This man or young man that came to Jesus was a notable according to many translations, which means that he was a member of a Jewish synagogue or of the Jewish leadership (the Sanhedrin). He calls Jesus “good”. This is an excess in praise since he didn’t know that Christ is God and God is the only worthy for this praise or glorification. His question about what shall he do to inherit the eternal life shows that he thinks that he has to do organized or a lot of work in order to gain the eternal life. The Lord mentions to him some commandments as an example. Was the young man looking for something other that the commandments or was he convinced with his righteousness?
The Lord knew that some of the people murmur the commandments but don’t have a true encounter with God. Jesus gives him a behavior that the Jews didn’t know. “Sell all that you have”. The Jews used to think that wealth and property are from God’s blessings.
You are ought not to let the love of the worldly things enter your heart, and to make your heart in the kingdom of God which is the eternal life that you asked for. If you distributed, i.e. if your heart became separated from the love of money and this world, then you shall have a treasure in the heaven. After that, he told him: “Come, follow me”.
Why follow a human being (according to this man’s case his name is Jesus)? If he followed him, he would have understood that this man is not just a human being. This leader was attached to money and maybe to his religious position in the Jewish community.
To get dissociated from everything is a big adventure for him. How could he secure his living and stability? Does he only stay with God? This does not give him a feeling of tranquility, and this is why he got sad and left Jesus. If the liberation from the attachment to the world is a prerequisite to obtain the kingdom, this means that he should choose between the kingdom and this world. This is a difficult thing that the Gospel expressed by saying that this man got sad and didn’t want to adopt the direction that the Lord offered him.
This is why the Lord said: “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God”. The hearts of those are in their treasures or their treasures are in their hearts. Then the difficulty became harder when the Lord said: “For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God”.
For if a person saw that the amount of his money is increasing, he should be aware of the danger on his salvation. This salvation is threatened. If he took his money out of his heart, what does he put in its place? He puts Christ, and deals with the money according to the need. He worships only God then he becomes a free man. In his freedom he can be saved. He distributes a lot so that he doesn’t fall in love with what’s left in his box or bank account. There is no limit for this distribution. The heart that’s inhabited by the Lord can contain a lot, and God, its inhabitant, inspires it to give a lot.
Our situation today in Lebanon is a reminder to the rich and wealthy that there are a lot of poor people and that they need the tenderness of God and this tenderness comes to them from that that has money and love. God will ask you about that person that was close to hunger. If you were able to save his children from death, God will write this for you in the book of life.
Translated by Mark Najjar
Original Text: “ما الحياة الأبدية؟” – 28.11.2010-Raiati no48
