Hebrews 4:12-17
Mark 10:17-27
Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions. – Mark 10:21-22
There are so many interesting things about this story from Mark that it’s hard to know where to start. Here are some things I notice, just in these two verses:
- Jesus loved him; that’s why he gives this hard advice.
- It’s not just about giving the money away, it’s about giving it to the poor. Jesus is always, always, looking out for those who do not have enough. (Which also raises the question: Is it the wealth that’s the problem, or the poverty?)
- The man is shocked (shocked!) to hear Jesus’ advice. Hasn’t he been paying attention? Doesn’t he know that Jesus demands our all?
What happens next, I wonder? Mark tells us about the conversation that follows between Jesus and his disciples, but we never find out what happened to that rich man. Did he give everything away? Did he go home and sulk? Change is hard, and it’s often easier just to turn around and walk back the way we came.
And it’s not just that Jesus is asking us to do something hard. He’s asking us to do the impossible, to fit a camel through the eye of a needle. This passage is full of extremes – extreme demands and extreme judgments – which is why it’s a good thing it also ends with this extreme promise: “for God all things are possible.”