[The following is a manuscript of my sermon delivered on Sunday morning, the 16th of July, 2017. Look for the video on our Vimeo channel: http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]
Our Gospel writers – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – recorded many conversations between Jesus and others in their accounts of His life. Our Lord spent a good bit of His time on earth trying to reach people, in masses and often in one-on-one discussions. The disciples themselves were frequent recipients of these talks, as we read last week. The Pharisees and Sadducees and scribes quite often received individual and group lectures, as it were.
But many times someone would come up to Jesus, maybe out of simple curiosity or out of a true desire to learn more, and He would take the time to try to explain to them what is truly important in this life on earth. This often led to the individual coming to believe in Jesus as Lord, and even leading others to believe, such as the case when He spoke with the Samaritan woman at the well and she and the whole town found salvation. Other times, it didn’t work out quite so well.
Listen and follow along to one such conversation between Jesus and a man usually described as a “rich young ruler”, as recorded by the Apostle Matthew in his Gospel account, chapter 19 verses 16 through 22, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible…
But many times someone would come up to Jesus, maybe out of simple curiosity or out of a true desire to learn more, and He would take the time to try to explain to them what is truly important in this life on earth. This often led to the individual coming to believe in Jesus as Lord, and even leading others to believe, such as the case when He spoke with the Samaritan woman at the well and she and the whole town found salvation. Other times, it didn’t work out quite so well.
Listen and follow along to one such conversation between Jesus and a man usually described as a “rich young ruler”, as recorded by the Apostle Matthew in his Gospel account, chapter 19 verses 16 through 22, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible…
16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”
17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
18 He said to Him, “Which ones?”
Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ 19 ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
20 The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?”
21 Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
--Matthew 19:16-22 (NKJV)
Let us pray… Father God, You are indeed good, just as Jesus said. You are always concerned with our physical and spiritual well-being. Speak to us now through Your Holy Spirit directly into our hearts, show us the path we each must follow to be more perfect in Your sight. In the blessed name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
A local charity had never received a donation from the town’s banker, so the director made a phone call. “Our records show you make $500,000 a year, yet you haven’t given a penny to charity,” the director began. “Wouldn’t you like to help the community?”
The banker replied, “Did your research show that my mother is ill, with extremely expensive medical bills?” “Um, no,” mumbled the director. “Or that my brother is blind and unemployed?”, continued the banker. “Or that my sister’s husband died, leaving her broke with four kids?” “I… I… I had no idea”, stammered the director, crestfallen.
“So,” finished the banker, “if I don’t give them any money, why on earth would I give any to you?”
That banker kind of sounds like Ebenezer Scrooge prior to his Christmas Eve visitations, doesn’t he? Why give anything away when you can keep it all to yourself? After all, he who dies with the most toys wins, right? I don’t think Jesus would exactly agree with that.
So this young man from a wealthy family walks up to Jesus and says, “Good Teacher, what do I have to do to gain everlasting life?” We’ve often seen where Jesus doesn’t always answer the question that is asked, or at least not in the way the questioner is expecting. Jesus picks up on that first word and responds, “Why are you calling Me ‘good’? Only God is good. Don’t you know that when you call Me good you are calling Me God?” But He lets that slide and answers the actual question in somewhat of a terse manner: “If you want to get to heaven, just keep God’s commandments.”
The young man persists, as young men often do: “Which commandments?” Jesus goes through the list, maybe feeling a little impatient, and the young man responds that he’s already doing those things. Obviously he is not yet immortal, so what else must he do?
Then Jesus lays a bomb on him: “Sell everything you own, give the money to the poor, and come, follow Me.” But the young man was very rich, and did not want to part with his possessions, so he went away downcast and sad. The Greek of verse 22 actually more closely reads “he ran away”, like he couldn’t get away from Jesus fast enough. Maybe he was afraid Jesus would take all his possessions right on the spot.
But you see, the young man was not willing to give up his worldly possessions, his material way of life, and follow Jesus. He wanted eternal life, he wanted heaven, but he wasn’t willing to give up his personal riches. He was holding back.
The Apostle John, in his 1st letter to the far-flung early church, chapter 2 verses 15 through 17 wrote…
Family, if we love the world and the things of the world more than we love our Father God and His Son Jesus, then the love of our heavenly Father is not really in us. We may call ourselves Christians and come to church on Sundays but if our heart is anchored in the world, our loyalty is divided and we cannot fully serve and follow Jesus.
The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Romans, chapter 12 verses 1 and 2, begs us let go of the world and entrust ourselves fully to God when he writes…
Do not be shaped and molded and formed by the world. Do not give in to its charms and pleasures and temporary riches. Instead, Paul tells us to let God’s Holy Spirit do His job and take hold of us and reshape us according to God’s will for us. John says everything in the world will pass away – only God and those who do His will last forever.
Family, what are we holding back? What is keeping us from fully following Jesus? The rich young ruler didn’t even give Jesus’ offer a moment’s consideration. His possessions, his great wealth held him back.
I fear too many Christians today have one foot in heaven and one still in the world. There is just something we refuse to let go of, something we can’t bring ourselves to give up. It’s like we’re reaching out and desperately grasping hold of Jesus with one hand, while still hanging on to something in this world with the other. We want to follow Jesus with all our heart, yet some part of it is still tethered to the world, to our worldly things and ways.
For the young man in our scripture, it was money and all his possessions – material things. For some, it might indeed be some material thing, something we’ve invested way too much personal value in that we just can’t let go of. For most, though, I think it might be our own favorite sin that we cling to.
Are any of us still trapped in the world by personal pride? Do we get jealous of other folks who seem to have more than we have and we covet what they have? Do we envy them, even to the point of wishing them harm because they’re so much better, richer, smarter, healthier, stronger, prettier than us? Are we trapped by lust, anger, gluttony, or just plain laziness? Do we find we are unable to love others as Jesus would have us love them, as He loves us? Whatever it is we’re holding back, we need to let it go.
Now I don’t think Jesus really wants us to sell all our possessions and give the money to the poor, because then we ourselves would become poor and needy and dependent on the charity of others. I don’t think He expected the rich young ruler to truly give up all his wealth – that isn’t the point.
What He wants is for us to let go of our love of the world and its material things, its sins that give us satisfaction or pleasure! He wants us to stop putting our trust in the world and put it instead in our merciful and generous Father God. Jesus wants us to let go of whatever we’re withholding from Him, whatever we’re holding back, because it’s holding us back to where we can’t truly, fully, completely follow Him. We need to rid our heart of any last dark splotches, cleanse it, and give it to Jesus.
Release the world. Just give it up… let it go. There’s no more holding back. In the blessed name of Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior. Amen.
Let us pray… Father God, You bless us so richly in so many ways. You provide for our needs and give in abundance so that we might bless others in their need. Forgive us, Father, when we take Your gifts and keep them all to ourselves. Forgive us when we become greedy, holding fast to what You give us rather than sharing it with others. Help us, please Father, to rid our lives of unnecessary, temporary things. Help us to place all our trust in You.
Please hear us now, Father, as we silently speak to You from our hearts, repenting of our sinful ways and seeking Your forgiveness, giving ourselves once again to Your Son Jesus…
Lord Jesus, You ask us to look deep within and see what we are holding back, to understand what is keeping us from following You. Thank You, Jesus, for the instructions You give us through God’s holy word. Forgive us for not fully releasing our grasp of the world and all it offers – the material possessions and the pleasures of the flesh. Help us, please Lord, to let go of the world, to let go of whatever is holding us back from fully dedicating ourselves to Your service. Help us follow You.
This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior and our Master, the one true Son of God, in whom we place all our hope, all our trust, all our faith. Amen.
A local charity had never received a donation from the town’s banker, so the director made a phone call. “Our records show you make $500,000 a year, yet you haven’t given a penny to charity,” the director began. “Wouldn’t you like to help the community?”
The banker replied, “Did your research show that my mother is ill, with extremely expensive medical bills?” “Um, no,” mumbled the director. “Or that my brother is blind and unemployed?”, continued the banker. “Or that my sister’s husband died, leaving her broke with four kids?” “I… I… I had no idea”, stammered the director, crestfallen.
“So,” finished the banker, “if I don’t give them any money, why on earth would I give any to you?”
That banker kind of sounds like Ebenezer Scrooge prior to his Christmas Eve visitations, doesn’t he? Why give anything away when you can keep it all to yourself? After all, he who dies with the most toys wins, right? I don’t think Jesus would exactly agree with that.
So this young man from a wealthy family walks up to Jesus and says, “Good Teacher, what do I have to do to gain everlasting life?” We’ve often seen where Jesus doesn’t always answer the question that is asked, or at least not in the way the questioner is expecting. Jesus picks up on that first word and responds, “Why are you calling Me ‘good’? Only God is good. Don’t you know that when you call Me good you are calling Me God?” But He lets that slide and answers the actual question in somewhat of a terse manner: “If you want to get to heaven, just keep God’s commandments.”
The young man persists, as young men often do: “Which commandments?” Jesus goes through the list, maybe feeling a little impatient, and the young man responds that he’s already doing those things. Obviously he is not yet immortal, so what else must he do?
Then Jesus lays a bomb on him: “Sell everything you own, give the money to the poor, and come, follow Me.” But the young man was very rich, and did not want to part with his possessions, so he went away downcast and sad. The Greek of verse 22 actually more closely reads “he ran away”, like he couldn’t get away from Jesus fast enough. Maybe he was afraid Jesus would take all his possessions right on the spot.
But you see, the young man was not willing to give up his worldly possessions, his material way of life, and follow Jesus. He wanted eternal life, he wanted heaven, but he wasn’t willing to give up his personal riches. He was holding back.
The Apostle John, in his 1st letter to the far-flung early church, chapter 2 verses 15 through 17 wrote…
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
--1 John 2:15-17 (NKJV)
The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Romans, chapter 12 verses 1 and 2, begs us let go of the world and entrust ourselves fully to God when he writes…
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
--Romans 12:1-2 (NKJV)
Family, what are we holding back? What is keeping us from fully following Jesus? The rich young ruler didn’t even give Jesus’ offer a moment’s consideration. His possessions, his great wealth held him back.
I fear too many Christians today have one foot in heaven and one still in the world. There is just something we refuse to let go of, something we can’t bring ourselves to give up. It’s like we’re reaching out and desperately grasping hold of Jesus with one hand, while still hanging on to something in this world with the other. We want to follow Jesus with all our heart, yet some part of it is still tethered to the world, to our worldly things and ways.
For the young man in our scripture, it was money and all his possessions – material things. For some, it might indeed be some material thing, something we’ve invested way too much personal value in that we just can’t let go of. For most, though, I think it might be our own favorite sin that we cling to.
Are any of us still trapped in the world by personal pride? Do we get jealous of other folks who seem to have more than we have and we covet what they have? Do we envy them, even to the point of wishing them harm because they’re so much better, richer, smarter, healthier, stronger, prettier than us? Are we trapped by lust, anger, gluttony, or just plain laziness? Do we find we are unable to love others as Jesus would have us love them, as He loves us? Whatever it is we’re holding back, we need to let it go.
Now I don’t think Jesus really wants us to sell all our possessions and give the money to the poor, because then we ourselves would become poor and needy and dependent on the charity of others. I don’t think He expected the rich young ruler to truly give up all his wealth – that isn’t the point.
What He wants is for us to let go of our love of the world and its material things, its sins that give us satisfaction or pleasure! He wants us to stop putting our trust in the world and put it instead in our merciful and generous Father God. Jesus wants us to let go of whatever we’re withholding from Him, whatever we’re holding back, because it’s holding us back to where we can’t truly, fully, completely follow Him. We need to rid our heart of any last dark splotches, cleanse it, and give it to Jesus.
Release the world. Just give it up… let it go. There’s no more holding back. In the blessed name of Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior. Amen.
Let us pray… Father God, You bless us so richly in so many ways. You provide for our needs and give in abundance so that we might bless others in their need. Forgive us, Father, when we take Your gifts and keep them all to ourselves. Forgive us when we become greedy, holding fast to what You give us rather than sharing it with others. Help us, please Father, to rid our lives of unnecessary, temporary things. Help us to place all our trust in You.
Please hear us now, Father, as we silently speak to You from our hearts, repenting of our sinful ways and seeking Your forgiveness, giving ourselves once again to Your Son Jesus…
Lord Jesus, You ask us to look deep within and see what we are holding back, to understand what is keeping us from following You. Thank You, Jesus, for the instructions You give us through God’s holy word. Forgive us for not fully releasing our grasp of the world and all it offers – the material possessions and the pleasures of the flesh. Help us, please Lord, to let go of the world, to let go of whatever is holding us back from fully dedicating ourselves to Your service. Help us follow You.
This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior and our Master, the one true Son of God, in whom we place all our hope, all our trust, all our faith. Amen.
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