Carey's Bible Study Notes
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entering heaven
life of christ: Mark 10.17-31; Matt. 19.16-30; Luke 18.18-30
the difficulty of entering the kingdom of heaven
introduction
Like the other episodes in the previous weeks, this one falls in the third and last year of Jesus� public ministry. That third year began with Jesus feeding the 5000 and then alienating many of His disciples when He claimed that the only way to receive abundant life was to be in an obedient/faith relationship with Him. Afterwards, Jesus began to devote more and more time to the 12 disciples in order to impress upon them that He not only was the Messiah but that He was a humble Messiah who would suffer for the sins of His people. Moreover, He declared that if He was humble, then they His followers should likewise be humble.
Last week�s episode of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead occurred approximately 1-2 months before Jesus suffered at Calvary. If Mark ordered his material chronologically, then the present episode occurred approximately only 11/2 � 2 weeks before Jesus was crucified. As this episode opens, we see Jesus, who is now living in Perea, on His way to Jerusalem for the final time.
the rich young ruler (Mark 10:17-22; Luke 18:18-23; Matt. 19:16-22)
According to Mark, Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem for the final time. At present He is residing in Perea which had served as His headquarters for the major part of His 3rd year of public ministry. As He is coming near Jericho where He will cross the Jordan River in order to reenter Judea, a rich young ruler comes to Him and respectfully asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life.
Before we look at the question he poses, let�s look at just who this man was. According to Matthew he was a young man, while Luke claims that he was a ruler. Mark informs us that he was rich. There is reason to believe that the title "ruler" indicates that he was a member of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish religious body which served as a form of Supreme Court and which ultimately condemned Jesus to death. There is nothing to suggest though that this young man took part in the judicial murder of Jesus. In fact many of the Sanhedrin did not join in this act of murder, such as, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea. This is not one of Jesus� hostile enemies who are always trying to trip Him up in order to undermine His popularity with the people. He is respectful in the way he approaches Jesus because he genuinely desires to know how he can inherit the most prized possession of all, eternal life.
The question asks Jesus, the Good Teacher, what a person must DO in order to INHERIT eternal life. Jesus first asks the young rich ruler why he calls Jesus good. All Jews believed that in an ultimate sense only God was good. By responding this way, Jesus is trying to get the young man to examine Jesus more carefully. If Jesus is truly as good as the rich young ruler thinks He is, then Jesus may be more than just a mere man. He may be God who has come down to mankind. This will add a lot more weight to what Jesus is about to say regarding inheriting eternal life. The rich young ruler�s response to Jesus will determine whether or not he inherits eternal life. If He is just a man speaking, then why does he feel that Jesus is so good? The fact that Jesus is so good surely pushes the man to recognize that Jesus is God.
The question the rich young ruler poses betrays the schizophrenic attitude the Jews in Jesus� day and also in our own day have towards eternal life. The 2 ideas are contradictory. Only pathologically sick parents would ever force their child to do something in order for that child to inherit his parents� possessions. Nathan and Molly will inherit whatever Nancy and I have left simply because they ARE our children and for no other reason. That�s the attitude God has towards us His children; however, many times it is not the attitude we have towards Him. Many times like the rich young ruler we conceive of God as being pathologically sick who demands that we constantly grovel before Him before He will do anything for us.
The idea of eternal life has several different connotations in the NT. The 3 terms�eternal life, salvation, and the kingdom of God�in many ways mean the exact same thing. Eternal life not only points to the length or quantity of time involved in this life, it also points to the quality of that life. Eternal life is nothing less than the life that God Himself enjoys. The reason this life lasts forever and ever is that it is God�s life. Since God Himself is eternal, then it only stands to reason that His life, eternal life, is everlasting. The young rich ruler asks Jesus this question because apparently he sees that Jesus is enjoying just this very kind of life.
Jesus responds by instructing the young man to obey the commandments. The ones He points out are numbers 6-9 with the command not to defraud added. By listing these instead of the first 5 which deal with one�s relationship with God, Jesus is implying that the way a person treats another person, who like all people is created in God�s image, is a sure indicator of the way that person treats God.
The young man responds that he does keep all these commandments; however, he still feels that something is lacking. It is as if he is saying, "I can�t believe that what I am experiencing right now is what God Himself experiences in the here and now." Jesus sees that the young man is serious about this quest and so reveals to him the major stumbling block which is preventing him from entering the kingdom of heaven. He commands him to go sell all he has, give it to the poor, and then follow Jesus. Notice that Jesus is not just telling him to give it all to the poor. Even a non-Christian can be philanthropic. Jesus is also instructing him to follow Him which is the very essence of discipleship. In the particular case of this young man, following Jesus will entail giving up all possessions. The young rich ruler though dejectedly turns away from Jesus. He cannot follow Jesus because he owns far too much to sell it all and give it away.
Before we get carried away with this episode, we need to analyze a little more fully the attitude of the NT towards wealth. Neither the NT nor the OT condemn the possession of great wealth. Money itself is not the problem. What they condemn many times are the attitudes and pitfalls which many times accompany wealth. In many cases one person is wealthy because a lot of other people working for him or her are being paid low wages (see James 5:4). In other cases, some rich people feel that they are better than others simply because they have more money. This attitude sometimes gets transferred over into the church as well. They feel their voices should be heard more than others� because they are rich. Such attitudes are really sick and have no place in God�s church. On the other hand, sometimes those without money defer to those with money. (For an example of this, see James 2:1-4). The necessary qualification for a person to have influence in the church is that he be Spirit-led and Spirit-filled, not necessarily wealthy.
Next we need to address the question as to whether or not Jesus� instructions to the rich young ruler apply to us today as well. The answer is an unequivocal yes and no. There is a part of this which does apply to you and me. Jesus demands that each and everyone of us give up all our possessions and give them to Him. The no part may be that He may not command that we give it to the poor. He may give it back to us to use as He wants us to use it; however, from now on, it no longer belongs to us. Instead, it belongs totally to Him.
Another part of this command applies to everybody. Some people have riches as an issue in their lives; others do not. The ones who do not though have some other issue they must deal with. Why do we all have at least one issue to deal with? Because we are human. Some of us deal with the issue of possessions. We don�t feel good about ourselves and therefore must have the largest, most beautiful house in order to feel good about ourselves. We have to drive BMW�s or Cadillacs. If our shirts do not have a logo on it, we refuse to wear them.
On the other hand, some people grasp money because they feel like it gives them security. If that bank account is not loaded, then that person is anxious worrying about his future. Others want money because of the comfort it affords. They want the most comfortable beds and surroundings money can afford. They shudder at the thought of not having an instant expresso coffee maker. The temperature in the home must be just right, or else they and everybody around them will be miserable.
Others have fame as an issue. They so long to be the most popular in their sphere and have an apoplectic fit if anybody else hogs the attention. If they have a juicy morsel of gossip destructive about somebody else, they can�t wait to share it because knowledge gives them power. People like to cozy up to other people who have got the goods on somebody else.
Others have power as their issue. They claim they want to be servants; however, their idea of being a servant is either chairing a major committee or organization in the community or church. If they don�t have that kind of prestigious position, then they claim they are being martyred. Unless that person is in control, that person is miserable, not enjoying eternal life. The truth is that a servant serves no matter the position she or he has in a certain setting.
the difficulty of inheriting eternal life (Mark 10:23-27; Luke 18:24-27; Matt. 19:23-26)
At this point Jesus claims that it is difficult for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. The disciples are stunned at this remark. In their opinion if the rich do not enter the kingdom of heaven, then it is most unlikely that anybody will enter the kingdom of heaven. In their view the only reason a person had riches was that God had blessed him with those riches. That blessing indicated that person was in a favorable standing with God. Jesus rejects this out of hand. Neither the possession of riches nor the absence of them indicates a person�s standing with God. Sometimes God blesses the spiritual person financially; sometimes He takes away the riches of a person because he has rebelled against God. Paul informs us though that sometimes God blesses financially the sinner. Why? In order to lead that person to repentance (Rom. 2:4). God desires for that rich person to come to his senses and realize that he has not gained all this wealth on his own but rather has amassed it because of God�s gracious provision.
Jesus expands upon this saying. It is not only difficult for the rich to enter heaven; it is difficult for any person to enter the kingdom of heaven. Just how difficult is it for a person to be saved, especially the rich man? It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to be saved. The camel was the largest animal in Palestine at that time, while the eye of the needle was one of the smallest manmade openings. (Attempts to make the word camel mean "rope" or the eye of the needle to refer to a gate in Jerusalem are dubious at best).
Why is this difficult? First because man is a sinner and cannot save himself. A sinner who tries to save himself spiritually is like the man drowning in the raging sea trying to save himself. The man in the ocean needs a ship to sail by and throw out to him a ladder or lifeboat. In the same way, man needs a perfect person to die for his sins. Jesus, and not that person, makes salvation possible.
The second reason that it is difficult for a person to inherit eternal life is that a person in his own strength cannot relinquish the issue which dominates his life. Left to his own strength and devices, the rich young ruler could never let go of his wealth. Fortunately, Jesus does not leave us to our own strength and devices. The Holy Spirit lives within the Christian to make such an act possible.
In his book The Great Divorce, C. S. Lewis writes about people going to heaven. Heaven in his story is on top of a huge mountain protected by an angel at its base. One day a young man covered with dirt and soot approaches the angel and asks to ascend the mountain into heaven. The man is far too filthy though to enter heaven. Moreover, sitting on his left shoulder is a lizard-type animal who is uttering all sorts of obscenities and vulgarities into the ear of the young man. (The lizard represents all the issues people possess which prevent them from experiencing eternal life). When the angel informs the young man that he must rip the lizard off his shoulder and cast him down to the ground, the lizard begins to panic and tells the young man that the young man could never live without him on his shoulder. They had been together for way too long; the young man needed him. The young man is in turmoil. He does love the lizard; it�s been his constant companion for many years, and yet he hates the lizard because it prevents him from entering heaven and eternal life. Finally, after a titanic struggle, the young man rips the lizard off his shoulder and casts him to the ground. The young man suffers so much pain that his cry pierces the night. The experience is so overpowering that the young man falls to the ground. When he reemerges though, he stands up clean. In the meantime the lizard has become a white stallion upon which the young man jumps and rides to the top of the mountain. Lewis is saying that the very issue which prevented the young man from experiencing eternal life actually became the means of him experiencing it once he gave up that issue and gave it to the Lord.
In any case, Jesus is speaking of the impossibility of the person providing for his own salvation when he is left to himself. It just can�t be done; however, with God all things are possible.
sacrifice in perspective (Mark 10:28-31; Luke 18:28-30; Matt. 19:27-30)
As Peter sees the rich young ruler leaving, he points out that he and the other 11 apostles have left all to follow Jesus. He may have been jealous that Jesus was giving the rich young ruler so much attention and was trying to recapture Jesus� attention. On the other hand, he is patting himself and the other apostles on the back because of all they had sacrificed for Jesus. He reminds Jesus that he and the other 11 disciples have given up everything for Him.
Jesus does not deny that the disciples indeed have sacrificed a lot because of their relationship with Him. The truth though is that in comparison to what they are about to gain, they have really sacrificed so very little. They have left families for Jesus� sake; however, even in the present time Jesus is providing them with a family far larger than any family they could have ever left, that new family being the church.
As is true of every 4th child in a large family, I felt a little lost in my family. When I left for UT, I especially felt alienated because my poor parents were so busy dealing with all their children and their spouses and their children up in Dallas. The day I left for school, my oldest sister and her fianc� drove me to the bus station because my parents were concluding a wedding reception for my brother. My parents coming down to Austin for parent weekend was understandably out of the question because of all the children and grandchildren they had in Dallas to attend; however, that did not take care of my alienation. I came to understand the meaning of this verse when I joined the Christian group Navigators. Although I had 2 brothers at home, I gained a whole host of brothers in Navigators. Later as I ministered to churches in north Dallas, Lancaster, and even in Corsicana, I gained additional brothers, sisters, and even moms and dads. Since the loss of my dad in �89, I�ve been fortunate to have gained several new dads here in Corsicana who have taken me under their wing and given me the dad support that men need. None of this detracts from my original family; it just expands my family relationships and shows me that whatever I give up for Christ, He more than makes up.
Jesus adds a little corrective though to this list of blessings. Christians should expect persecution and troubles during the present day and age. Many Christians today really get carried away with a health-and-wealth type of Christianity. There�s a lot of discussion going on today about a book titled The Prayer of Jabez. Whereas I do not think that this is the author�s intent, the sad truth is that some Christians use this to promote a success-oriented Christianity. Well, Jesus does bless us; however, the only guaranteed blessing for the Christian until He comes is the presence of the Holy Spirit. Everything else is icing.
Whereas it is true that Jesus� promise finds fulfillment even at the present time, it finds ultimate fulfillment when He returns. The other day after I mowed my front yard and weed-eated it, I gazed out upon it and thought that God was so good to me to let me live in such pretty surroundings. Yet the truth is that no matter how lovely these surroundings are right now, they don�t begin to compare with what we are about to experience. The green trees of today will be so brown compared to the lush verdant forests when Jesus returns. The wonderful relationships we have today will be deepened exponentially when Christ returns.
As I reflect upon what Christ has in store for me right now and also in the future, I think about what Jesus commanded the rich young ruler to do. He commanded him to let go of his riches. We think that the unhealthy relationships we have are so vital to our well-being. We just think we can�t live without all that money in the back account. We�ve just got to have everybody to include us in every activity they�re involved in. Our kids must be the star of every athletic team they�re on. We�ve just got to be the center of attention. The truth though is that what we are grasping amounts to nothing more than a few dollar bills in comparison to the incredible riches Christ has in store for us. The only way that we can grasp what Jesus has in store for us is to let go of those few measly bucks. We can never take hold of what He has for us as long as we hold onto those with clenched fists.