June 3rd, 2022

With God, the Humble Win

Luke 18:27 NIV

"Jesus replied, 'What is impossible with man is possible with God.'"

      We as humans tend to have a limited mindset, even though we serve a limitless God. Unintentionally, we seem to put these limits on what God can do in our lives and the lives of others because we simply cannot fathom His boundless grace. Here we see the story of The Rich and the Kingdom of God. A man, whom Luke says was a very wealthy ruler, came to Jesus and asked Him what it would take to inherit eternal life. Aside from abiding by the commandments, Jesus tells him that he must sell everything he has and give to the poor, then he would inherit the treasures stored up for him in Heaven. The scripture then tells us that the man left discouraged. Why would he leave discouraged when the secret to eternal life was just given to him, and all he had to do was obey what Jesus had said? Because he's just like many people in this world. We cannot seem to fathom that the riches of Heaven will be greater than the riches we have on this earth, so we hold onto them.

      This shocked the disciples when they heard this. In the Gospel of Matthew, it says they were "astonished. And in the Gospel of Mark, it says they were, "amazed." Why would this be? They had followed Jesus around as witnesses to the amazing things He could do, but why did this account leave them in wonder? Here's why: If a ruler with great wealth, who already follows the commandments cannot gain eternal life, then who can? The lowly. The tax collectors. The fishermen. The nobodies. The humble. And even the apostle Paul, the tent-making Jesus persecutor whom we don't meet until after Jesus' death. People who have little to nothing but put Jesus first place in their hearts. When we have great wealth and an abundance of possessions, it's very easy to make those things a priority over our relationship with God. However, through Christ, whom God sent as a sacrifice for our sins, the sinners who love God and want to do better and be better are the ones who will see eternity. With God, it is possible for even the lowly and humble to meet Jesus over those who find their worth in possessions and wealth. Turns out the first really are last.

I want to encourage you to evaluate your heart. Is it bogged up with possessions? Where in your heart can you eliminate things to make more room for Jesus? Always stay humble!