Mark 10:17-31 Living Bible (TLB)
The Rich Young Ruler
17 As he was starting out on a trip, a man came running to him and knelt down and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get to heaven?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked. “Only God is truly good!19 But as for your question—you know the commandments: don’t kill, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, respect your father and mother.”
20 “Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve never once[a] broken a single one of those laws.”
21 Jesus felt genuine love for this man as he looked at him. “You lack only one thing,” he told him; “go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor—and you shall have treasure in heaven—and come, follow me.”
22 Then the man’s face fell, and he went sadly away, for he was very rich.
23 Jesus watched him go, then turned around and said to his disciples,“It’s almost impossible for the rich to get into the Kingdom of God!”
24 This amazed them. So Jesus said it again: “Dear children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches[b] to enter the Kingdom of God. 25 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.”
26 The disciples were incredulous! “Then who in the world can be saved, if not a rich man?” they asked.
27 Jesus looked at them intently, then said, “Without God, it is utterly impossible. But with God everything is possible.”
28 Then Peter began to mention all that he and the other disciples had left behind. “We’ve given up everything to follow you,” he said.
29 And Jesus replied, “Let me assure you that no one has ever given up anything—home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or property—for love of me and to tell others the Good News, 30 who won’t be given back, a hundred times over, homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—with persecutions!
“All these will be his here on earth, and in the world to come he shall have eternal life. 31 But many people who seem to be important now will be the least important then; and many who are considered least here shall be greatest there.”
Personal Insights
Warren Wiersbe said of this rich young ruler “Of all the people who ever came to the feet of Jesus, this man is the only one who went away worse than he came.” How sad that a man has an encounter with Jesus and walks away rejecting what Jesus had to offer. He chose the things of this world over what Jesus could give him….eternal life.
Jesus challenged the ruler on the way he greeted Him. It was an unusual form of address at that time. He pushed the ruler to realise that by calling Him good he was implying that Jesus was God. As one writer said “He was telling a self-centered and self-righteous man that only God is truly good”.
This young man thought he could earn his salvation. He asked Jesus what he needed to do to earn salvation. When he got the answer he was disheartened and sorrowful. He was not willing to give up what he had on this earth for the eternal. He had a superficial view of salvation.
Jesus used this situation as a teaching point for His disciples. Jesus said it is difficult for people to enter the Kingdom of God. It is not something we can do on our own. According to verse 27 Jesus says it is impossible but with God it is possible.
In contrast Peter expressed to Jesus that he and the disciples have given up everything to follow Him so what would their reward be. Jesus assured Peter that if he followed Him he would gain much including eternal life, however, there would be persecutions along the way. “God balances blessings with battles, developing mature sons and daughters” (Warren Wiersbe)
What is it that we are unwilling to give up for God? It might not be riches or wealth but it could be something else. The story of the Rich Young Ruler is a good reminder for us to examine our priorities. Is there anything in our life that we put before God? On the outside we might look like the ideal Christian and yet on the inside it might be something very different. Jesus says in John 10:10b “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly”. However, we need to be obedient to the Good Shepherd. There is blessing in obedience. This young ruler missed out on the greatest gift ever and settled for second best. Let us not follow his example.
