“And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, the man went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” ”
This message in the book of Mark is powerful. At first, the message seems to be an Occupy Wall Street style rebuke of the wealthy. But, the last couple of lines are key. This story could have just as well been about an especially talented person or an especially beautiful person.
The reality is that when we have been given great wealth, beauty, or talents, it is increasingly difficult to be the people we are designed to be. It is our human nature to place our wealth, talents, or beauty as the most important things in our lives. We see this over and over, as humans build themselves on these items. When beauty fades, wealth disappears, or talents are lost, we see those humans fall apart. This happens to Christians and non-Christians alike.
So what is going on here? In Mark we are being told that humans lack the ability to overcome our own self-reliant nature. We may understand and accept how we are supposed to be, but we cannot do it on our own. Just as the man in the story desired to be saved, we too desire to be saved. The man in the story was disheartened by the cost however. Did Jesus really want him to sell everything? Does Jesus want us to sell everything? Probably not. What Jesus wants is for us to value wealth, beauty, or talents so little that we are willing to give them up. There is a difference.
When we put our relationship with God first, then by definition all of these other items are not first. And when we comprehend what has already been done for us, it should be easy to put God first. That being said, we cannot do it alone ... it runs counter to our human nature. Only with a relationship with God, will we have the holy spirit helping us in these matters.
““For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.””