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10/01/06 Eternal Life in the Fast Lane (Rev. Russell Rathbun) |
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10/01/06 Eternal Life in the Fast Lane (Rev. Russell Rathbun)
Scripture Reading - Mark 10:17-31
Mark 10: 17-31
This is really hard. A hard text hard to hear
because it is so simple. Jesus is walking and a man runs up and
kneels in front of him and asks him, “Good teacher what must I do to
inherit eternal life?”
Where did this guy come from? Did he just
notice Jesus, as Jesus was walking away? Did he recognize
him? Had he seen him teaching and knew that he was someone who
might know the answer to his question? And what about his
question? Is it sincere? Some interpreters have said that
it isn’t. That really he was looking for someone to pat him on
the back confirm to him what he thought of him self. We learn in
the story that he is a really good person. Jesus' first answer to
his question is, obey the commandments. The man says I have kept
them all since I was a kid. Maybe then he expects Jesus to say—OK
then it looks like you’re in. But Jesus doesn’t say that, He says
sell everything you own and give the money to the poor and follow
me.
The proponents of the “insincere question” reading
say that Jesus understood the motivation of he question and so,
commanded him to do the hardest thing he could to show the man—he
wasn’t quite as good as he thought. That he might follow the
letter of the law but was still trapped by his self-satisfaction.
The point being that what ever we are unwilling to
give up is the very thing that we should give up. For this man it
was his money because he was very rich, but for someone else it might
be—they’re family or their job or their flower garden. What ever
it is that is more important to them then God. That is what Jesus
would tell them to give up.
So the text is not really about money it is about self vs. god.
Which is a good reading, because the hearer is can
think, well I am not rich—what is it that I would have a hard time
giving up? Well I really like watching the football game on
Sundays—sometimes I even stay home from church to watch the game.
I think next week I am not going to watch the game and spend that time
with my family.
It is a low pain, feel good message.
But what if it is actually about money?
There is no reason to think that this man that
catches up with Jesus is asking an insincere question, or that Jesus is
trying to think of the hardest thing for the man to give up—Jesus
doesn’t know the guy is rich—does he? Jesus seems to think the
guy is very sincere.
After he tells Jesus he has kept the commandments
from his youth—the text says Jesus looked at him and loved him—Jesus
loves him. He doesn’t condemn him for his self-righteousness,
Jesus doesn’t say, “well you think you so good—try this”
I want to reading the man’s question a sincere and
straightforward as possible and I want to read Jesus statement at
sincere and straightforward as possible too. I think Jesus
believes that this guy really has kept all the commandments and maybe
is ready to go all the way—so Jesus tells him, there is still one thing
that you lack—sell everything you own, and give the money to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven, then come and follow me.”
It seems pretty straightforward to me.
This verse is the best test there is for anyone claiming they interpret the Bible literally.
The literal, exchange is this: Question, what
must I do to inherit eternal life? Answer: Obey the
commandments and sell everything you own, give it to the poor and
follow Jesus.
But, come on that can’t be taken literally,
because? Well, not very many people do it. I mean if that
is what everyone interested in eternal life is supposed to do—well
then. There are going to be a lot of people who are not going to
inherit eternal life. Me being one of them.
I could go back to the first argument: Jesus
is not telling everyone to do this he is just telling that man to do
this because he is rich.
But the disciples aren’t rich and they already have
left everything and are following Jesus. Jesus even tells them
when sends them out take no money.
So…let’s consider the possibility that this should
be taken literally. If you want eternal life—sell everything,
give it to the poor and follow Jesus.
But what about if you have kids and what are you
supposed to do for food and it is one thing for Jesus to be saying it
too you face to face—well because it is really clear what you are
supposed to do when he says the follow me part. But what do we do
with the follow me part? Where do we literally go? I am sorry,
this is ridicule, and it would be impossible to do.
That is the conclusion of the man who asks the
question of Jesus in the first place. He really wants to know
what he must do for eternal life, Jesus tells him—and he can’t do
it. It is impossible for him. And He was a really good
person. He is shocked the text says buy Jesus’ answer and went
away grieving—grieving because he couldn’t do what was necessary to
gain eternal life.
The disciples are shocked too. They are perplexed; they can’t
believe the interchange they just witnessed. Jesus knows what a
radical and outrageous thing he has just said. But he doesn’t
back away from it—he reintegrates it. He says after the man
leaves—how hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of
God!
He sees how perplexed the disciples are but he says
to them again, “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a
needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Basically he is saying it is impossible.
The disciples are as hopeless as the man who walked away.
They were astounded and said to one another, “Who can be saved?”
They are so hopeless because Money made it possible to perform all the
religious duties that were required. It was generally believed
that it was much easier for a rich person to by righteous—not
harder. So they assumed if it is hard for a rich man to enter the
Kingdom of God then it must be impossible for them. Further more
this man wasn’t just rich he obeyed all the commandments. So if
it is impossible for him to do anything to gain eternal life what hope
was there for them.
Who can be saved? If we take seriously what
Jesus said to gain eternal life you must 1. Obey the commandments 2.
Sell every thing and give it to the poor and 3. Follow him.
Now one could wonder about what it means for us
today to follow Jesus since we can not literally follow him—but most
people are never going to get to number three—because most of us,
nearly all people are not going to get past number 1 and 2.
[Incomplete manuscript]
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