Where the Road Forks
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Sooner or later, man has always had to decide whether he worships his own power or the power of God -- Arnold Toynbee
INTRO - Sometimes making a choice between two things is not all that easy. Our dog, Gizmo, this past Monday was busy eating a rawhide chew. Usually he runs to the door when mommy pulls into the garage to welcome her home with a wagging tail and a ball or some other toy. However, when telling him, “mommy’s home,” he started to leave his bed and rawhide chew, but found himself in a dilemma; the rawhide or mommy. He chose the rawhide.
Today’s story tells of a time when, confused in their understanding, people didn’t quite understand Jesus’ teaching about choosing the more important things over others.
While wealth is not bad in itself, when faced with loosing it, sometimes we put our focus there instead of on God.
Note: Mark highlights the theme of God’s power more than any other Gospel.
TRANS - Let’s travel to a time somewhat different than ours, yet with some striking similarities.
PRAY
What does it say?
What does it say?
And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”
What does it mean?
What does it mean?
Trail to Truth
Trail to Truth
How did Jesus’ views on wealth and poverty differ from those of His culture?
A false concept of prosperity teaching, or blab it and grab it, teaching was prevalent then just as it is today.
Much like the reaction to so many of the “prosperity preachers today,” people were pretty impressed with the thought of being blessed financially by God for their good works to the point they were “exceedingly astonished,” not unusual a reaction, when that teaching was challenged by Jesus.
Sure, Isreal was promised abundance blessings, both material and spiritual, if they listened and obeyed the Lord.
Consider what they understood from Scripture, that riches and honor come from God.
Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all.
However, many misunderstood God then just as they do today and because of their ignorance, draw wrong conclusions.
Many see prosperity as God’s favor for some special personal quality and personal loss as God’s rebuke.
Consider Job’s friends reaction to his loss:
he will not be rich, and his wealth will not endure,
nor will his possessions spread over the earth;
Or
if you are pure and upright,
surely then he will rouse himself for you
and restore your rightful habitation.
Job’s friends seemed to think God was some kind of business partner with whom you make a request, behave in a way and always get something for your investment.
Many living at the time of Jesus held this same misguided false philosophy as Jesus helps us to understand as recorded in the book of Luke:
There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
Being better than others, behaving in a more religious way, Jesus teaches that this is really not what He is seeking.
Fact is, the true Christian does not need to “work” all that hard because it is Christ in them who aids them to be holy.
Even the 12 were influenced by this gripping lie as noted in John:
As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.
If they truly studied the Scriptures, they’d know their thinking was misguided.
God is not “supreme grandfather” who will spoil begging grandchildren just because they ask for some “thing.”
No, God wants people to see, know, hear from, and understand Him.
Truthfully, the Bible even notes bad people have riches!
For example,
Behold, these are the wicked;
always at ease, they increase in riches.
Okay, so in view of their misguided thinking, we can understand how the disciples were amazed when Jesus said it’s hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom.
POINT - Jesus taught what was contrary to their thinking and what often runs opposed to our preferred concept of God even today.
TRANS - let’s move forward.
Way of Wealth
Way of Wealth
What makes it difficult for wealthy people to follow God?
First off, lets start with the understanding that the teaching here is in line with Jesus’ teaching in other places.
For example, Jesus teaches that humankind can’t serve two masters:
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
Because great wealth urges people to chose it, for them there is more difficult to say “no” to wealth and “yes” to Jesus.
Both demand devotion, but we can only serve one.
The Jewish people faced another dilemma; their understanding of the Kingdom noted the absence of poverty, sickness, and huger.
The idea that, in heaven, everyone is wealthy, healthy, and well fed permeated their concept of the promised made to the Hebrew people.
So, running with that thought, they considered having wealth in this life they thought was a good thing; who can argue that?
Well, where that leads a person to fail to think they “must be right with God because they are rich,” that is because they already “have it all,” leading to so why would they want more?
POINT - Unless a person longs for and desires God, if their fulfillment comes from any other source, they will find their riches, or any other worldly thing they hold to so tightly, worthless when it comes to what God offers a person.
What does it mean for a camel to go through the eye of a needle?
Okay, to start with, you might be familiar with some of the erroneous teaching about the needle and the camel.
We do have historical evidence from other rabbinical sayings that prove the use of the metaphor was known in its use. Common hyperbolic use noted “an elephant going through the eye of the needle.”
However, rather than studying from the Scripture using historical and factual backgrounds, some wrongly attempt to describe this passage from the contemporary, or feed backward into Scripture; eisegesis as apposed to exegesis.
For example, some fanciful interpreters, such as, “the translation is wrong and it actually means ‘rope’”
People of the day knew the camel as the largest animal and the needle as the smallest hole imaginable.
Some claim at gate too small for a camel to enter with no evidence what soever and the parallel rabbinic saying abut the elephant that refutes that interpretation.
Only when we see Jesus’ use of a common figure of speech can we understand His meaning.
POINT - Jesus emphasized the great difficulty and the huge problem that riches represent when a person places something ahead of serving God.
Highway to Heaven
Highway to Heaven
Do the disciples rightly align being “saved” with entrance into the kingdom?
Okay, first thing, nothing we do merits our salvation.
Attaining salvation is beyond anything, any attempt, any achievement, accomplished by a human being.
But, the rule of impossible does not limit the reach of God; He specializes in doing the impossible.
Jesus saves!
To God belong both the ability and power to present admission to His Kingdom, His Salvation, and His Eternal Life.
The reality of God’s salvation unto humankind is God very own gift wrapped in the life of Jesus with the pages of Scripture and sitting on the table in eternity with your name attached.
POINT - Only God gives Salvation, but our part is to receive and open the gift.
What did Jesus’ answer in Mark 10:27 teach the disciples about salvation?
According to Jesus, no person can save themselves; only God can save a person.
Remember Sarah’s reaction when confronted with birthing a baby in her advanced years?
Note the words from Genesis:
Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
All through the Bible, God teaches His power over all things.
What Jesus said ran contrary to the rabbinical conclusions of the day that specified a person who keeps the Law is saved.
Note the words recorded in the Midrash Rabbah, “If a man commences to purify himself, he is assisted from heaven,”
POINT - Jesus’ words lined up with Scripture, but ran contrary to popular religious teachings.
What is God saying to “DO”?
What is God saying to “DO”?
Jesus reminded the disciples that we cannot be saved by our works; salvation is a work of God (Mark 10:27).
We sometimes feel our good deeds entitle us to eternal life.
Let us thank God for the salvation that comes from Him alone, and let us extend the free gift of eternal life to others.
GROUP READING Ephesians 2:1-10
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
This reminds us that salvation is an act of God.