Grow! Pray! Study! Daily Guide from the United Methodist Church
of the Resurrection - Wednesday, 22 January 2014 – “A camel through the eye of
a needle?”
Daily Scripture: Mark 10: The Rich Man
17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before
him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18
Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19
You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit
adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not
defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” 20 He said to him, “Teacher, I have
kept all these since my youth.” 21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said,
“You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money[a] to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22 When he heard
this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard
it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the
disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again,
“Children, how hard it is[b] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a
camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter
the kingdom of God.” 26 They were greatly astounded and said to one another,[c]
“Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is
impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
Footnotes:
a. Mark 10:21 Gk lacks the money
b. Mark 10:24 Other ancient authorities add for those who trust
in riches
c. Mark 10:26 Other ancient authorities read to him
Reflection Questions:
First, Jesus told the man who asked about eternal life,
"Sell what you own, and give the money to the poor." The man went
away—he didn't want eternal life THAT much. Then Jesus said, "It's easier
for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to
enter God's kingdom." That shocked his disciples—no rich people in heaven?
No, said Jesus, that's not the point: "All things are possible for
God." His hyperbolic statements were a solemn warning about the spiritual
danger of worshipping wealth.
To help us understand the specific focus of Jesus' words, it's
important to remember that God did NOT tell many affluent people in the Bible
(e.g. Abraham in the Old Testament, Zacchaeus in Luke 19) to sell all they had.
What was the heart issue Jesus wanted the young man to face up to? What made it
so hard for him to respond to Jesus' call?
This story, including Jesus' at first startling images,
confronts us with the hard question, "Which of my possessions, if any, are
so precious to me that I'd choose them over following Jesus?" We know how
the young man answered the question, turning away from the "treasure in
heaven" Jesus offered. It's difficult—have you ever wrestled with the
question? How would you answer Jesus?
Today's Prayer:
Lord God, all things are possible for you. So grow in me the
wisdom to always value the eternal treasure in heaven you offer more highly
than any of this earth's temporary possessions. Amen.
Wednesday, 22 January 2014 – Insight from Rev. Steven Blair
Rev. Steven Blair is the Congregational Care pastor of Live
Forward and Live Well Emotional Wellness Ministry. www.cor.org/liveforward
It’s Too Hard?
WEDNESDAY, 22 January 2014
Mark 10: The Rich Man
17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt
before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal
life?” 18 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God
alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not
commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You
shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” 20 He said to him, “Teacher,
I have kept all these since my youth.” 21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and
said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money[a] to the
poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22 When he
heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard
it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the
disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again,
“Children, how hard it is[b] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a
camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter
the kingdom of God.” 26 They were greatly astounded and said to one another,[c]
“Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is
impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
Footnotes:
a. Mark 10:21 Gk lacks the money
b. Mark 10:24 Other ancient authorities add for those who trust
in riches
c. Mark 10:26 Other ancient authorities read to him
“It’s too hard!!” What
parent hasn’t heard this from their kids at one point? Children and youth have
uttered those words about homework, athletics, chores and other areas. Adults can also claim “It’s too hard” when
facing New Year’s Resolutions or getting past an old wound. Often, the words “It’s too hard” paralyzes us
and blocks anything really good from happening.
Today’s Scripture describes a moment where “It’s too hard” would
have been an appropriate response. Not
from a child or an adult, but from God.
25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle
than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 The disciples
were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved? 27 Jesus
looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all
things are possible with God.”
When Jesus sees the rich man and claims that it is difficult for
a ‘very rich’ man to be saved, he doesn’t end the warning with “It’s too hard
for me to save you.” This is truly
Good News. God doesn’t look at our
spiritual condition and say ‘It’s too hard.’
God is resilient.
God keeps at it.
God doesn’t give up on us.
Whether we are ‘very rich,’ very addicted, very codependent, or
very hurt God is not overwhelmed with our condition.
It is not “too hard” for the Persistent, Resilient God.
Regardless of your condition, place yourself in God’s care today
so God can get to work transforming your heart.
Keep at it as God keeps at it.
It may be difficult to become a new creation.
But it isn’t “too hard”
for it to happen.Pastor Steven Blair
www.cor.org/liveforward
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United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, KS 66224 United States
(913)897-0120
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