Dear Friends,
I was reading the 19th chapter of Matthew the other day when the chorus from a Mac Davis 1980 hit came to mind. You may recall his novelty song, “It’s Hard to be Humble.”
“Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way; I can’t wait to look in the mirror, cause I get better lookin’ each day. To know me is to love me; I must be a hell of a man. Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble, But I’m doin’ the best that I can.”
Matthew, Mark and Luke all recount the Story of the Rich Young Man who approached Jesus and asked him what he must do to have eternal life. As we look at the exchange between the two, it may become apparent to you why the Mac Davis song came to my mind. ”Someone came to Jesus with this question: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”
“Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. But to answer your question—if you want to receive eternal life, keep] the commandments.”
“Which ones?” the man asked.” Matthew 19:16-18a (NLT)
Notice the two questions that the young man asked Jesus:
- What good deed must I do … (Not deed(s) — deed!) Looking for Shortcuts?
- Which commandments must I keep?
In Matthew Henry’s Commentary, we read that the young man had approached Jesus “not so much from a desire of further instruction as a demand of the praise of his present fancied perfection, and a challenge to Christ himself to show him any one instance wherein he was deficient.”
Jesus replied: “‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.’[”
“I’ve obeyed all these commandments,” the young man replied. “What else must I do?” Matthew 19:18b-20
At this point, let’s look at the same story in the Book of Mark to pick up an important point that isn’t mentioned in Matthew:
“Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him …” Mark 10:21
Jesus loved the man and wanted to lead him on the path to salvation, but he knew that the responsibilities and temptations associated with wealth would be a stumbling block for the young man.
“Jesus told him, ‘If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’”
But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.” Matthew 19:21-22
Jesus had given the young man his personal formula for achieving true perfection, but his love of the world was too strong for him to forsake his wealth and follow Jesus.
The Story of the Rich Young Man ends with one of the most debated verses in the New Testament: “I’ll say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!” Matthew 19:24
“This is a proverbial expression, denoting a difficulty altogether unconquerable by the art and power of man; nothing less than the almighty grace of God will enable a rich man to get over this difficulty.” – Matthew Henry’s Commentary
The exchange between Jesus and his disciples that followed, makes it clear that the path to salvation is not one that can be traversed based on human effort alone. “The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.
Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” Matthew 19:25-26
I can imagine the rich man dejectedly walked away from Jesus thinking, “Lord, it’s hard to be humble, but I’m doing the best that I can.”
The Story of the Rich Young Man challenges us to ask the question, “What do I treasure more than I treasure my relationship with the Lord? Put another way, if the Lord said to give up “X” to gain salvation — what would your “X” be? Rich or poor, each of us faces our own stumbling blocks on our walk with the Lord. Sometimes we may feel that it is impossible for us to walk without stumbling. In times like these, we need to remember, “With God everything is possible.”
Verse for the Week:
“Those who love your instructions have great peace and do not stumble.”
Psalm 119:165
Blessings,
Your friends in Christ
Because He Loves Us Press 