Friday, October 18, 2013

Just when I think I'm getting it right . . . .

  Blog » Just when I think I'm getting it right . . . .  

Friday, October 18, 2013
Jeff Lampl


       “He is no fool who loses what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose”
         Jim Elliot

What do you make of the following interaction between Jesus and a young man with a great question?  

 As Jesus was starting out on his way to Jerusalem, a man came running up to him,  
 knelt down, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked. “Only God is truly good.
  But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not murder.
  You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. You
  must not cheat anyone. Honor your father and mother.' ”
  “Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was
   young.”    Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one
   thing you haven’t done,”  he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give
  the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow
  me.”
  At this the man’s face fell, and he went away very sad, for he had many
  possessions.
  Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter
  the Kingdom of God!”   This amazed them. But Jesus said again, “Dear children, it is
  very hard to enter the Kingdom of God.
  In fact, 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!”
  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 not
  with God. Everything is possible with God.”
  Then Peter began to speak up. “We’ve given up everything to follow you,” he said.
  “Yes,” Jesus replied, “
and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or
   brothers or 
sisters or
mother or father or children or property, for my sake and for  
   the Good News, will 
receive
now in return a hundred times as many houses,
   brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and p
roperty—along with persecution. And in
   the world to come that person will have eternal life.

   But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who
   seem least important  now will be the greatest then.”   Mark 10:17-31 (NLT)
 

What is your reaction?  Guilt?  Motivation?   Self-justification?   Rationalization?  Immobilized?   Hopeful?   Bribed?
 

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