Randy's Blog

From time to time I'm asked how can we know the will of God for our lives. Right here Jesus gives us the answer that covers the vast majority of our situations - he points us to the Word of God. In other words, the Bible shows us God's will for most every situation we encounter in life. And what I've discovered is a lot of people don't want to hear that. Whether it has to do with business ethics, sexuality, anger, relationships, finances, family or most anything else, God has already told us His will, which always points to building our relationship with Him. It's a matter of reading God's Word, and even more challenging, deciding to live it.

However, in this story from Luke, the rich man claims he's been faithful in all the things spelled out in the commandments. But, he forgets that Jesus doesn't look just at our words and actions - he also looks at our heart. In fact, our heart is the key in our relationship with Christ, because I can do the right things, but for the wrong reasons.

Jesus knows this man's heart, and in his case it is his riches that are getting in the way of the relationship God desires with him. In fact, though he may have outwardly professed the first commandment, that God is first in his life, it appears that his riches are actually in first place in his life (the Bible calls that an idol). So, Jesus tells him to sell all he has and give it to the poor - He calls him on the real state of his heart. Vs. 23 says the man was very sad because he was very rich. Though it doesn't say so, the obvious implication is that the man was unwilling to do this. Jesus then talks about how hard it is for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God.

Some have misunderstood this passage to condemn wealth, but that's not consistent with other passages in the Bible. Rather, what we see is Jesus identifying in this man what kept him from being fully devoted to God - his wealth. Now, the reality is that wealth is often a hindrance to a relationship with Christ. Over two thousand verses in the Bible are related to money and finances (the second most common topic in the Bible) because money can too often become our god (idol), or at least lead us to be overly dependent on it rather than God. It can lead folks to be proud and feel self-sufficient. But, wealth, in and of itself, is not sinful, and God has used the wealth of many people to bring huge blessings to our world.

I think it's worth putting ourselves in the rich man's place and asking Jesus the real question here - what is it that hinders my walk with Christ, that keeps me from being fully devoted? If I ask that question (and I should), and keep asking, and really listen, He's going to show me something that probably needs to go. The question then, will be, am I willing to give up whatever is getting in the way of my relationship with Jesus? I guarantee you it will be hard and may even seem impossible, because only something very important to me could challenge Jesus' rightful place in my life.

But the good news is that we don't have to fight this battle alone. Not only does Jesus recognize what stands in his way in leading our lives, he's ready to help you and me overcome it. His Holy Spirit resides in the person who has dedicated his or her life to Christ to give us the strength we need to do more than we ever imagined was possible. In fact, Jesus says in verse 27, "'What is impossible for people is possible with God.'" God is willing to fight this battle with us. That's our hope, and that's where faith comes in - do I really believe Jesus?

I can't make that decision for you, but if we really want to follow Jesus, we've got to let him help us see what's getting in the way. I hope and pray you'll really ask Him the question!