Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.

Luke 18:22 KJV

For those of us unfamiliar with the opening scripture, it comes from the story of the Rich Young Ruler in Luke.

Selah Paraphrase…

Jesus was teaching on the kingdom and this young ruler comes to Him to ask Him how to gain eternal life. We’ve all seen the movie with the rich guy who thinks he has is all and is lacking nothing. So, really the young dude was looking for confirmation of his awesomeness from Jesus. Since there was a crowd, this confirmation could be witnessed by everyone. The young dude starts the conversation with flattery. Isn’t that always the way? People think that if you lay on the compliments, the other person should be complimentary back.

So, he greets Jesus with the term “Good Master” and then asks how can he gain eternal life. But Jesus, in that iconic Jesus fashion, started to teach him something. He begins by telling the young man that only God is good. He then does a check list of the commandments with the young man. Of course, he replies, “Oh yes! I’ve kept all them all! Since I was a boy.” The young man becomes puffed up because he just knew that Jesus was going to give him the stamp of approval.

However, Jesus takes a turn and opens with, “Ok. But, you still need to do one more thing.” There’s that movie again. You know the ones about the quests. The hero goes through all these trials to get the prize. Brings everything back in victory only to be told, “Great. There’s just one more thing.” That look of incredulity on the hero’s face? That’s the look of the young ruler. Jesus says, “Now I want you to sell everything you have. Give it to the poor and follow me.”

The young man was crestfallen. Why? 1) He thought he was set. Remember, he was looking for validation of his awesomeness and didn’t get it. 2) He realized what he was comfortable giving was not what he needed to give. When people who define themselves by their position or wealth find out what they are comfortable doing is not what they need to be doing, they bow out. That’s what he did. The bible says he left sorrowful.

So, What’s The Point?

I wondered why sorrowful. Sorrowful means feeling grief. I thought that was a little extreme. I would think that the ruler would have been sad about it but grief? Really? Have you ever felt grief? It’s not a small thing. It upends people. It takes time to comeback to yourself. However, as I meditated I understood. He had lived his life following the commandments like a good boy should. He was living under the old covenant of the law. It dictated if you followed these rules you were on your way to heaven. But, here comes Jesus trashing all that he had known.

Have you been there? In that position of going along in life doing what you know and finding out that it was not quite hitting the mark? I have. Let me bring it closer to home. You’ve worked a job for 10 years. Sacrificed personal time. Time you could have spent with your family. Following what your parents taught to gain the rewards of the loyal and dedicated. Then, you walk in one day to a pink slip. In your exit interview, your manager tells you that those things were great but they also wanted you to give your unique talents. Ouch!

Jesus was asking for sacrifice. God wanted his heart. The young man may have sacrificed from time to time but it doesn’t seem like he sacrificed. His heart was in his riches and position. Jesus was asking for the kind of sacrifice that costs. What is your heart? Have you given it to God? We tend to keep our hearts to ourselves because we figure we’ve got it on lock. We don’t need to give it to God. We’ve got it handled.

What he didn’t understand (and what we sometimes forget) was that God promises that what we give up to God, He returns bigger and better than ever. I’ll prove it: And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting. (Luke 18:29-30 KJV) This is echoed in several places in the bible.

In other words, what we give to God, He will return many times over in this life and in the next. We understand a one for one exchange but God operates in the one for a thousand or more exchange. Give him your bad attitude, He will not just give you an attitude adjustment but a reputation that will serve you and your purpose well after you leave this rock. Don’t be crestfallen if God asks for something that hurts to give. It is for your good. It’s for your growth. ~Selah