Lenten Devotion for 28 March 2011 Anno Domini

Lenten Devotion for 28 March 2011 Anno Domini

17 And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? 18 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. 19 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. 20 And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. 22 And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 26 And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? 27 And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible. 28 Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. 29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, 30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. 31 But many that are first shall be last; and the last first. Mark 10:17-31

God hides many precious gems of truth in His Word, and He does so in the most concise use of words. He tells us more in one sentence than great authors can do in a large volume. Our literary and intellectual faculties, though they may be noteworthy, are useless to open the hidden truths in God’s Word unless our hearts be in earnest for Christ.

The unmitigated Grace of God extends to people of every background and social standing; to the Centurion as well as to the man stricken of leprosy; to the poor blind man as well as to the well-heeled man of the Sanhedrin; and to the depraved and violent as well as to the morally upright, though faithless, man of society. God has chosen His elect from all these varieties of people. We should not trouble ourselves so much with ‘why God has chosen others’ as to make our own election sure in Christ.

We are presented, in today’s text, with a man who “came running” to Christ and “kneeled” before Him in the way. The young man has done well so far. He runs to Christ. He kneels to Christ. This, must we all do if we come at all. But true faith is revealed in the wholeness of our lives and not in an instant of it. The young man’s salutation, as well as his question, begins to run amiss of the mark: “Good Master” means, in the vernacular of the day, ‘Good Teacher”. Is that ALL Christ is to this young man? His salutation would have been more fully informed to call Him “Good Lord” for reasons to be revealed in the continuing dialogue. And the young man’s question also is full of error in understanding: “What shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?” What is wrong with this question? Well, first of all, we do not INHERIT eternal life – it is a free gift of Grace. Secondly, the question presumes that we may be saved by our good works. It is not what we DO that brings salvation, but the One in Whom we believe!

Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God? This is a question pregnant with meaning. Christ reveals the man’s ignorance of Christ’s Person and Nature. Does this man recognize Christ as God? There is none good but God. Christ is good because Christ is also God. None other of our race can say, finally, that we are good. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Rom 3:23) and “…..there is none righteous, no, not one!” (Rom3:10). This rhetorical question is intended to provoke a spark in the young man’s mind, and in ours. Do we know that Christ is ALL good, and that we lack WITHOUT good apart from the imputed righteousness of Christ?

Christ then reminds the young man of the Commandments by citing five only. “….Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live” (Prov 4:4). The Lord is preparing the young man’s mind to grasp his failure, as well as the falsity of his claim, in keeping the Commandments of God. The young man responds : “And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.” It is quite possible that the young man has been conscientiously faithful to these five Commandments mentioned, however, he has been remiss in keeping the most important one – the very first that God wrote with His very finger on the Tables of Stone: “ I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Thou shalt have none other gods before me. (Deut 5:6-7) This wealthy young ruler allowed wealth to eclipse his full loyalty to God!

My heart is moved at the compassionate and gentlemanly approach Jesus takes in opening the eyes of this man. The moment he came to Christ, all of his shortcomings were known by Jesus, yet Christ did not hurl claims of sin and shortcomings at the man. He gently and knowingly guides the man to recognize the needful lacking in his soul. Unfortunately, the young man could not go the distance.

Jesus loved this young man when He heard his simple response which the young man, no doubt, truly believed. But Jesus will open the man’s eyes to see the answer to the question which he had brought to Christ. “One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.”

It is possible to come near the Kingdom of Heaven and, yet, not be admitted. Christ congratulates, kindly, the young man’s zeal in trying to live righteously, but also points out that none of us can do so apart from the righteousness of Christ. – “One thing thou lackest” It is this ONE thing that makes all the difference in our Coming to Christ – the One Commandment that supersedes all others! The omniscience of Christ revealed to Him that this young man placed his riches above all other considerations. He loved well, but that love fell short of the mark. Look at the loving counsel of Christ to this poor sinner (unaware of his depravity):

“Go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.” So simple, isn’t it? But yet so difficult. “If they right hand offend thee, cut it off!” Whatever it is that keeps us from coming all the way to Christ, dismiss it summarily and choose the greater good. There is no evil in “possessing many things” unless the love of those many things keeps you from coming to Christ. All men desire that their investment be place at the most secure place, and return the greatest benefit. There is no greater security than that of heaven, and no greater return of interest.

“Take up the cross, and follow me.” Oh! Is THAT all? Yes, I’m afraid it is! How unattractive the cross compared to opulence and power! The garden hoe is the least distinguished of all tools, yet is the one tool that makes food for the table possible. Would we want to expect the resurrection to life eternal? If so, we must die to self and abide in Christ. We must walk the ‘Via Dolorosa’ with Him. We must carry that instrument of sacrifice on our way and all the way. Never mind those who stand by the wayside hurling words of ridicule and contempt. Christ rose on the third day according to the Scriptures. If we would rise, we must rise in Him!

This cross was too much for the young man. He wanted eternal life, but it was, to him, a business deal. It was not worth the investment required. So he went away sorrowful – almost, but not quite, saved.

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. There is a story (I know not if it is true, but consistent as an illustration) that the Eye of the Needle was a small and low gate on the north of Jerusalem. Because of the inconvenience of making entry there with their camels, many merchants with their camels elected to circumnavigate the city and enter at the south gate since it was less harrowing. To enter the Eye of the Needle, the merchant must cause his camel to kneel, remove the burdens of merchandise from its back, and literally crawl through the gate. This is the manner by which we come to Christ – on bended knee and our burdens removed by Him ere we make entry to His Kingdom. Yes, we must count the ost prior to signing the contract, but, once signed, the counting stops. Have you allowed Christ to remove your unbecoming yoke and burden? If not, do so this very day of Lent, and remember: “With God all things are possible! Believest thou this, friends?