Daily Scripture
Mark 10:17 As he was starting on his way, a man ran up, kneeled down in front of him and asked, “Good rabbi, what should I do to obtain eternal life?” 18 Yeshua said to him, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good except God! 19 You know the mitzvot — ‘Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t give false testimony, don’t defraud, honor your father and mother, . . .’”[Mark 10:19 Exodus 20:12–13(16); Deuteronomy 5:16–17(20)]20 “Rabbi,” he said, “I have kept all these since I was a boy.” 21 Yeshua, looking at him, felt love for him and said to him, “You’re missing one thing. Go, sell whatever you own, give to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come, follow me!” 22 Shocked by this word, he went away sad; because he was a wealthy man.
23 Yeshua looked around and said to his talmidim, “How hard it is going to be for people with wealth to enter the Kingdom of God!” 24 The talmidim were astounded at these words; but Yeshua said to them again, “My friends, how hard it is to enter the Kingdom of God! 25 It’s easier for a camel to pass through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God.” 26 They were utterly amazed and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Yeshua looked at them and said, “Humanly, it is impossible, but not with God; with God, everything is possible.” 28 Kefa began saying to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Yeshua said, “Yes! I tell you that there is no one who has left house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, 30 who will not receive a hundred times over, now, in the ‘olam hazeh, homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and lands — with persecutions! — and in the ‘olam haba, eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first!” (Complete Jewish Bible)
Reflection Questions
Jesus told the man who asked about eternal life, “Sell what you own, and give the money to the poor.” The man went sadly 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 worshiping wealth more than we worship God.
- To help us understand the specific focus of Jesus' words, it’s important to remember that God did NOT tell every affluent person in the Bible to sell all they had (e.g. Abraham in the Old Testament, Zacchaeus in Luke 19). 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. Have you ever seriously wrestled with that question? How would you answer Jesus?
Prayer
Lord God, all things are possible for you. Grow in me the wisdom to always value the eternal treasure you offer more highly than any of this earth’s temporary possessions. Amen.
Family Activity
Jesus often shows us the power of forgiveness. Blow up one balloon for each family member. Place them in the center of the room. Invite each family member to choose one along with a marker. Ask each person to draw picture or write words representing something they have done wrong. Read I John 1:9(I John 1:9 If we acknowledge our sins, then, since he is trustworthy and just, he will forgive them and purify us from all wrongdoing) aloud. Explain that this means that no matter what we do, we can tell God we are sorry and God will forgive us. Begin a time of prayer, asking God to forgive what is written on your balloon. After you have prayed, have each person pop his or her balloon, representing God forgiving and forgetting your sin. Continue until each person has prayed and popped their balloon. Thank God for forgiving our sins.
Read today's Insight by Michaela AurandMikaela Aurand is a sophomore at Belton High School. She is active in rezlife Sunday School and youth group.
My schedule can get crazy, jam-packing everyday life with sports, a job, school, and social events. Volleyball is one of the two sports I participate in. I would play for my school in the fall, and then for a club in the winter. Swimming is my other sport and its season is also winter. Last year, I managed to balance school, club volleyball, and swimming for the high school all at the same time. There was only one problem--I was missing a bunch of church, youth group, and YoungLife, another Christian organization I’m involved in. I felt as if I was drifting from God, and only made it to church about twice a month all winter long. Doing both sports on top of my first year of high school was physically, emotionally, and spiritually draining.
This year I began to really invest myself into my amazing Sunday School class and realized that I was spiritually hungry, longing to learn more about God and deepen my faith. When recruiting for club volleyball rolled around, I decided not to join a team. Last minute offers kept popping up, but even though the offers were tempting, I stuck with my decision. I knew that I would be overwhelmed already with school and swimming, but more than anything, I wanted to put God first in my life.
It was hard to let go of volleyball year round, and I missed it at times, but not as much as I thought I would. Volleyball is temporary. Meanwhile, the amazing gift of eternal life from God is everlasting. Jesus told the rich man in Mark 10:21, “Go sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” The man was too blind to see that the treasure in heaven was eternal life while his riches were only temporary, just like volleyball.
Looking back, I am so grateful that I chose to put God first. I started to attend youth group, began to make new friends, and almost never missed Sunday school. I’ve felt the change God has been making in my life, and my faith has continued to grow every day. God wasn’t promising to fix everything if I put God first, but we are promised eternal life. I know that even when my day gets super crazy, I can get through it if I just remember to keep God first. In Mark 10:27, Jesus says, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” So next time I’m making a decision of whether to add something to my busy schedule, I’ll make sure that it won’t take away from church. To have a strong faith you have to have a strong faith community, and I am so glad to call Church of the Resurrection my church family.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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