Wealth: Mark 10:23-25
We need to be vigilant. The world has many ways to pull us away from God. The world can distract us with stuff. The world can confuse us with its logic. The world can make us so busy we don’t have the time to devote to God. The follower of Christ in the modern world must be vigilant.
When the man walks away from Jesus, Jesus knows the disciples need some explanation. Jesus tells them it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a person with wealth to enter the Kingdom of God. The disciples are amazed.
It is necessary to understand what Jesus means by the phrase, “The Kingdom of God.” The Kingdom of God is not a synonym for Heaven. As proof of this, remember John the Baptizer’s teaching. John told us to repent since the Kingdom of God has drawn near. Certainly, John was not teaching that heaven drew near. Thus, Jesus is not teaching that it is hard for wealthy people to go to heaven.
What is the Kingdom of God? John taught repentance. He taught that God changes us. He taught us to look to Christ. The Kingdom of God is the process of God drawing close to us so we are changed. The Kingdom of God is discipleship. The Kingdom of God is following Christ. The Kingdom of God is learning to see the world through God’s eyes and becoming obedient to Him.
This is why Jesus says it is easier for a camel to enter through the eye of the needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God. The rich have a lot of stuff. They are far less likely to need to rely upon God to fulfill their needs because they can do it themselves. The rich also get protective of what they have. They don’t want to think about others and giving away what they do have. Putting this all together, the rich are less likely to feel the need to become like Christ and turn to the Father. The rich provide for themselves.
Let’s get one more thing straight. We’re all rich. We might not feel like it, but everyone in the first world are all rich. How many of us worry about meeting our basic needs of food, water, shelter, and safety? Isn’t our time and effort spent more on our hobbies and our pursuit of entertainment? Don’t we all have cell phones, computers, television (even streaming television on demand), vehicles, houses, and more clothing than we need? We may not feel like it, but our lives of luxury prove it.
We should all, therefore, take Jesus’ critique seriously. It is hard for all of us to enter the Kingdom of God. We have many things to distract us and pull us away from our pursuit of God’s ways. Because we have so much, we need to be vigilant.
