The Rich Young Ruler

 

The Rich Young Ruler
Matthew 19:16-22 Mark10:17-21 Luke18:18-22

17 Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?”
18 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Do not defraud,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’”^[a]
20 And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.”
21 Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”
22 But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

I love these short parables that give me just enough information, that I’m left with wanting something more, something deeper.

I’ve got all kinds of questions about the Rich Young Ruler ?

• Where was Jesus going?
• Is it important?
• Who is this man that came running?
• Why did he kneel before Jesus?
• Why does he call Jesus good?
• If he only gets to ask one question, why does he ask this one?
• Why does Jesus quote parts of the 10 commandments?
• Why does the ruler say here’s kept them?
• How does Jesus know what he lacks?
• Why does Jesus respond with follow me?
• Why exactly was he sad about his possessions?

….Where to start (this may not all be right, but it’s the conclusion I come to)

I think Jesus is headed towards Jericho

Jericho was a wealthy city, it’s where a lot of the religious big shots lived, I don’t know if that’s where he was going, or just passing through because it was the last city between Galilee and Jerusalem.

So this man as we learn from the title of the parable is a rich young ruler, he’s part of the group of men that run the synagogue. The fact that he’s running after Jesus has to be humbling, and shows a bit of desperation. I have this image of Jesus gathering the disciples, gathering their stuff, and starting out on their trip. Then here comes this synagogue ruler that heard Jesus was in town, and he needs to talk to Jesus so badly that he begins to run. When he finds him he kneels, which is the standard show of respect to a rabbi.

He then calls Jesus good, which seems to hack Jesus off quite a bit. I don’t think it’s because it was meant as an insult of any kind. But before Jesus is this ruler who has spent his life watching peoples need at the synagogue while becoming very wealthy. His wealth is the by-product of peoples needs. I imagine he sees people everyday that he deems as worse then him. His money has probably played a role in hardening his heart, to the point when he points his finger, and judges and thinks he has all the answers. He calls Jesus not only good but good teacher, and it makes Jesus angry. This man doesn’t get it, he believes Jesus is a good teacher, but not the son of God. This mans heart has become religious because of his lifestyle that he can’t even recognize Jesus as saviour even though his job is to instruct people in how to live the best Godly life possible.

If you’ve got one question for Jesus what is it?

This man ask “what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?”

It’s a very Jewish question to ask, again this mans job was suppose to be devoted to helping people live a kind of life that would help them obtain olam haba, Life in the world to come. It’s the big question of every good Jew. This man for some reason thought Jesus had the answer. So Jesus says (sarcastically I hope) to his question ” Oh, I don’t know you just have to kept the 10 commandments, no big deal, it’s a cake walk”. To which the man says ” Oh, I have, my whole life”. The whole point of the 10 commandments was to prove you weren’t good enough on your own to be righteous, and this mans heart is so arrogant that he actually believe he’s kept them all.

At this point there is a beautiful line “…Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him…”

It’s important to remember that Jesus can diagnose your heart in just a few sentences, he know what this man is lacking. He looked at him and must of know what he did for a living by the way he looked. Much the way certain profession have uniforms today.

Jesus says get rid of your wealth and follow me

Which is what a rabbi says to people that he has called to be disciples, the same phrase Jesus says to Peter and Andrew and John, etc.. Jesus is offering to teach this man as a disciple. Because he doesn’t understand that getting olam haba is about doing one thing, or believing the right stuff. It’s about the way you live here and now, it’s about bringing parts of heaven to earth. Maybe Jesus knew this man wouldn’t understand if he told him, so he offered to show him. Which in reality isn’t an answer to the mans question.

And the rich young ruler went away sad because he had “great possessions”. I find the word young interesting, in a culture where you married in your teens, and become adults in your teens, I can’t help imagine this man is in his teens. So how’d he become so rich, so young, and acquire so many possessions.

Jewish society worked like a cast system where if your father was a farmer you were a farmer, if your father was a fisherman you were a fisherman. I would guess this mans father was a synagogue ruler, so this man has been rich his whole life. It’s the only life he knows, maybe that’s why it says “…Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him…” Jesus knows he doesn’t know any better, he’s just living what he’s seen his whole life. He’s always been rich, he probably inherited a lot of possessions from his father or even grandfather.

When I was 15, in Sunday school one week we had to pick a character from the bible. Of course all the guys choose disciples, and the girls were Esther or Mary Magdeline. I choose The Rich young Ruler, that successfully stopped all conversation. This game works great as an ice breaker at parties too.

To me it’s always been about more then a story about a guy with money. I saw this man who has great morals, knows right from wrong. Yet he realizes that no matter how good he is, he’s missing something, he’s incomplete. And in his conversation with Jesus on what is it that I’m missing Jesus says I could tell you, but I’d rather show you. Jesus then picks out the very thing in his life that is preventing him from following Jesus. He wants this man to get rid of whats making him so comfortable. The man weighs the cost of following Jesus and walks away and some versions say he grieves, Like he wanted to follow Jesus but he just couldn’t, like his wealth was an addiction.

I’ve been there most of my life, at the feet of Jesus weighing the cost of following him. I have the desire, yet there is something so comfortable about the way I live my life. I know how this man feels. No matter how good my morals and ethics are it isn’t the same as a passionate relationship with Jesus.

Jesus has invited me and you to passionately pursue him

Whats stopping us?

We Have Good Kids.

 We have good kids.

Jack was watching Noggin and they had the service announcement about the Get Ready to Read campaign and how you can support getttng books to kids that don’t have any.

He was extremely concerned that some kids “really don’t have any books!” So we got online and donated $5, it buys 2 books.

He was pretty stinkin excited.

Church is not an Art Gallery

Church is not an Art Gallery
Where we hang our best pieces on the wall and stick expensive price tags on them so we can try and impress people.

Church is a recycling center
A place we bring our junk so God can tear it apart and make it into something new.

Jairus

I was doing some studying yesterday, and what I was reading about cross referenced Matthew 9:18

18 While He spoke these things to them, behold, a ruler came and worshiped Him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay Your hand on her and she will live.” (New King James Version)

I got totally side tracked, I know it doesn’t look that exciting, but there’s a whole story beneath the surface.

So if you will, I’ll give you glimpse into how I connect the dots.

• first who is this man that comes to Jesus?

• Then what does it mean to be a “ruler”?

The same story is told in Mark 5:22

22 And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet

so we know it’s Jairus, and he’s one of the rulers of the synagogue

Which leads me to ask

• What does a synagogue ruler do, and how does it effect the way he sees Jesus?

The word for ruler here is Arcon, It’s the same word used in Luke 18:18

18 Now a certain ruler (Arcon) asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

This is the parable of “The Rich Young Ruler”

Now he’s one of the rulers of the synagogue, from my understanding There’s a group of men who would run and oversee the synagogue. The synagogue in the first century was the center of the community, everyone went to the synagogue, to pray, to learn, to celebrate. It was the social, economical, and political center. And the rulers of the synagogue were very wealthy because of the importance the synagogue had in daily life.

So I conclude that Jairus is a wealthy man.

If your co-owner of a business, where would you spend your time? at work

I imagine Jairus spent a lot of time at the synagogue

watching people.

Imagine what that does to your heart when your in authority, and your success is based on people having needs.

I think it wouldn’t take your ego long, if left unchecked, for you to feel like your better than them.

And remember it wasn’t the people that rejected Jesus, it was the Pharisees and Rulers.

So Jairus is suppose to reject Jesus, Jesus has done nothing but make his job harder, He has threatened his lifestyle by condemning those in authority.

Yet in Jairus‘ time of need he didn’t run to the Pharisees or the other rulers, he ran to the feet of Jesus.

Why?

What happened to Jairus that made him believe Jesus was different.

Mark 1:21-28

21 Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. 22 And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes…..28 And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

Jesus teaches in the synagogue at Capernaum, Jairus‘ synagogue. He teaches and heals a man, and their amazed because their local Rabbi, and Pharisees can’t.

So even though Jairus shouldn’t associate with Jesus, He can’t dismiss what he saw and heard.

When Jairus runs to the feet of Jesus and bows and begins to worship and beg Jesus. It has to be in total repentance, and acknowledgement that your way is better than mine, and I can’t save my daughter, but you can.

There’s a whole shift in power going on beneath the surface

It’s simply beautiful .

Why Do You Read My Blog?

Am I too negative about the church?

I went back and looked at every post I’ve written for my blog, that’s 142 post.

I think theres 4 that are too negative.

I think most my post are just really honest with how I feel, or what I’m going through. There are times when I’m wrong and I know it, but The post are about my journey. There are times when it’s really messy, and so I have to sort things out.

It’s hard to portray emotion in a blog. I’m a skeptic, and a cynic, and sarcastic.

I’m not afraid to ask questions about my faith and my God, I believe he’s big enough to handle anything I’m going through.

I go out of my way to NOT name drop, and talk about specif events because I know people want me to smash the church, so they have something to talk about. People don’t slow down on the highway to look at an accident because they care, they just want to see how bad it is.

For me though, If I have any shot at fitting in a communtiy, and finding a place for myself in a church setting, I have to go through some heavy stuff, and sort it out. God’s bringing me back around, So I say all this stuff on my blog to help me get back to where I want to be.

In Church, helping People, loving People.

I hope people don’t miss-read what I say here, but if you do, leave me a comment, I’ll get back to you.

In the mean time I have to ask.

why do you read my blog?

A. Do you value what I say?
B. Is it challenging your relationship with God?
C. Or do you just want to see a “car accident” so you have something to talk about?

It’s ok to be really honest and say “C”.
But I hope at some point I can move you from “C” to “B”.

Because that’s what I care about.

What Color Are You? 6 of 6 // Conclusion

My Conclusion
I think all we’ve learned about politics is that the more you read, the messier it gets. I can’t say there’s a party that I’m proud to be affiliated with. Picking a President is a crap shoot, We just go with the guy we think will least screw it up.

Others vote based only on issues, some vote based on candidates experience and history. Still others base their vote on the candidates morals. None of these formulas are wrong, we all get there a different way.

But what if we’ve got it all backwards? What would happen if we stopped electing politicians and started electing someone else, an entertaining, an actor, an news reporter. Some one who was a great motivational speaker. Let congress and the house run the country, and Let the President be the spokesman for the country. Lets find someone who communicates well, and has great presence like; John Stewart, Dan Rather, or that guy from 20/20 John Stossel.

One thing is for sure, the issues will never go away.

I do find it interesting, if next year it comes down to Democrat Barack Obama, Republican Rudy Giuliani, and maybe an Independent like Bloomberg or Gore.

What are we suppose do?

Vote for the first black President, a Republican that supports abortion and gay rights, or elect an underdog third party.

This is only going to get messier.

•So what color are you? A little of Red, a little of Blue, and A little of Green

•What color are your friends? A little of Red, a little of Blue, and A little of Green

•What color is your Church? A little of Red, a little of Blue, and A little of Green

•What color is your faith?  A little of Red, a little of Blue, and A little of Green

Men Are MeatHeads

* This is the begin of a rant, If your man, and even better a Christian man and I haven’t offended you yet, this may be your turn.

I’m Sick of “Men” miss treating their wives, Your not better then her because your a man, or you make more money, or you have a college degree, or your more holy. so stop it

Stop talking down to her

Stop manipulating her

Stop making her feel unworthy

Stop making her feel like shes indebted to you

Stop making her feel like shes a second class citizen

Stop ignoring her feelings

Stop criticizing her

Stop making jokes about her to your buddies

Stop fantiazinng about having sex with other women

Why do you do these things? Because your a MeatHead

And if you a man and your not married yet and you do these things and can’t stop, Then don’t get married, because your a MeatHead too!

Ok, I think my rants over.

The truth is there is a little bit of all of us on that list. And if you don’t make a intentional decsion to not be like “that”, then you already are “that”

Maybe in Gods plan he uses women to stop us from becoming like that. Maybe he uses women to save us from ourselves.

All I know is that if your Wife is not your best friend, Your doing something wrong.

Yes! These Are Heart Issues

First I have no problem posting a comment where you don’t agree with me, it doesn’t hurt my feelings. I just don’t post comments from “Anonymous" people.

Anyways,

•If you have 5 or 6 speeding tickets on your record right now….that’s a heart issue

•If you have drive a $50,000 or $60,000 SUV or car…..that’s a heart issue

•If you live in a half million dollar home….that’s a heart issue

•If you think because your wife is a stay at home mom so she doesn’t work as hard as you….that’s a heart issue

•If you think taking a second job making less money to support your family is beneath you…that’s a heart issue

•If your over weight and there’s no medical reason why you should be…that’s a heart issue

Ok, I get some people don’t understand the point I’m trying to make, or you think I’m a complete loose cannon. And I’m ok with that.

The first 3 are statements are completely unfair, because I’m not in those categories, and if I were I might feel differently, but I hope not.

But the last 3 are things I have had to deal with, and am dealing with. So I don’t mind stinging myself too.

If you don’t get it, I don’t have the time other than to say:

What you believe and how you think effect everything you do.

So it’s not that you speed, it’s why do you feel like you have to

It’s not that you need a car, it’s why do you feel you need that one

It’s not that you need a house, It’s why do you feel you need that one

It’s not that you work harder than your wife, It’s why do you feel that way

It’s not that your against a second job, It’s why won’t you work “there”

It’s not that your overweight, It’s why aren’t you doing anything about it

I don’t know just spend 10 seconds and think about your heart issues

Bloomberg Becomes Independent

Read the Article

Mayor Michael Bloomberg changes his party affiliation from “Republican” to “unaffiliated”.

Interesting

I guess he was a life long Democrat, but changed to Republican in order get elected In New York. It seems he thinks from the article that people are tired of political parties and are looking for something different. That maybe true, but can an independent really win? I admit I know more about Bloomburg as a business man than as a politician, and this seems like a “business” move.

If nothing else it should make 2008 even more interesting.

Hilary Clinton Sopranos Video

* IF you can’t see the video check it out on YouTube

It seems to me who ever is in charge of Hilary’s public image, is trying to make her more likable.