God will probably test our commitment to Him at its weakest, most vulnerable point or points, those areas in our lives that we have made more important than Him.
In 1993 I edited an article on the Rich Young Ruler story (Matt 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30) that was published as “Jerusalem Synoptic Commentary Preview: The Rich Young Ruler Story,” JerPers 38 & 39 (May-Aug. 1993): 3-31. The article included a conjectured Hebrew reconstruction of the story, along with an English translation and commentary.
Collective research on this Gospel passage began in 1986-1987 when sixteen scholars, members of the Jerusalem School of Synoptic Research and others, spent seventeen seminar sessions discussing this well-known story. Following the seminar’s conclusion, I continued working on the raw material generated by our discussions.
For a time, I considered including in the article a section called “Personal Application.” Eventually, I decided to omit it because I felt it was too “devotional.” Upon further reflection, however, I believe I should now publish what I think the Rich Young Ruler story says to each of us about discipleship:
1. One must serve God out of love, in order to please Him, rather than to gain a reward. The rich man was looking for a reward.
2. God will probably test our commitment to Him at its weakest, most vulnerable point or points, those areas in our lives that we have made more important than Him. The weakest link in the rich man’s commitment to God was his love of possessions. Therefore, he was asked to give up his possessions. God probably will test us in a similar way. He will do this for our good, to strengthen areas of weakness in our lives that prevent us from achieving spiritual maturity.
3. We must relearn the lesson of giving to those in need. The rich man was told that he would have treasure in heaven if he distributed his wealth to the poor. We should not forget Jesus’ teaching about giving with a “good eye,” that is, giving generously. If we do this, he promised that we would be full of God’s light, or Holy Spirit.
4. The Rich Young Ruler story illustrates the insidious nature of wealth and the grave spiritual danger it presents. (And we shouldn’t suppose that a great deal of money is required to turn our thoughts from God. One can be just as stingy with a small sum as the rich sometimes are with their millions.) The rich man had become so attached to his possessions that he could not follow Jesus. On another occasion, Jesus warned that there are few who find the narrow gate and the straight way. The love of money is an extra weight that makes finding “life” just that much more difficult.
5. We must count nothing more important than being Jesus’ disciple. Jesus likened being part of the “Kingdom of Heaven,” the term he often used for his band of disciples, to possessing a great treasure.
6. Jesus promised that those who make sacrifices for his sake will receive “much more” in this life. We can take courage from that promise: the happiness we will experience, not just in the next life, but even in this life, will far outweigh the sacrifices we make to follow Jesus.