The Rich Young Man

By Grant Marshall

In Mark 9:17, we read the story of the rich young man, which, on the surface, addresses a question relating to his eternal future. It is a wonderful encounter that allows Jesus to answer a question posed by someone who is comfortable in his religious practice and assumes that his place in the afterlife is already secure. What made the young man ask the question, do you think?

Did he overhear the discussion between Jesus and his disciples in Mark 8. Did he hear Jesus speaking about who would be the greatest in the kingdom and how his followers must become servants the least among others?

The story reveals that the young man ran to Jesus and knelt before Him. It states that he had followed all the tenets of the Jewish faith. Jesus acknowledges his religious commitment but points out that he has overlooked one thing.

Jesus tells him this: “You lack one thing: go, sell all you have, and give to the poor; then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me.”

How can selling your belongings and following Christ be seen as negligible?

Is there something more to this story? We could argue that a person who has very little does not have to give up much, but the little he has may be a fortune, and that a person who has wealth has much more to give up. However, Jesus continues to tell us how difficult it is for wealthy people to enter the kingdom of heaven. With great wealth comes status, and men like both. It is the reward of those who do not seek either of them to receive the gift of eternal life in the kingdom.

Jesus said the greatest must become the least. There is nothing wrong with having great wealth. God has given us the power to create it after all.

Deut 8:18. But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today

How we obtain it and use it is the problem. Wealth is given by God to His children to be distributed for kingdom works - to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, house the homeless, sustain His ministers and propagate the message of the gospel. It should never be used for self-gain.

Unfortunately, we see so many abusing this privilege with lavish lifestyles among celebrities and finding the best seats among our feasts.

A true minister of the Lord, however, must be allowed to share in the wealth of his flock. It is his job to serve them, but he must not live in a manner that is above the poorest of them. Wealth must be evenly distributed so that all who live in his field, can share and prosper equally.

It is obvious, in the story of the young man, that he had much to contemplate. He thought that a religious life would be all that is required of him. Giving up his wealth had not occurred to him.

However, Jesus is not asking the young man to become poor. He is asking him to sell all that he has to create better wealth, a storehouse of supply that could be distributed to the needs of the poor.

Friends, the human community is incredibly diverse. We are of many parts, yet we are one body. Each part of the body, even in the human body, serves another part. What would happen if the hand refused to make the food we eat, or the mouth chose to experience the delights of the taste of food and refused to allow it to be swallowed? The body would starve.

Have you considered how God is calling you? Some of us must remain in our positions, and serve others by gaining wealth through our occupations. Others must distribute the wealth to where it is needed. Some of us are called to be shepherds, others as managers and others as workers in the field. Yet not one of them sees themselves as higher than the other. Together, we gain promotion through our endeavours on our master’s estate.

We might also consider a conversation that might have taken place before He came to earth.

Do you think that the Father decided one day to place His son in the womb of a virgin without discussing it with His son? I don’t think he did. I believe that the conversation was not one around the dinner table. Knowing the cost, Jesus said, ‘Send me, I will go!’

If we consider that Jesus is asking too much of us we must remind ourselves that the King of Heaven became the least among men. He gave up his earthly work, accepting the commission He had agreed with His Father. Jesus, wearing the simple everyday garments of a working man, completed His mission drenched in his blood and the spit of those who hated him. He did not wear the rich robes He once wore in heaven that would identify Him as anyone special. He became like us, showing us that we can become like Him if we choose to accept the cost.

Friends, being a disciple of Christ is a position that must not be taken lightly. It is a position of great responsibility, watched and overseen by Christ.

When we consider the gospel stories, we see that they are full of the accounts of people and their lives. Though some are mentioned in a little more detail, we must be aware that the gospels are not about them. Otherwise, it would not be about Jesus.

That’s why we do not know what the rich young man did once he had left the group. Maybe he went on to do greater things. I pray that he did.

With God all things are possible.

Shalom