October
15, 2000
Mark 10:17-31 (CEV)
As Jesus was walking down a road, a man ran up to him, He knelt
down, and asked, "Good teacher, what can I do to have eternal
life?"
Jesus replied, Why do you call me good? Only God is good. You
know the commandments. 'Do not murder. Be faithful in marriage.
Do not steal. Do not tell lies about others. Do not cheat. Respect
your father and mother.'"
The man answered, "Teacher, I have obeyed all these commandments
since I was a young man."
Jesus looked closely at the man. He liked him and said, "There's
one thing you still need to do. Go sell everything you own. Give
the money tot he poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then
come with me."
When the man heard Jesus say this, he went away gloomy and sad
because he was very rich.
Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "It's hard
for rich people to get into God's kingdom!" The disciples
were shocked to hear this. So Jesus told them again, "It's
terribly hard to get into God's kingdom! In fact, it's easier
for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich
person to get into God's kingdom."
Jesus' disciples were even more amazed. They asked each other,
"How can anyone ever be saved?"
Jesus looked at them and said, "There are some things that
people cannot do, but God can do anything."
Peter replied, "Remember, we left everything to be your followers!"
Jesus told him: "You can be sure that anyone who gives up
home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or
land for me and for the good news will be rewarded. In this world
they will be given a hundred times as many houses and brothers
and sisters and mothers and children and pieces of land, though
they will also be mistreated. And in the world to come, they will
have eternal life. But many who are now first will be last, and
many who are now last will be first.
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1.
Since the last line is so dramatic we might as well start at the
end with first becoming last and vice versa. Jesus seems to use
a different way of measuring the meaning of life than do the rich
or the disciples. This other way of measuring is based on GOD's
ability to do the impossible. So, knowing the rich man had a very
difficult road to go down, Jesus did not automatically assign
him to camel status before a needle. Jesus talks and teaches one
who has three strikes against him. Jesus liked him and held him
before the ONE who can do the impossible -- see him through the
needle's eye. [there was an old sci-fi story about Costain's Needle
which has some overtones to this]
2.
As with all of Jesus' insights that we struggle with because they
run counter to what we have learned from our culture and religious
heritage, the image behind it all is the great mercy of GOD for
whom nothing is impossible. Rejoice.
3.
So, having worked our way backward, a question must be raised
regarding what "command" we have been staking our life
on. It is probably the unseen command which will trip us up. The
rich man simply did not have the command about selling on his
radar screen. When it came out of the blue he had no way of evaluating
it, much less following. Perhaps we need to always leave space
for the "Unknown Commandment."