Mark 10:17-31 (NRSV)
Read Mark 10:17-31 on biblegateway.com
Verse 17As 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?" Verse 18Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. Verse 19You 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.'" Verse 20He said to him, "Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth." Verse 21Jesus, 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." Verse 22When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
Verse 23Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" Verse 24And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! Verse 25It 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." Verse 26They were greatly astounded and said to one another, "Then who can be saved?" Verse 27Jesus looked at them and said, "For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible."
Verse 28Peter began to say to him, "Look, we have left everything and followed you." Verse 29Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, Verse 30who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age-houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields with persecutions-and in the age to come eternal life. Verse 31But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."
Devotion
Long ago, Clement of Alexandria read Mark 10 and was disturbed enough to write a work whose Latin title might be translated “Who can possibly be rich and be saved?”
Compared to most of the human family, Americans are just plain wealthy. This is true in the community in which I serve. A demographic study found the annual income of our membership was an estimated $100 million.
We pastors work hard to communicate that these resources do not belong to them but exist for the sake of others. This is a hard message to swallow, and most members do not give abundantly. Such a disappointing reality underlines the importance of Jesus’ response when the disciples ask, “Then, who can be saved?”
“For mortals it is impossible,” Jesus says, “but not for God; for God all things are possible.” Our dogged devotion to our money is certainly cause for condemnation; we are saved only by grace.
Prayer
O God, we are lost without you. Let your grace may make us less dogged in our clinging to wealth. Amen.