Pentecost +19 – October 11, 2009
“Indeed, the word of God is living and active,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow...”
If anyone ever knew the truth of these words from Hebrews, I suspect it was the rich man in the gospel story from Mark that we just heard. For this is a shocking story, one man's encounter with Jesus that struck him to the very core.
Mark tells us that is a man with a question, an urgent question that must be answered before Jesus leaves, and so the man comes racing up to Jesus, just in time to catch him as he is on his way out the door, and barely catching his breath, he throws himself at Jesus' feet, and kneeling there, he blurts out, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
There's no beating around the bush,
no hemming & hawing –
he just gets straight to the point
and asks this most important question:
What must I do to inherit eternal life?
It's a question that needs an answer. It's a genuine question from a sincere man, as far as we can tell from what Mark tells us. He's not like the Pharisees in last week's story, trying to test or trap him. He really wants to know. The truth is, he's lived a good life, he's a righteous man; he's kept the commandments from his youth: “You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.” He's done all these things; and on top of all that, he's got everything a man could want, a sure sign of God's favor.And yet, he's not sure where he stands. He's followed the rules; he's accumulated some good stuff, but still, something is missing. Something isn't sitting right with his soul – and so he comes to Jesus to ask this question.
We don't know what kind of answer he expected, if he thought perhaps Jesus would pat him on the back, and congratulate him on doing so well, to keep on doing what he was doing & stop worrying so much. Who knows? What we do know is that he gets this shocking answer instead: “You lack 1 thing: go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”
This is the answer Jesus gives to the rich man, looking at him, his eyes filled with love.
Go, sell what you own
& give the money to the poor,
and then come, follow me.
Jesus, the word of God incarnate,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
cuts to the chase and gets to the heart of the matter:
“Your belongings are getting in the way of your relationship with me. So get rid of them – give it all away, help the poor, and come, follow!”
Whatever answer he may have been expecting, this is too much for the poor rich man. Jesus' answer shocks him – and he walks away from the relationship that leads to life, grieving over the demands Jesus makes, “for he had many possessions.”
I don't know about you, but I get it. I understand why he was shocked, why he walked away. Because what Jesus says here is shocking! Sell everything you have and give the money to the poor?! Are you crazy Jesus? If some random guru or preacher were to tell us that that what was standing between eternal life and us was our possessions, and that all we had to do was sell our stuff, we'd get suspicious. It feels a little cult-like, a bit extreme.
Besides, we need our stuff. We've worked hard to get it, and to keep it. We put a lot of time and effort and energy into accumulating things, things we think will make for a richer, more fulfilling life. It's the American way! Earn your way into financial success & happiness will follow. You can have everything you ever wanted, and you'll live happily ever after.
Except we all know it isn't true. We know, deep down inside, that money doesn't buy happiness. But we'd sure like the chance to prove that it does, we'd love to be the exception to the rule! That's the heart of the issue, why we are as shocked as the disciples are when Jesus looks around and tells them, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” We are shocked when we hear Jesus say to them again, “Children – it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” As much as we know it isn't true, we have a hard time really seeing how much our stuff can get in the way of our relationship with our Creator, how much our possessions block us from entering God's kingdom. We hear these words from Jesus, and they pierce us, they cut away to the heart of the matter, to our hearts, and reveal how deeply we are attached to things that in the end are just things – and yet we are tempted to walk away, grieving with the rich man, for we too, have many possessions.
No matter what you make of this gospel, no matter what you hear Jesus saying to you through it, it's pretty clear that what Jesus asks of his followers is extreme. Jesus asks the man in the story, and he asks us, to take a good long look at his life, to see where his priorities are, to see if he's really willing to do what Jesus asks in order to take hold of what Jesus has to offer.
Because the truth is, this eternal life the man was looking for, the one we all hope for, cannot be bought. All the money and all the stuff in the world can't give us the life that Jesus gives. And it can't be earned, because it's not about following a list of rules. Eternal life comes as a complete gift! It's one reason that Lutherans and a lot of other churches baptize babies instead of waiting for them to grow up and make a decision about it – because it is a sign for all of us that God's love is not a result of anything we do. God comes to us & claims us before we even know we need God in our lives. God's grace is a free gift, given simply because God loves us & wants a relationship with each of us, and there's nothing we “must” do to receive that gift.
But just because it is free doesn't mean it's cheap!
It cost Jesus everything to open the doors of the Kingdom of God to us.
And it is hard for us,
who are so attached to the ways of this world,
to enter into that kingdom.
God's kingdom is breaking into our world all around us,
even now,
wherever God's will is being done,
wherever the hungry are being fed,
and the outcast is welcomed,
and the last and the least are moved to the front of the line.
But it is hard for us to set aside our trust in money,
our trust in our things,
our trust in ourselves & our own efforts
and accept what Jesus so freely gives.
So hard it seems nearly impossible,
And for us it is.
But Jesus reminds us,
it's not impossible for God.
With God, all things are possible.
Thanks be to God! Amen.
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