Mark 11:12-14, 20-25: Making faith a verb

Sandwiched around the episode where Jesus comes to the temple, is a curious interaction with a fig tree.  There are a number of difficult questions stemming from the interpretation of this passage.  Why Jesus would chose to express himself in such a way?  What does it mean?  What did the poor fig tree ever do to deserve such a fate?

First of all, Jesus often chose to express himself through symbolic actions, actions that were often miraculous in nature.  The gospel of John refers to them as signs.  In this particular instance, Jesus is using the fig tree, and its cursing, to symbolize the religion of his day.  His critique has less to do with orthodoxy, or right belief, than it does with orthopraxy, or right practice.  What does the cursing of the fig tree mean?  What is it supposed to represent?  Quite simply, it is meant to illustrate a religion that gives false hope.

 

What do I mean when I say that the religion of Jesus’ day gave false hope?  It is true that it is hard to make such a blanket statement.  After all, many found a great deal of hope in not only holding the right beliefs, but in adhering to the right practices.  However, for a great deal of society, the national religion had ceased to provide any hope for the future.  This is why Jesus curses the fig tree, to provide a lesson that gives a visual explanation of how contemporary religion falls short.  When we see the fig tree, we see a tree that has leaves, and yet no fruit.  It is promising from afar, and yet disappointing upon closer examination.  When we consider that Jesus cursed the fig tree on the way to the temple, and that the results became evident on his return from the temple, it becomes evident that the fig tree and Jesus trip to the temple are meant to interpret one another. 

Jesus chooses the fig tree to illustrate the fate of the temple, and indeed the old way of doing things, because it was an illustration they would understand.  Indeed, Israelite history is replete with horticultural symbolism pertaining to the health of society and its religious life.  The prophet Hosea would state that “Ephraim is stricken; their root is dried up; they shall bear no fruit.”  (Hosea 9:16)  In speaking of God’s punishment of the wicked Bildad the Shuite says, “His roots dry up beneath, and his branches wither above.”  (Job 18:16)  Just prior to a call for repentance, the prophet Joel says, “the vine dries up; the fig tree languishes.  Pomegranate, palm, and apple, all the trees of the field are dried up, and gladness dries up from the children of man.”  (Joel 1:12)  Jesus is attempting to speak the language of the people, and to describe the illness that pervades their religion in terms that they are familiar with. 

Jesus doesn’t just use the fig tree to illustrate the “state of religion” in Israel, and specifically Jerusalem.  He also uses it as an object lesson in what it means to have faith.  In Luke, the apostles say, “Increase our faith!”, and Jesus replies, “if you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘be uprooted and planted in the sea’, and it would obey you.”  (Luke 17:6)  Jesus’ response here to Peter’s observation that the fig tree has withered is very similar, as he seems to say that there is often a disconnect between our faith that exists in our head, and our actions.  It would be easy to misinterpret what Jesus is trying to say here, and draw the conclusion that unanswered prayers are in some way our fault.   Is it true that if our prayer goes unanswered, it is because we didn’t believe enough?   It’s tempting to follow that train of thought, but when we look at the life of Jesus, we see that is not the case at all.  Jesus prayed in the garden for the cup of suffering to pass from him, and yet he still had to endure the cross. A better interpretation comes if we notice the sequence of faith and believe.  The reference to one who “believes” in v. 23 points back to faith in v. 22, and ahead to the imperative “believe” in v. 24.  In the original Greek, the connection is more obvious as pisteuein (“believes”, in v. 23), pistis (“faith” in v. 22), and pisteuete (believe, in v. 24) are all from the same root.  Regardless of the language, Jesus is teaching us our faith isn’t tied to miracles, or even answered prayers.  We can take a cue from Jesus in the garden, and trust that even when we don’t get the answer we want, in some way God is still working to bring about good.  When the faith in our head becomes so strong that our belief governs our actions, or to say it another way, when our faith goes from being a noun to a verb, that is when the truly miraculous happens.  

Mark 11:15-19: When Jesus' comes to church...

We almost miss Jesus’ first visit to the Jerusalem temple.  It comes at the end of the story of his triumphal entry into the city.  “And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple.  And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.” (Mark 11:11)  How many people thought he was a sight-seer, or that the way he studied everything meant that he had never been there before.    Some wonder if Jesus’ actions are not like those of the angel, who toward the end of the book of Ezekiel is seen to be sizing up the temple for destruction and judgment. 

While Jesus’ first visit to the temple seems more like an episode of “Undercover Boss”, his second visit is far more eventful, coming on the heels of a curious episode involving a fig tree (which we will examine in the next post).  Jesus’ actions in the temple surely invoke in the witnesses a reminder of Malachi:

“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.  And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.  But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?  For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap.  He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord.  Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years.”              – Malachi 3:1-4

If Jesus has come to cleanse and refine the temple, and by extension the church, what is the crux of his message?  Does he come to lay out a more exacting moral standard, to remind them of what form of worship is acceptable, or to unveil a new “church growth” plan?  Interestingly enough, Jesus’ focus seems to be on none of the things we often wage internecine war over in our churches.  His focus is on reminding those around him of the temple’s true purpose. 

The authorities had set up vending booths inside the precincts of the temple as if the main reason for the temple’s existence was to make money.  These vendors weren’t there for convenience, as archeology has shown that there were several markets for exchange located on the Mount of Olives, making the temple market redundant.  More than likely the temple market was set up for the express purpose of competing with these local markets, since they fell under the jurisdiction of the Sanhedrin rather than the chief priests.  The prophetic witness of those same chief priests warns against the temple becoming a commerical battleground.  The prophet Jeremiah asks the question, “has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes?  Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the Lord.”  (Jeremiah 7:11)  The last part of the book of Zechariah states “and there shall no longer be a trader in the house of the Lord of hosts on that day.”  (Zechariah 14:21)  It’s hard to imagine how the chief priests, those entrusted with the spiritual care of Israel, could be so blind to the warnings in their own scripture.  And yet, isn’t that what money does?  It diverts our eyes from what is truly important, from our purpose in this world. 

If the purpose of the temple wasn’t to make money, what was it?  The answer is probably fairly obvious, but its purpose was to be a house of prayer, a place where people commune with God.  We can go back to the founding of the temple to see its original intent:

“When Solomon is dedicating the temple, this is what he says: “Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O Lord my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you this day, that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place.  And listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place.  And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.”  – I Kings 8:28-30

And this house of prayer was not just for Israel, but for all nations.  Jesus angst was probably partially due to the fact that by making the court of the Gentiles a market, the authorities had taken away the one place where “the nations” could worship.  This flew in the face of God’s intention, and again, of Israel’s scriptures, as we see from this passage in Isaiah:

 “And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant- these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” – Isaiah 56:6-7

Israel had forgotten that its vocation was not to be the only people of God, but rather the first among many of God’s children.

Before we are too hard on Israel, maybe we should turn an introspective eye to the churches where we gather for worship each and every Sunday.   I wonder what Christ thinks when he enters our midst as a church.  Does he see us welcoming others who wish to worship God and glorify the name of the Lord, or does he see us throwing up barriers?  If we are honest with ourselves, it’s probably a little bit of both.  May the Lord continue to “come to church”, till we are refined, purified, and empowered to be the house of prayer for all nations that God has always desired.   

“Lord, help us to be a community that seeks to welcome in those whom you have drawn to yourself.  Let our presence in this community always be an encouragement to others, and never a barrier to their coming to you.  Amen.”

Mark 11:1-11: "You can't always get what you want..."

In 1969 the Rolling Stones released a song whose lyrics are helpful in interpreting this part of the gospel of Mark.  The hook to their famous song “you can’t always get what you want,” concludes the title line with, “but if you try sometime, you might just find, you get what you need.”  Though written around two thousand years after Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, it would be difficult to find words, sacred or secular, that better describe what the world wanted in Jesus, and what we actually got. 

One some levels, Jesus’ journey is exactly what we would expect, particularly if we are versed in the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah.  Jesus journey was a sacred one, reflected by his ceremonial usage of an unused colt.  Why an unused colt?  In Numbers, when describing the animal to be brought for sacrifice according to the laws of purification, the Lord spoke to Moses and specified that a red heifer should be used “on which a yoke has never come.” (Numbers 19:2)  According to Deuteronomy, when the community is making atonement for an unsolved murder, the elders are to sacrifice “a heifer that has never been worked and that has not pulled a yoke.” (Deuteronomy 21:3)  When the Philistines are returning the Ark of the Covenant to the Israelites, they are told to use “two milk cows on which there has never come a yoke” to pull the cart. (I Samuel 6:7)  Beyond the special utilization on an unused colt, this is also the only time in any of the gospels when Jesus is said to be riding, and not walking.  There is clearly something significant, and in some ways expected, about Jesus arrival at and entry into Jerusalem riding on an unused colt. 

In addition to being sacred, Jesus’ entry is also triumphant.  Compare Jesus’ reception, and his entry into Jerusalem with that of some of Israel’s past kings. 

·         During Absalom’s revolt, a woman comes seeking help. “When the woman of Tekoa came to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and paid homage and said, “Save me, O king.” – II Samuel 14:4

·         When the Israelites were under siege, we read of the following encounter:  “Now as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!” – II Kings 6:26

·         Similarly, when Jehu rose up and took power not long afterward, we read of the response of the people.  “Then in haste every man of them took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and they blew the trumpet and proclaimed, “Jehu is king.” – II Kings 9:13

And yet, Jesus’ intentions are totally different from what the crowd expects.  They expect bold military leadership.  They think they are getting their kingdom back.  They shout, “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!  Hosanna in the highest!” (Mark 11:10)  In reality, Jesus is bringing them salvation, and the kingdom not of David, but of God.  It’s the fulfillment of a promise found in the heart of their own scriptures, when the prophet Zechariah prophesies saying, “Rejoice, greatly, O daughter of Zion!  Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!  Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”  (Zechariah 9:9)  Their king has come, but not to bring a kingdom, as odd as that may sound.  He brings something even better, something more eternal, salvation. 

It’s a dangerous thing to upset the expectations of a nation.  But it’s a more dangerous thing to fix our eyes on what we want, to the exclusion of what we need.  Praise God that the words of that Rolling Stones song ring true in the person of Jesus Christ, “we can’t always get what we want, but if you try sometime, you might just find, you get what you need.”   

Mark 10:46-52: seeing like the blind

The story of blind Bartimeaus is one of the more personal ones in the gospel of Mark.  He is one of only two “minor characters” whose name is actually used (the other being Jairus).  Why is his name remembered?  It’s impossible to say.  Perhaps Bartimeaus, or the son of Timai, was known by those whom Mark was writing for.  Maybe there was no reason, and it’s just a coincidence.  More important than Bartimeaus’ name, and why it’s remembered when so many others are forgotten, is Bartimeaus’ story.  What we learn from his story tells us more about who Jesus’ is, and how in his mission Jesus’ surpasses all of Israel’s, and indeed our messianic expectations. 

It’s interesting to compare Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem to that of his ancestor, David.  We recall that II Samuel shows us that at least metaphorically, the blind and the lame resisted David’s entry into Jebus, the city which would ultimately be named Jerusalem:

“And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who said to David, ‘you will not come in here, but the blind and the lame will ward you off’- thinking ‘David cannot come in here.’  Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David.”  – II Samuel 5:6-7

When we then look at Jesus entrance, we see something entirely different.  Instead of being opposed by the blind and the lame, Jesus’ is enthusiastically welcomed by them.  It’s a fulfillment of a prophecy given by the prophet Isaiah:

“Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God He will come and save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped.” – Isaiah 34:4-5

Jesus entrance into Jerusalem is something great, even greater than that of his ancestor David.  David removed the blind who opposed him as he entered the city.  Jesus removes blindness itself.  It’s a sign that Jesus is not here to conquer physical territory, or even people, but rather the evil that manifests itself in sin, death, and disease. 

Recognizing who Jesus’ is, Bartimaeus has a request.  While James and John requested power and prestige from Jesus, Bartimaeus simply asks for health, for the restoration of his sight.  Those who walked with Jesus every day, James and John, failed to understand who Jesus was.  There is great irony in a blind man, Bartimaeus, being the one who sees Jesus for who he truly is.  Indeed, he is the only person other than Peter to use a messianic title for Jesus, referring to him as the Son of David.  Once Bartimaeus’ request is granted, he has to choice to make.  How should he respond?  Bartimaeus response is one motivated by a grateful heart, not by an attempt to earn anything from Jesus.  Unlike the rich young man, he is able to leave his coins behind and follow Jesus.  Maybe it’s because he is sincerely grateful.  Maybe it’s because he is leaving less behind.  I think ultimately it’s because Bartimaeus recognizes that all gifts come from God, while the rich young man still thinks of his wealth as being something he has “earned”.    Bartimaeus’ physical blindness has had the fortunate side-effect of helping him to recognize his total dependence on God. 

So what can we learn from Bartimaeus?  For one, as we just saw, he is aware of his need for God.  How many of us can say that we have truly accepted our dependence on and need for God?  He also persistently calls on Jesus for help, refusing to be deterred or put off.  Perhaps our level of persistence in prayer is a good way of separating our needs from our wants.  Another important lesson to learn from Bartimaeus, and one that we often forget, is that gifts come as signs of God’s grace, not our merit.  James and John on some level think that they have earned places at Jesus’ left and right side, whereas Bartimaeus knows that the granting of any blessing from God is an act of mercy and grace.  “Son of David, have mercy on me!” is his plea, and in it he not only recognizes God as merciful, but recognizes Jesus for who he truly is, the Messiah.  If we learn anything from Bartimaeus, it should be that our eyes are of no use in gaining knowedge of Jesus’ true identity.  As the author of Hebrews states, “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)  Even in his blindness, Bartimaeus had the ability to see with his heart.  He recognized in Jesus Christ the fulfillment of what he, and Israel, had always hoped for.  This recognition created in him a deep conviction, a conviction that led him to leave everything behind and follow the Messiah.  May we all be blessed with the ability to see as this blind man did, with our hearts rather than with our eyes.       

Mark 10:35-45: Jesus, the original servant-leader

We live in a world of self-promotion.  In days gone by it was seen as poor form indeed to actively campaign for office.  John Adams and Thomas Jefferson remained remarkably aloof with respect to their candidacies for the presidency in the election of 1796.  It is true that they knew they were candidates, and they probably even gave some form of instruction to their surrogates, but it would have been unheard of for them to actively campaign, or promote themselves for high office.  As you may have noticed, times have changed.  Or have they?  I don’t think that people are more self-promoting than they used to be, I think that our society is more tolerant of self-seeking behavior than it used to be.  As proof that self-promotion isn’t a cultural phenomenon of our own era, we need simply to look at Jesus’ own disciples. 

Could the announcement that Jerusalem was the destination of Jesus’ and his disciples have insinuated to James and John that Jesus’ kingdom was about to be inaugurated?  That certainly seems to be how they interpreted it.  They ask for the places of honor in Jesus’ kingdom, to be seated on either side of him in all of his glory and might.  It’s understandable why they thought this way.  In Psalm 110:1, “the Lord says to my Lord: sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”  According to scripture, the right hand was clearly the place to be, and the left would do if the right had already been taken.  Even Jesus own words in parables like that of the Messianic banquet in Luke 14:15-24 and Matthew 22:1-10 refer to places of honor.  John would paint a picture of the heavenly throne room in Revelation 4-5 that would include a place of honor.  If there were places of honor to be had, better to get the jump on asking for them before someone else reserves them! 

Jesus’ response shows us that things clearly work differently in his kingdom.  He asks them explicitly if they are willing to drink the cup he is going to drink, and if they can be baptized with the baptism which he will endure.  Their affirmative answer betrays not only their eagerness for status and honor, but also the depth of their misunderstanding.  Later on in the gospel of Mark, we see that the cup Jesus will drink is not a pleasant one, indeed he even asks God to “remove this cup from me.  Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:36)  It’s no mere coincidence that in that crucial hour those found to the left and right of Jesus are on crosses.  To be at Jesus’ side requires us to be willing to crucify ourselves to this world, and to bear our cross in obedient discipleship.  When they ask for the places of honor, James and John are utterly unprepared to pay the cost of discipleship.  And yet, their failure and unpreparedness is not the final word.  While in the gospel of Mark “they all left him and fled” (Mark 14:50), elsewhere in scripture we see that the disciples overcome their initial setbacks, thanks to the power of the Holy Spirit working in their lives.  Peter, who was among the ones who left him and fled, and who also denied him, would go on to write, “But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” (I Peter 4:13)  James would eventually drink the cup and share the baptism of Christ’s suffering:  

 “About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church.  He killed James the brother of John with the sword, and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also.” (Acts 12:1-3) 

While John is widely believed to be the only apostle to not be martyred, he too suffered in his own way:

“I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.” (Revelation 1:9)

So what does all of this mean?  Put simply, it means that we are called to be different from the world around us.  If things are the same in the church as they are in the world, something is wrong.  That difference should start, and it does start, with the church’s leadership.  Just as Jesus was different from all the rulers this world has seen, or will see, so those who seek to lead in the church should lead from places of service and humility.  Jesus points out that the disciples are acting just like the secular rulers they despise.  In their behavior, we see what Jesus had to work with in fashioning leaders for the early church.  And yet, in an odd way that’s good news for us.  If the self-promoting James and John can go on and give their lives, both literally and figuratively in serving Jesus, surely we have no excuse ourselves for not becoming the type of servant leaders that the church, and our world desperately need.  Paul words to the Galatians are an appropriate way to sum up what it means to live for Christ as servants:

“For you were called to freedom, brothers.  Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”  (Galatians 5:13)

It is often said we live in the freest nation on earth.  Perhaps instead of simply celebrating that freedom once a year with fireworks and parades, we should shock the world by choosing to use it not for ourselves, but in the service of others.   

Mark 10:32-34: the cross and the resurrection, you can't have one without the other

Whether we are willing to acknowledge it or not, the person of Jesus of Nazareth demands a response from each and every one of us.  Whether we realize it or not, each of us responds to him by the way we live our life.  As we see from these three verses in Mark 10, Jesus’ very presence invokes amazements from some, and fear from others.  Both, in some combination, are probably appropriate responses for each of us.  Fear in the presence of the almighty, amazement at the idea of God becoming flesh.  The author of Hebrews would pick up on this response of fear and amazement, while also addressing Jesus’ prediction in these verses of the suffering he would endure:

“But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.  For it is fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.”          – Hebrews 2:9-10

And again, after recounting all of the heroes of faith we find in the pages of the Bible, the Hebrews’ writer seeks to spur on their own audience to similar feats of discipleship with the following words:

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrews 12:1-2

The epistle of Hebrews refers to the fact that Jesus’ “endured the cross, despising the shame”, and in so doing it readily acknowledges that Jesus did all of this knowing very well what he was getting himself into.  He did it “for the joy that was set before him.”  In other words, Jesus knew the long-term, permanent victory that would result from his near-term, temporary suffering.  If you wonder exactly how much he knew about what he was to endure, consider his following statements from this passage:

·         He states that the “Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes”, and in Mark 14:53 we see that “they led Jesus to the high priest.  And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.”

·         He predicted “and they will condemn him to death”, which was proven to be correct in Mark 14:64 where the high priest says “’you have heard his blasphemy.  What is your decision?’  And they all condemned him as deserving of death.” 

·         Jesus knows that these same authorities who condemn him will “deliver him over to the Gentiles.”  It takes place in Mark 15:1, where we read that “as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council.  And they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate.”  It’s a sign of the contempt they had for Jesus, that they would turn him over to the occupiers of their land, the oppressors of their people whom they also reviled. 

·         Jesus was well aware that “they will mock him and spit on him.”  The fulfillment is related in Mark 15:19 where we see that the guards “were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him and kneeling down in homage to him.”   

·         It couldn’t have been easy for him to think about the fact that they would “flog him and kill him.”  We see it happen in Mark 15:24, “and they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take.” 

It’s not all bad news though.  As we saw in Hebrews, the promise of a happier ending is what enabled Jesus to endure, knowingly endure, all of the things just mentioned.  He did it “for the joy set before him.”  That joy is what he refers to at the very end of this passage, when he says that “after three days he will rise.”  It’s a story we are all familiar with, especially on the heels of Easter:

“And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed.  And he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He has risen; he is not here.  See the place where they laid him.’”
 - Mark 16:5-6

Some would say it’s bad form to write a post about Jesus’ suffering less than a week after Easter.  This is supposed to be the time when the church is joyful, when it revels in the victory that Jesus has won for us over sin and death.  And yet I wonder if the two can be separated so easily.  Can we truly embrace the resurrection without casting an eye back at the cross?  Can we truly endure the pain and suffering we find in this world without at least a hopeful glance into the future, where resurrection awaits?  If we are going to be disciples of Jesus, then we desperately need to understand what he understood, that the cross and the resurrection go together.  Our victory is not in the fact that the cross was abolished, but in the fact that Jesus has ensured for us that the cross never, ever, gets the final word.  Resurrection will always have the final say.  

Mark 10:17-31: Jesus, class warfare, and the kingdom of God

Wealth has a way of dividing us.  It separates us into the haves and have not’s.  Wealth, or the lack thereof, often dictates our politics.  Whether it is because we want to keep more of it for ourselves, or want to have greater opportunities to make more it for ourselves, money might be the biggest factor influencing the decisions we make.  Wealth, and its ability to polarize us, even makes its way into the Bible, specifically in the instance of the rich young man and his conversation with Jesus.  We learn a number of things as observers of this timeless conversation, and some of them are likely to clash with what society tells us about the importance of money, and how we evaluate success.

The first thing we learn is that riches can be an obstacle to discipleship.  The more stuff we have, the more we stand to lose, and the more we might be required to sacrifice for the kingdom of God.  Jesus begins on a very basic level by affirming the principles found in the Ten Commandments.  William Lane points out that in Jesus' response, “His affirmation of the commandments is a demand for obedient action which recognizes both the sovereignty of God and the existence of the neighbor.”  To inherit eternal life, we must maintain faithfulness to God and neighbor by refraining from destructive actions that harm others.  No lying, no stealing, no defrauding, no committing adultery, and certainly no murdering!  Even in our day, we consider ourselves good if we can avoid all the "major" sins that Jesus mentions here.  And yet, more is required.  It is not enough to abstain for the bad; we must be proactive in doing good.  Part of doing good is giving up everything in order to follow God, which is exactly what Jesus asks the rich young man to do.  In his Letter to Hilarious, Augustine states that "one who gives up both what one owns and what one desires to own, gives up the whole world."  Augustine's point I think, is that discipleship requires more than just giving a cut of our earnings to God, it's about surrendering our future, the dreams we have for ourselves, to God's agenda.  If Jesus had simply asked the man to tithe, he probably would have gladly complied.  However, Jesus' demands are of an ongoing nature, and have the potential to radically disrupt the young man's life permanently.  In the man’s failure to follow, we should find an appreciation for the disciples’ willingness to leave everything and follow Jesus.  The disciples make their fair share of mistakes, but they follow.

The next thing we learn is that being poor has its advantages.  Clearly my intention is not to trivialize the plight of those who spend each day wondering where their next meal will come from.  Jesus statement is not relieving us of our responsibility to provide for the needs of the less fortunate.  What it is doing is revealing a simple truth.  The more we have, the more we fall under the illusion that we are in some way self-sufficient.  In Jesus’ day, wealth was taken to be a sign of blessing.  If you had money, clearly God was pleased with you.  Jesus isn’t using class warfare here, what he’s doing is saying that even the people they esteemed to be the most righteous couldn’t enter into the kingdom of God of their own accord.  The realization of the impossibility shakes the disciples to the core, and opens up the opportunity for Jesus’ to reveal salvation as an act of grace on the part of God.  Jesus is not excluding the rich from the kingdom of God, he is excluding all humans who seek to arrive there through their own efforts.  You see then that Jesus is requiring the man to sell the very thing which would have been a sign to others of God’s favor.  The rich young man can’t let go of his wealth, because his wealth is where he   finds his identity.  It’s a mark of his success, and to many it’s a sign that his righteousness has been rewarded.  In inviting the man to sell all his possessions, He is inviting him to scrap the notion of self-righteous, and embrace total reliance on God.  It is easier for the homeless refugee in Africa to recognize his or her dependence on God, than for the upper-middle class American who has “earned” their blessings through education, hard-work, and responsibility.  If riches sometimes blind us to our dependence on God, then it is certainly easier for the poor to recognize that dependence, as there is less to blind them to the reality of our need for God. 

It’s a challenging thing, to let go of the things of this world in order to follow Jesus Christ.  And yet, Jesus points out that to follow Him is not without reward.  Obviously the hope of eternal life and redemption loom large in any discussion of the rewards which Christians receive.  However, one that is often overlooked is the spiritual family that we receive when we embark on our walk with Christ.  One of God’s greatest gifts to us is those who accompany us on the journey.  In his Conferences, John Cassian touches on this point by echoing the words of Jesus from this passage, ““you have each left but one father and mother and home, and as you have done so you have gained without any effort or care countless fathers and mothers and brothers, as well as houses and lands and most faithful servants, in any part of the world to which you go, who receive you as their own family, and welcome, and respect, and take care of you with the utmost attention.”  I have learned in a very real way how true Jesus’ words are.  I readily admit that I was somewhat anxious about moving 600 miles from my family, alone, to take up the work of ministry amongst a group of strangers.  I quickly learned though, that there are no strangers in the body of Christ.  I have been welcomed into countless homes and enjoyed meals at many tables, as my brothers and sisters in Christ sought to make me feel at home in my new life here.  My experience is one that is common among ministers, and even among those who relocate for careers or other reasons, and are welcomed into new church families.  More compelling is the story of the Ehimare family, who journeyed halfway across the world from Nigeria to Atlanta, Georgia to receive medical care for Ose as she prepared to give birth to quadruplets.  In a foreign land, preparing to go through a challenging and yet joyous time in the best-case scenario, the Ehimare’s were quickly adopted by my church family, the Northlake Church of Christ.  Members provided lodging, food, child-care (imagine caring for four newborns!), and even threw them a baby shower.  The story stands out to me as what it means to be a part of the body of Christ.  The love and fellowship found in Christ transcends language, nationality, or any other thing that divides us, and in itself is a gift of far greater value than anything we might sacrifice in the service of Christ.  In returning to the rich young man’s question, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”, perhaps a good place to start is in realizing that it has a lot less to do with what I must do, and a lot more to do with what God has done.  A good place to start is eliminating everything in our life that clouds our ability to clearly recognize God’s grace, whether that be wealth, relationships, or our own selfish pride.

You can read more about the Ehimare family and their story in this Christian Chronicle article:

http://www.christianchronicle.org/blog/2010/08/georgia-church-adopts-nigerian-quadruplets-and-their-parents/