I Am Rich!

During my more recent visits out to churches, I have been focusing on the idea of finding our satisfaction in God and His Kingdom.  One of the passages that study has taken us to is the story of the rich young ruler in Luke 18.  In spending a great amount of time studying and focusing on this passage and others surrounding it, I was struck by how I and so many other Christian people like me have completely missed the point that Jesus is trying to communicate.  So much focus is given to verses 24 and 25 where Jesus said, “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!  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.”  I have discovered that it isn’t so much what Jesus says here that is important as it is why he said it.  It is so easy to get wrapped up in debating the issue of wealth and riches and whether a Christian can be wealthy or not and if one is wealthy shouldn’t he be giving all of his wealth to the poor as Jesus instructed the rich young ruler in Luke 18.  I am afraid that by entering into that debate or discussion we miss the more central idea that Jesus is trying to teach us.  The main issue was not the man’s wealth, but his heart.  Jesus saw straight into the heart of this man and knew that his delight was in his riches.  He knew that his heart was closer to his money that it was to God.  The context of this entire passage (18:1-30) is the reality of the kingdom of God and our living in it.  James says something about this in James 4:4 and he says it emphatically!  “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God?  Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”  In other words, where are we living?  Are we current, fully engaged, passionate residents of God’s kingdom or are we splitting time between the summer home in Montana and the winter home in Arizona?  Are we like snowbirds living in whatever place best suits us at the time?  The rich young ruler came before Jesus with an excellent question.  However, when Jesus challenged the inner recesses of his heart and demanded full allegiance to God’s kingdom the man’s heart was sad because his allegiances were split.  Jesus demanded that he choose Montana or Arizona.  This passage asks the same of us today.  Anytime the pursuits of this world come between us and God, we need to ask ourselves some serious questions.  Can we honestly pray, “Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” as Jesus did in Matthew 6:10?  If we cannot perhaps it is because we are not really satisfied by the riches of God’s kingdom.  Jesus tells the rich young ruler to sell all he has, give it to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven.  In other words, stop delighting in your earthly riches and delight instead in the riches of God’s kingdom.  Jesus says very clearly in Matthew 6:19 to not store up treasures on earth but instead to store up eternal kingdom treasures.  How are we to take these words of Jesus?  Do we take them literally or is he somehow speaking in symbolic terms?  Personally I see no symbolism here.  The ultimatum is to choose.  Choose earthly treasures or heavenly treasures!  Choose one master not two!  Choose to be delighted in the kingdom of God or the kingdoms of this earth.  Choose to be a faithful lover of God or an adulteress!  In the title of this post, I boldly claim, “I am rich!”  By that I proclaim possession of riches that the most wealthy individuals in the world cannot obtain outside of Jesus Christ.  This proclamation is of living, vibrant and indestructible riches.  Moths, rust, fire, flood or even death cannot take these riches from me and only I can choose to lay them aside for things of much less significance.  These are the riches that Jesus offered to the rich young ruler and that he offers to anyone who would choose to abide in and be fully satisfied with God and his kingdom.  My prayer is that all of us, regardless of where we live or how much earthly wealth we possess, can stand fully in the kingdom of our God and be filled to overflowing by His abundant riches in Christ Jesus and by being fully satisfied we will fully honor and glorify our Lord!