Mark 10:17-27 A Battle for the Soul
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Joel and Mary Nadel, Covenant Church
Joel and Mary Nadel, Covenant Church
From J.C. Ryle’s “Expository Comments on the Gospels - Mark”
From J.C. Ryle’s “Expository Comments on the Gospels - Mark”
House Rules: Phones, Respect, Stay on the Text
House Rules: Phones, Respect, Stay on the Text
Jesus’ Ministry Travels
Jesus’ Ministry Travels
Pray
And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ” And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. 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.”
Introduction
Introduction
A little over half-way through Jesus ministry
First part was Him establishing His purpose for God’s people - that He has come to save His people from their sins
Now He is focused on the work He must do at the Cross
He continues to teach God’s will
He continues to address the cost of discipleship
He continues to explain His mission to save His people
This account is recorded in three of the four Gospels
The fact that the Holy Spirit caused this account to be repeated three times was for a reason - this teaching is important to us
And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
The ignorance of men and women
The ignorance of men and women
The man came running to the Lord and asked a serious quetion: “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
At first glance, this young man appeared impressive
He was concerned about spiritual things - those around him were indifferent
Was rich, a ruler, but he showed respect for the Lord - kneeled - in contrast to other leaders of Israel, who despised Him
But… He was very ignorant about what was in his own heart
Jesus recites the commandments (summarized in “love thy neighbor)
His response: “all these I have kept from my youth”
He didn’t understand the nature of the moral law - that it is what is in our hearts that concerns Christ - this drives our actions
We need to pray for contentment with what God has blessed us withd
Millions of professing Christians have no idea of their own sinfulness and guilt in God’s sight
They deceive themselves that they have never done anything really bad - murdered, stolen, adultery, lying
They don’t think they are in any danger of missing out on heaven
They forget the holy nature of God - the Judge
They forget how often they break His law in temper, imagination, even if their outward actions are correct
They don’t study Matt 5, or study it and dont apply it to themselves
They are wrapped up in self-righteousness
Rev 3:17 “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.”
They live self-satisfied and often die self-satisfied
We need to beware - if we think we can keep God’s law, Christ does us no good
We need to pray for self-awareness - ask the Holy Spirit to show us our sin - show us our own hearts - show us God’s holiness, show us our need for Christ
Rom 7:9 “I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died.”
Ignorance of the Law and ignorance of the Gospel go together (explain the difference)
When you don’t understand the spiritual nature of the commandments, you can’t understand your need of Christ
The Love of Christ for Sinners
The Love of Christ for Sinners
Mark 10:21 “And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.””
Jesus loves sinners in the world, out of pity and compassion - if they never repent, His eternal wrath is aroused
In this case, Jesus saw with pity the wierd mix of earnestness and ignorance in this man
He saw, with love, a person struggling with all the weakness that all of us have from our sinful nature - a troubled conscience
He saw that the man needed relief - but his lack of understanding stood in his way - he didn't understand the basics of a spiritual faith
Like watching some famous person lose everything - one that shows so much promise - this is the concern Jesus showed for this man
We must remember that Jesus feels love for the souls of the ungodly
Its clear that He feels a special love for those who hear His voice and follow Him - these are His sheep, given Him by the Father, to be watched over with special care
They are His bride, joined to Him in covenant forever - precious to Him as a part of Himself
But Jesus has a big heart - an abundance of pity, love, concern for those that are following sin - He wept over the unbelieving in Jerusalem
He would gladly gather to himself the ignorant, the self-righteous, the faithless, the unrepentant - if they would only have Him
We can say honestly, to the greatest sinner, that Jesus loves him
Salvation is available to the worst of people, if they will only come to Him
If they are lost, it is not because Jesus doesn’t love them, its because they won’t have Him.
John3:19 “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.”
John 5:40 “yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.”
The Danger of the Love of Money
The Danger of the Love of Money
This is a point Jesus makes twice in the gospels - here we see it in action
With all this young man professed, in the end he loved His money more that He loved His soul
He loved his money more than He loved the Lord
Mark 10:21-22 “And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”
Mark 10:24-25 “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.””
Mark 10:27 “Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.””
Bringing it home
Bringing it home
We must watch against the love of money - a trap for both poor and rich
Money is not a problem, trusting in it will ruin the soul
We need to pray for contentment with what God has blessed us with
Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.
The Gospel
The Gospel
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Prayers
Prayers
Questions
Questions