because his possessions are actually keeping him from becoming a person who is capable of receiving that eternal life of the Kingdom that he desires.  Effectively, we may say, in accordance with yesterday's reading (above), that Jesus is teaching this young man how he may receive the kingdom of God "as a little child" and in accordance with His teachings.  Let us note carefully here that Jesus addresses His own disciples as "Children," adding, "how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God!"  Note also the word "trust" that Jesus uses here, for this is the root of the word that also indicates "faith" in the Greek of the Bible.    For if we review the perspective we discussed in yesterday's commentary on the attitudes of little children, what we find is the absence of the ways in which money skews our social perspectives, defining worthiness based on cost or material wealth.  Indeed, any attitude of entitlement seems to obscure our capacity to recognize gifts, or the good things others may do for us, even through the love of God, or the love of goodness or generosity.  Possessions mean that we are responsible for them and for their upkeep; the more possessions one has, ostensibly the greater determination of time, attention, and effort must be put into such maintenance.  This, in turn, becomes a part of one's identity.  To be able to give freely and without attachment becomes a part of our capacity to be obedient to God, to help others less fortunate, and particularly to express compassion. We don't know who this rich young man is.  In Luke's version of this story, he's called a "ruler" (Luke 18:18), meaning that he's likely on the ruling Council, and possibly there because of his wealth.  He's young, so there's good reason to assume the wealth is inherited.  Although his intentions are good, he can't see past the possessions enough to give them up (something which would be difficult for any of us!), even for the promise of eternal life.  Moreover, what Christ is teaching here is that His commands are for our good, and there is nothing that should come between those commands and what is best for us.  He warns the disciples, "Our loyalty to Christ must come first.  As St. Chrysostom says, this command isn't the hardest one Christ could give; to follow Him in all things is harder.  And quite possibly, this is the new command necessary specifically for this rich young ruler.  As we see, the rest of the disciples speak of what they have given up to follow Christ, almost as an afterthought or recognition in light of this teaching.  But Jesus assures them that we have far more in our faith, and there we come to a substance we haven't named.  That substance is meaning.  It is beauty, goodness, and truth itself.  The concept of eternal life may be something hard to grasp, but the substance of our souls is not.  If we've got something troubling our conscience, we know that this colors the quality of our lives.  If we have sunk down into growing selfishness, or observed others do so, we can see also what this does to a person's life.  In considering such things, we should keep in mind that what Jesus is trying to do is to save this man's life, to save it for what will bring him a greater joy even than what he has.  Let us think, then, where our own greatest joy might be.  In our heart of hearts, who is the person Christ has created us to be, and to realize in our lives?  If we can help to redeem a world, would it give us gratitude and satisfaction for such a good mission in life, or its accomplishment?  If we give up the responsibility we feel to maintain wealth and position, and pleased Christ instead first, would that make our lives more fulfilled, less anxious, more greatly blessed?  These are the important question to consider.  Perhaps the greatest choice of all is something hidden, and that is the question of our freedom  For in being free to follow Christ, we will find the most thrilling freedom of all to choose, set apart from the demands the world would place upon us.  Let us consider each of these things carefully, and in our prayers commit to Christ and His freedom in our hearts.  For that is how we'll find His commands specifically and personally to us.  Treasure in heaven may sound far away and unknown; but the reality is that it is truly in our hearts, with us and with our faith.

 

 

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

 

 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 your 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 

 

On Saturday we read that Jesus 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 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 cites Theophan's commentary, who says that the disciples rebuked the mothers for bringing little children to Christ both because their manner was "unruly" and because they thought children "diminished His dignity as Teacher and Master."  But Christ rejects this thinking, and He sets little children as an example of those who inherit the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore children are invited -- even as an example to adults -- to participate in the Kingdom through prayer, worship, baptism, chrismation, and Communion.  See also this reading in which Christ gave a little child as an example to the disciples. 

 

 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."   My study Bible says that this an does not come to test Jesus, but to seek advice from one whom he considers to be no more than a good Teacher.  Jesus' response doesn't deny that He is God, but it is designed to lead this rich man to that knowledge.  It is also an expression of humility -- even by God Incarnate.

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 your neighbor as yourself.'  The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"   My study Bible comments that formal observance of commandments does not make one righteous before God.  It notes 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.  

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.  To be perfect, my study Bible says, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  Nothing is gained unless this sacrifice is given freely.  It's important to understand that 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.  To follow Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling.

 

 There are a number of times where Christ emphasizes mercy over sacrifice in the Gospels.  In chapter 9 of Matthew's Gospel, Jesus has called Matthew the tax collector to "Follow Me," and makes him a disciple.  He is later eating in Matthew's home, together with many "tax collectors and sinners."  The Pharisees see this and complain, asking His disciples, "Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"  Jesus replies, quoting from the prophet Hosea, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.   But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.'  For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance" (see Matthew 9:9-13, Hosea 6:6).  So, in the context of His teachings, it is interesting that in today's reading, the rich young man (whom Mark tells us Christ loved) indicates that he has followed the commandments Jesus names all of his life, and asks what he still lacks.  But instead of telling him some other thing to do, a commandment to follow, a kind of good deed to add upon his already good life, Jesus tells him to give something up, to make a sacrifice.  He doesn't really lack anything, but he does need to give something away, and that is the great wealth that is clearly a stumbling block for him, that gets in the way of his relationship to God.  We see this by the fact that he is unwilling to let go of it in order to fully follow Christ's commands.  So, in this case, it is a sacrifice that is called for as something he "lacks."  But it is not sacrifice per se that Christ wants.  What He wants is for this young man, whom He loved, to fully rely on God and the to which He will be called as a disciple of Christ, even before the great wealth with which he is blessed.  Clearly (or so it seems to me) his wealth has a hold on his identity.  Luke tells us that he is a "ruler" (Luke 18:18), indicating a significant position in the society.  Possibly he is among the ruling parties in the temple, a young man whose family inheritance is linked to such a position.   In that case, to give away his wealth to the poor is more than a question of simply making a sacrifice of wealth, but identity is linked to that wealth -- status, and family, and one's place in the culture and society.  What it tells us is a deep and radical truth about Christ, that so often God may ask us to start from "zero," so to speak, from "nothing" in terms of who we are in God's sight, in making us into the people God calls us to become.  So often, as is our inclination, we think we are the ones who want to call the shots to God; we will accept to love God so long as we can have this or that, or retain this thing that particularly is ours, so long as worship fits into our lives in the particular way we want it to.  But a deep calling from God goes deeper than the surface, even more than our nominal identities and the things we think are "sacred" to us, the things that define who we are to ourselves.  This young man's wealth no doubt connects him also to family and relationships deeply structured in the society.  When Jesus gives the example to the disciples of cutting off eye or hand or foot (see this reading) in order to avoid abuse of their power in the future Church over the "little ones," He's speaking figuratively about things they might think are essential to themselves, but which they will have to discard in order to be good stewards and shepherds over His flock.  The "hand" or "eye" or "foot" refers to a type of behavior, such as covetousness, or abuse of power, that must be done away with in order to fulfill their roles He chooses for them.  We don't know the place this young ruler whom Jesus loved would have in His Church as one of His disciples.  But we do know what Christ asks him to give up first in order to be free to follow Him, and that is a tall order.  It proves to be too much for the young man.  The possibilities are seemingly endless for us to speculate on why Christ asks him to do this.  One thing is clear, it would lead to complete dependence upon God for life, for identity, for sustenance, and lay a radical foundation down upon which Christ could build the identity of the disciple.   At any rate, what we should keep in mind os that there are times in our lives when we are asked truly to sacrifice in order to receive our place in Christ's Church, in His economy of salvation.  As a devout Jew, this young man likely already followed every command regarding help to the poor, donation to the temple, and the nominal ways that already existed in which people were called to share wealth.  But Christ calls him here not simply to help the poor, but to make a radical break in his life.  As St. John Chrysostom's commentary on this passage indicates, this is the least of His instructions, the beginning of the call to discipleship, and that each one will be called differently.  In tomorrow's reading, Jesus will expand with a famous phrase regarding the difficulty for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven.  But let us keep in mind the consistency of Christ's teachings.  Everything begins with humility; and for this young man, wealth holds such a grip on who he is that he cannot part with his wealth, even for the eternal life he so desires.  Christ's command gives him a way to become like the "little children" about whom He says, "of such is the kingdom of heaven."   Let us consider the ways in which we might be asked to give up what we think we can't live without, and the life beyond in which we are changed, strengthened, transformed.

 

 

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

 

 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 your 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, following Jesus' teaching on mutual correction and forgiveness (in response to the disciples' question as to who would be greatest in His kingdom), 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 cites the commentary of Theophan, who remarks that the disciples rebuked the mothers for bringing little children to Christ both because their manner was "unruly" and because they thought children "diminished His dignity as Teacher and Master."  But Christ rejects this thinking, and sets the little children as an example of those who inherit the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore children are invited (even as an example to adults) to participate in the Kingdom through prayer, worship, baptism, chrismation, and Communion.  Theophan also writes:  "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."

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."  My study Bible notes that this man doesn't come to test Jesus, but rather to seek advice from a person he considers to be no more than a good Teacher.  Christ's response, it says, does not deny that He is God, but rather is designed to lead the rich man to this knowledge.

 

"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 your neighbor as yourself.'"  The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?" Formal observance of commandments is not sufficient to make one righteous before God, my study Bible says.  But 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.

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 says that to be perfect, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  It says that nothing is gained unless this sacrifice is given freely.  The specifics of how one follows Christ will be different for each person.  As wealth had such a grip on this rich man, his only hope was to sell and give away all his possessions.  St. John Chrysostom comments on this passage that giving away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions here.  to follow Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling.

Today's reading reminds us of Christ's teaching in Matthew 16:25:  "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."  The instructions to the rich young man, whom Mark tells us that Jesus loved (Mark 10:21), constitute an active, embodied way to carry out this teaching.  Jesus is instructing the young man to give away one life (his life of great possessions) for another (the life of following Christ as a disciple).  It is important to note the discussion of this teaching by St. John Chrysostom in his commentary:  first, that these instructions are specific to the spiritual needs of this young man, whose attachment to these possessions is extraordinary; and second, that this first command to sell and give away possessions was the beginning of a life as disciple, and the more difficult challenges would be ahead of him.  Those future difficult challenges no doubt would be those that shaped the construction of the "new life" and new persona to be revealed as disciple, in the same way that we see the character of the disciples -- particularly Peter -- shaped in the Gospels through experience and exposure of the things that need to be challenged and changed.  (See, for example, the story of Peter's denial of Christ:  Matthew 26:31-35, 69-75).  It seems highly likely that this man's "great possessions" had a direct link to his identity, as he is at once young, "very rich," and a ruler (Luke 18:18, 23).  If he were a young man of great wealth, and a ruler, then it is likely his possessions constitute a family inheritance, linked to position as possibly a ruler among those in the temple.  Therefore to give away his possessions is almost quite literally to exchange identity within the broader structure of society, in exchange for an ongoing shaping of new life and identity as a follower of Christ.  We also don't know what would have been in store for this young man whom Jesus loved, as the disciples of Christ in the Gospels are those who would go on to be leaders or "rulers" in the Church, the bishops and pillars who would go out in the world and establish the Church, such as St. Paul, for example, who says of himself that he was born a Roman citizen, educated at the feet of Gamaliel, and was a Pharisee and the son of a Pharisee (Acts 22:3, 28; 23:6).  There are other devoted and courageous followers of Christ who were also Council members and men of great wealth such as Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea.  Each will go on, as recorded in the Gospels and the history of the Church, to exchange their old lives for a new one in Christ, corresponding to a necessary shift in identity, all requiring heroic courage and sacrifice to do so.  As we will read in the next reading, Jesus will use an expression regarding this process that also indicates such great possession can be thought of in terms of baggage and burden, and in a metaphorical context perhaps a great many of us can relate to this understanding of our lives, where we carry so much that might need to be given up, given away, and "sacrificed" in this sense in order to acquire a new identity in service to Christ, our old habits, talents, the particular shape of character given over in exchange to new expression and new life.  Not everyone's life need be such a radical, abrupt shift as that which we witness in the Gospels and the rest of the Bible, but each life may undergo this process of discipleship even in a lifelong, gradual manner, of discarding old burdens no longer necessary or useful in a life devoted to the expression of the love of Christ, or transformed within shaping that new life and new expression of discipleship in a life lived according to His commands.  This young ruler may have become one administering the great possessions of the Church and overseeing many followers, his talents and identity transfigured in Christ -- again, as St. Paul was transformed and transfigured from persecutor of the Church as a Pharisee into the great apostle to the Gentiles he became, and teacher to all he remains through his epistles.  To exchange one life for another may require courage and faith, but such sacrifice eventually becomes filled in exchange for the new life.  We might begin by pursuing one path we thought important, but the influence of our faith in Christ will take us down quite another.  The courage is in not knowing the outcome of that exchange, but we note that Christ promises this rich young ruler treasure in heaven in exchange for his earthly possessions.  We simply do not know what that eventual form of his life as a disciple would have taken, but we do know that Christ loved him, and that he went away sorrowful.  We also know what was to come in Jerusalem within a generation, his possessions and identity as ruler likely to have been swept away in the fury of the terrible siege and destruction of the city and the life of its aristocracy.  So Christ will call us toward something, but to go there we exchange something of the old, likely precious to us, even though we will be better off for the exchange.  Speaking for myself, I can testify that a seeming promise of great possessions was taken from me when I was young, but a life of seeking Christ in exchange has provided back, over time, other wealth.  The loss taught me a kind of detachment that would not have happened without it, and asked me to gain values I would not have found otherwise, and I continue in that journey.  Let us truly be thankful for all that we have, especially through our gracious Lord who loves us, who offered us His life, and offers us our life in Him.  In this understanding, Christ's teaching about the little children applies to all of us:  we begin a new life in Him each as a little child, and turn to Him to teach us who we are and what it is we need to be about.  This beginning can even be a new start each day, each time we pray.

Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

 

 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 comments that infants are the standard of faith by which adults receive the kingdom of God, and not the other way around.  Theophan writes, "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."

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."  My study Bible points out that this young ruler does not come to test Jesus, but to seek advice from one he considers to be no more than a good Teacher.  Christ's full response (in the following verses) does not deny that He is God, but it is designed to lead the rich man to this knowledge.

"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."  My study Bible reminds us that formal observance of commandments does not make one righteous before God.  This man, it says, had an earnest desire for eternal life, and sensed that he still lacked something.  Therefore, he continues to press Jesus for the answer.  Like the Pharisee in the parable Jesus has just told (see above, yesterdays' reading), he already knows the value of the commandments.

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.  To be perfect, my study Bible says, one must willingly sacrifice all follow Christ.  Nothing is gained unless this sacrifice is given freely.  But the specifics of how one follows Christ will be different for each person.  As wealth had such a grip on this rich man, my study Bible says, his only hope was to sell and distribute his possessions.  St. John Chrysostom comments that giving away possessions is the least of Jesus' instructions to this young ruler.  To follow Him in all things is a far greater and more difficult calling.  Note that in Luke's Gospel, Jesus' language reflects the gospel of the kingdom of heaven; in selling all that he has and distributing to the poor, this ruler will have treasure in heaven.

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 various interpretations have been suggested for the impossible image of a camel which goes through the eye of a needle.  One suggestion is that the word was not camel but rather "rope" as they sound alike in Aramaic.  Another is that the eye of a needle was a city gate through which a camel might barely squeeze if it were first unloaded of all its baggage, which symbolizes wealth.  Even the Talmud has an expression "for an elephant to go through the eye of a needle."  Whatever it is that the phrase refers to, it teaches the impossibility of salvation for those who are attached to riches.  This is clearly shown in the response of the disciples, "Who then can be saved?"  But with God's grace, my study Bible says, even what is impossible for human beings can come to pass.

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."  My study Bible points out that Christ is not commanding believers to divorce spouses and abandon children.  According to St. John Chrysostom, this is a reference to keeping faith under persecution even if it means to lose one's family.  It also means to accept that unbelieving family members might cut off ties because of the believer's faith (see 1 Corinthians 7:12-16).  Believers are promised many times more houses and relatives not in an earthly sense, but rather in a spiritual one.  That is, in the many fathers and mothers of the Church, brothers and sisters in Christ, and houses of worship and fellowship.  

There is an entire sense in which our earthly lives are transfigured by faith in Christ which Jesus speaks of here (and which my study Bible explains in its notes and commentary), but which isn't often taught or encountered when one seeks understanding of these verses.  The transfiguration of this man's great material wealth from that of worldly wealth to spiritual wealth is something central to the teaching in this parable.  Not only will he be saved in the sense that he himself would be transfigured through the giving up of his earthly material possessions in selling and distributing to the poor, but his life would also be transfigured within the context of serving and following Christ in the Church.  His wealth would be invested in the kingdom of heaven rather than an earthly kingdom with the rank and status of position that goes with his wealth.  He would work for the spiritual realities Christ brings into the world and contribute to them himself depending on what a life of faith would look like for one of his capabilities and potentials and history.  He would gain an entire population of those with whom he'd associate and call brothers and sisters, and fathers and mothers in the Church whose wisdom could guide and sustain his life with truth and meaning.  To participate in this movement and passion and possibility would be to gain a world of connections and centers of faith, adding to his life with dimensions that simply aren't available to him without this commandment from Christ.  But this young ruler is too attached to his possessions and whatever life or identity goes with his position to find out what that life would be.  Let us understand that what Jesus proposes here to this young man is done so with love.  Mark's Gospel tells us that before giving him this command to sell all that he had, Jesus, looking at him, loved him (see Mark 10:21).  This command is not meant to be punitive, nor to test the young ruler's loyalty, nor is it made for the sake of the Church per se.  Rather, we need to see this command as entirely and deeply therapeutic, offering to him something he desired and otherwise could not have, treasure in heaven and the eternal life of the Kingdom.  Altogether, there is a message here of exchange:  we give up one way of life for another, and in order to gain a magnitude of life and purpose which transfigures our present life in this world.  That's not to say we all leave everything behind in a material sense, but it does mean that we are changed, our lives are changed, and that we are given new direction and a whole host of new considerations and priorities for which to purpose our lives.  St. John Chrysostom comments that to give up his wealth is the least difficult command; to follow Christ in all things is harder.  But without that first step, we don't know where Christ would have led this man into his future.  He is called a ruler in today's text.  We don't know exactly who he was, but clearly his position was one of some authority and standing within the society.  Perhaps he was a ruler in the Temple, a member of a powerful ruling party.  But, if he had followed Christ's instructions, we might know him as an important disciple or early apostle or bishop of the Church.  Let us keep in mind that the beginning of the journey of faith is just the beginning.  This road or way of Christ will continue to transfigure who we are, and build spiritual realities in our lives as we go forward.  This rich young ruler asks Christ, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"   Christ transforms an earthly inheritance into an eternal one.

And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home

 

 He also said to His disciples:  "There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods.  So he called him and said to him, 'What is this I hear about you?  Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.'  Then the steward said within himself, 'What shall I do?  For my master is taking the stewardship away from me.  I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg.  I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.'  So he called every one of his master's debtors to him, and said to the first, 'How much do you owe my master?'  And he said, 'A hundred measures of oil.'  So he said to him, 'Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.'  Then he said to another, 'And how much do you owe?'  So he said, 'A hundred measures of wheat.'  And he said to him, 'Take your bill, and write eighty.'  So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly.  For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.  And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home."

 

- Luke 16:1-9 

 

In yesterday's reading, we were given the parable of the Prodigal Son (or Lost Son), the third parable Jesus told in response to the Pharisees and scribes who criticized Him for receiving and eating with tax collectors and sinners.  Jesus said:   "A certain man had two sons.  And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.'  So he divided to them his livelihood.  And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.  But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want.  Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.  And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.  But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!  I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son.  Make me like one of your hired servants." ' And he arose and came to his father.  But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.  And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.'  But the father said to his servants, 'Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.  And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry, for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'  And they began to be merry.  Now his older son was in the field.  And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.  So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant.  And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the  fatted calf.'  But he was angry and would not go in.  Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him.  So he answered and said to his father, 'Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends.  But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.'  And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.  It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.' "

 

  He also said to His disciples:  "There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods.  So he called him and said to him, 'What is this I hear about you?  Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.'  Then the steward said within himself, 'What shall I do?  For my master is taking the stewardship away from me.  I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg.  I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.'  So he called every one of his master's debtors to him, and said to the first, 'How much do you owe my master?'  And he said, 'A hundred measures of oil.'  So he said to him, 'Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.'  Then he said to another, 'And how much do you owe?'  So he said, 'A hundred measures of wheat.'  And he said to him, 'Take your bill, and write eighty.'  So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly.  For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.  And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home."  My study Bible explains that a steward is responsible for managing his master's property and looking after the welfare of his servants.  The point of this parable is that the unrighteous are better at using money to make friends in the world than believers are at using money to make friends for the Kingdom of God -- which is done by spending it on the needy.  At death (when you fail) the needy will welcome their benefactors into the everlasting home.

 

In today's reading, Jesus turns from His response to the Pharisees and scribes, and gives this parable to His disciples.  Let us recall that He has already given three parables to the Pharisees and scribes in response to their criticism that He receives and dines with tax collectors and other sinners.  Those parables were the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin (in this reading), and that of the Prodigal Son (or Lost Son) in yesterday's reading, above.  The Lost Sheep and Lost Coin speak of the tremendous love and longing of God for those who are "lost" to be returned -- as they belong with all of God's creation restored in the communion of God's love.  The Prodigal or Lost Son spoke of the father's joy at his lost son's return and restoration to the one who loved him -- and that this does not diminish the son who was never lost.  In today's reading, we're given what might seem a perplexing story of a steward by worldly standards, but it is meant to illustrate the principle of mercy and how and why it works.  But this time, it is directed to His followers, and especially to the disciples.  In the context of discipleship, it is a reminder that we all come up short at one time or another.  There is none who is perfect in terms of our own relationship face to face with God, and our own sin.  It is an illustration to those who will represent Him in the world that they must think, when dealing with nominal sinners, of the Master or Lord whom they serve.   We as disciples must learn a proper attitude regarding the blessings we've been given, and how they are used in the world.   In some way, we are not so different from the nominal sinners that we see around ourselves.  We are to use the things of this world to build treasure in heaven, and keep in mind the ultimate reality in which we wish to dwell and to serve, and to bring into the world.  Whatever our blessings are, it is wise to share them prudently and humanely, especially when we do so in service to God, to the kingdom of heaven.  This is a wisdom that declares itself the opposite of selfishness, and at the same time creates an expansive understanding of what our real blessings are.  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches:  "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal" (Matthew 6:19-20).  This is again the same teaching He will give to the rich young ruler who wishes for eternal life and wants to become His disciple (Luke 18:28-23).  In the Sermon on the Plain, here in Luke's Gospel, when Jesus teaches what is known as the Golden Rule, He says, "For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."  Each of these teachings encourages us to understand the depth of possibilities inherent in our own circumstances, that begin with a proper orientation and understanding of the expansive love of God in the first place.  This is not about rewarding bad behavior, or overlooking evil.  But it is a teaching about grounding ourselves in God's overflowing and abundant love, orienting our own outlooks on life and how we use talent, time, and resources in service to the transfiguration of the world.  Jesus gives us the reminder that there is a bigger picture to keep in mind in our lives in this world, and that also must be a part of our choices in dealing with our time and talents and resources.   We are often wealthier than we think in terms of what we can give to others; sometimes all it takes is a word, an attitude, a kindness of heart, an openness to possibilities, a willingness to come to terms.  Self-centeredness is a very limiting outlook on life.   With today's parable, He's also speaking to those who would be His stewards in the world.   He asks us to be good stewards of the goods and wealth with which we're entrusted, and remember that we are part of a much bigger picture, in all that we do in the world.