• The young man wanted to know what Jesus thought was necessary to obtain the life of the age to come (eternal life)
• He was interested in his spiritual condition but was far more concerned with his wealth and status
• This man was obsessed with earthly treasures and was willing to put that ahead of his spiritual condition if it came right down to it
• Jesus called him to something higher
• Jesus exposed the young man’s heart by calling him to sacrifice his treasure
• In doing so, he showed that the young man’s heart was really with his earthly possessions rather than his spiritual treasure
• Jesus knew that the young man’s money and possessions were his true god
• He couldn’t truly and fully serve God until he removed the idol of money from its throne in his life
• Sadly, the young man walked away from the real treasure because he wasn’t willing to change his thinking
• He valued earthly possessions so much that he considered giving them up to be too great a price for the Kingdom of God
• Unlike the traveler in Matthew 13, this man wasn’t willing to give up everything for a greater treasure
• What would be your response if you felt that God was asking you to give up all of your money and possessions for him?
• Would you be willing immediately or would you try to find ways out of doing it and still try to make yourself feel like you were serving him?
Matthew 13:44
•The rich young man wasn’t willing to give everything up for a greater treasure but this man was
• He understood that what he would gain far outweighed his loss
• Do you feel sorry for him considering the fact that his discovery cost him everything
• We don’t need to pity him because his sacrifice was nothing compared to his reward
• He understood that what seemed like a short-term sacrifice was well worth it to obtain a long-term reward
• It only cost him everything if you look at things from a temporal point of view
• The Kingdom cost him everything in one sense, but it gained him everything that mattered
• Notice that he went and sold everything he had “in his joy”
o If we miss that detail we miss the whole point
• Jesus was thinking in terms of the eternal
• When we think in those terms we realize that no matter how great our earthly fortune, it is worthless in eternal terms if we cling to it for ourselves
• Don’t waste your life on the temporary, spend in on the eternal
• Does the thought of turning ownership of your wealth and possessions over to God and his will rather than controlling it according to your will cause you sadness like the rich young man or does it bring you great joy to be able to give up everything to gain the Kingdom of God?
Convictions• Give careful consideration to your view of your wealth and possessions and put yourself in the position of the rich young man
• If Jesus came and demanded that you give up every single thing you owned to enter the Kingdom would you do it with joy or would you be tempted to walk away with sadness?
• What does your answer to the previous question reveal about your true spiritual condition at the moment?
This is a tough example to visualize. I'd like to think that if the Lord himself were asking me to do something, I would do it. However, the reality is that it is often difficult to determine what God's will is, especially with finances. I want to use what finances I have to best serve the kingdom, but at the same time be a good steward with what God has provided and be wise with giving and donations.
ReplyDeleteThe battel for me comes in when I am tempted to just go and buy and do with our finances before praying about it. The times where I've prayed about it and said, "OK God. . .We have this now right here before us. What do you want us to do with it? This is what "I'd" like to do with it. Please make it clear"? God took care of every little financial detail in the last year and a 1/2 despite of being "unemployed". God blessed everything!! Trying to make a conscious effort to think eternally vs. temporal, Godly vs. worldly is a daily and moment-to-moment battle. Sometimes, it is done with joy if done in the right way, sometimes it comes with, "the 'ole wrestling match".
ReplyDeleteI am reminded of earthly treasures that I am not always willing to give up...time, sleep, leisure things...like time for myself. It can definitely be the ole wrestling match as freetofly mentioned above. But every time I've given up the "things" that I put before God and pursued eternal treasures, it has been a joy with no thought of sadness. As I look back on the past 10 years of my spiritual life it has been a joy, with no regret of leaving my old ways! Now the challenge is taking things deeper, after 10 years what else and what now in 2010 must I also give up. What on earth is in the way of my heavenly pursuit....
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