Mark 10:23-31 (Pentecost 22B)
St. John, Galveston 10/20/24
Rev. Alan Taylor

+ In Nomine Jesu +

Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

    There are several interesting and very pertinent aspects to the Gospel reading for this morning. It’s actually a continuation of last Sunday’s reading from Mark 10. A rich man had asked Jesus what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. He thought he had kept all of God’s commandments and was, therefore, worthy of the Kingdom. Jesus told him to go and sell everything he had and give it to the poor and come and follow Him. With that, the man went away sad because he had many possessions. In other words, he was very wealthy and he wasn’t willing to give up his wealth in order to follow Jesus. And so, while he thought he had kept the commandments, he had actually stumbled most grievously over the very first commandment, where God says, “you shall have no others gods before Me.”

    Today’s reading begins right after that encounter. “Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! 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.” And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”

    The first thing that stands out in this passage, at least as I read it, is the reaction of the disciples to what Jesus said about the wealthy. Two times, Mark tells us that they were amazed by what He said. In fact, when Jesus said, “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, Mark says the disciples were “exceedingly amazed.”

    What was it about what Jesus said regarding the wealthy that amazed the disciples? Well, on the one hand, they may have been amazed because Jesus’ comment seemed to contradict the universal nature of God’s grace. The Scriptures say, “God would have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” All men means men and women, rich and poor, young and old, people of every nation and every race. And, of course, aside from God’s desire to save all people is the fact that we are all caught in the same mire of sin and death. Jesus, singling out the wealthy as having a difficult time entering the kingdom, may be, at least in part, what amazed the disciples.

    It’s more likely though that they were amazed by something else. This is where I think today’s reading is especially pertinent to us today. You see, the disciples, as well as many others in the 1st century, had a particular view of the wealthy, especially as their wealth related to their standing before God. In the minds of many people, the wealthy were especially favored by God. Overall, great wealth was considered a sign of God’s favor and blessing, while poverty, was considered a sign of His disfavor. That being the case, the disciples were amazed when Jesus talked about how difficult it would be for those who were rich to enter the kingdom of God. What He said was contrary to what they had long believed about riches and poverty. This is why, when Jesus said, “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 asked Him, “who then can be saved?” If it’s difficult for the rich to be saved, then who can be saved?

    Unfortunately, what the disciples believed about those who were wealthy, is still believed by many people today. Riches, some would say, are evidence of God’s favor, while poverty is evidence of His disfavor. If we look at this morning’s Gospel reading though, in light of other passages in the Bible, we come to better understand the point Jesus was making about money and about those who are rich. In Proverbs 30, Solomon spoke to God, saying, “Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.”

    You see, there is nothing particularly sinister about riches, nor is there anything virtuous about poverty. In fact, both riches and poverty pose particular temptations and stumbling blocks to our faith. With riches, we are tempted to deny God, because we perceive that we have all that we need. In poverty, we are tempted to profane, or curse the name of God because we lack.

    In a 1529 sermon on the subject of money, Luther wrote, “Money is the most popular idol on earth.” “He who has money and goods (he said) considers himself secure, is happy and unafraid, as if he were sitting in the midst of Paradise. And, again, he who has none doubts and is despondent as though he knew no God. For you will find very few who are of good cheer, who neither mourn nor complain if they do not have mammon. This love of money clings firmly to human nature to the very grave.”

    “Who then can be saved, the disciples asked?” “With man, Jesus said, (salvation) is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” This is ultimately where Jesus wants to take us this morning, on the basis of this reading, namely to the miraculous working of the Holy Spirit to accomplish in and for us, what is impossible for us to accomplish on our own.

    There are, in life, many threats to our salvation, and those threats, as well as our own sinfulness, make it impossible for us to gain salvation on our merits. The forgiveness of your sins, even the sin of the love of money, is objectively forgiven because Jesus made atonement for that sin and every sin when He died on the cross. The One who knew no sin, became sin, the Scriptures say, that you might be the very righteousness of God in Him. That is an objective reality. It’s true whether or not you or anyone else believes it.

    It is faith, of course, that apprehends that and other promises of God. Faith is where God works the impossible in you. There is a professor at one of our LCMS seminaries who surmises that the rich young man in last Sunday’s Gospel reading, was, in fact, Mark himself, the writer of the Gospel that bears his name. “Look at him running up to Jesus (he says). He cares. He’s enthusiastic. He kneels before the Lord, showing deference and humility. He asked Jesus the kind of question for which he hoped to get a gold star, like a student wanting so badly to please his teacher. You know the commandments (says Jesus). Indeed, Mark did know the commandments.

    What did the young man really want? To be follower of Jesus, a disciple, to join the band of the other apostles. But was he ready? James and John left their father Zebedee in the boat when Jesus called them. But, Mark, if this man is, in fact, isn’t ready. He’s too in love with his possessions to leave them behind.

    Still, Jesus loved him. What was impossible for Mark, was not so for God. Mark, it seems, needed some time to grow up. Time to figure out what life is all about. To figure out that it’s not about money. In the end, the real treasure is Jesus Himself. He’s the One that looks at all of us, at all of you, and loves you despite the sin that so easily entangles.

“How vast Your mercy to accept
The burden of our sin
And bow Your head in cruel death
To make us clean again.”

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting.

+ Soli Deo Gloria +