Second Presbyterian Church

"Who Can Be Saved and Why
Preaching From the Gospel of Luke"
July 3, 2005

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Sermons Homepage » Sermons for 2005 » Sermons for July 2005 » Sermons from the Series on Luke

#56 in the Series on Luke
The Rev. Daniel E. Hale, D. Min.

• Deuteronomy 8: 1-3
• Luke 18: 18-34

What a fascinating story! This incident with Jesus has intrigued Christians throughout the ages. Let's begin with the beginning of the passage. A rich man came up to Jesus and asked him, "Good Teacher, What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus' first response was to "correct" the man and to remind him that only God is Good. Did the man sense who Jesus really was? Did he have an idea that Jesus was the Messiah, was God incarnate? The reader of this lesson must wonder about this. If any man deserved to be called, "good," it was Jesus.

Jesus continued by reciting the 5^th through the 9^th commandments, or what people refer to as the second table of the Law (the 1^st table being 1^st through the 4^th commandments - the ones that directly have to do with God.). The rich man responds that he has kept these commandments since his youth. In other words, he has kept the commandments since his Bar Mitzvah. By the way, that is a fairly significant feat!

Jesus sensed that the man was having trouble. He sensed that this man was not feeling fulfilled by mere obedience of the law. Jesus sensed something was missing in this man's spiritual life. Jesus continued, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have, distribute it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."

The rich man became very sad, because he was very rich. Jesus had sensed correctly what was bothering this man. Although he had become a well behaved man. Although the rich man seemed to have done all the right things, he had broken the first commandment: "You shall have no other gods before me" (Ex 20: 3). The rich man had broken the main commandment of putting God first in his life. It is no wonder that he had developed an acute sense of spiritual emptiness! Despite all his good behavior and good morals, the rich man was committing idolatry! He was placing his dependence of livelihood upon his wealth, not upon God!

One way of looking at this situation is to remember what Jesus said about the little children. That if we desire to be members of the Kingdom of God, then we have to become like one of these little children. The rich man was an example of what one is NOT to become. He represents all of us who depend upon our own means; be it wealth, intelligence, or personality; rather than needing to be totally dependent upon Christ.

The "remedy" that Jesus offered the rich man would have fulfilled his need to become like a child. If the rich man had obeyed Jesus and had sold his wealth, given it to the poor, and come and followed him, then he would have become like a child again. He would have had to confess that he could not depend upon his own means in order to inherit eternal life.

What astounded the disciples and onlookers was Jesus' remark about how difficult it is for a man with wealth to enter the kingdom of God. It astounded the crowd, because the general assumption was that a rich person was on his way to the kingdom of God! They assumed that one's riches were an actual sign or indication of just how blessed by God a person was! Then, Jesus remarks about how impossible it is; it's like a camel going through the eye of a needle. Impossible.

I remember once, while in the 7^th grade, I got into an argument with someone about the Rich Ruler. All my life I had believed that the camel going through the eye of a needle was a literal image. The person I argued with was arguing from another popular perspective: that the eye of the needle was the name of a very small gate into the city of Jerusalem. That when a camel was brought through that gate it had to be completely unloaded, and brought down on its knees and then waddled through. That argument was over 40 years ago and I am pleased to know that most commentators do not believe that Jesus was talking about a small gate into Jerusalem. Jesus was, rather, quoting an old proverb that talks about something impossible to do.

C. S. Lewis put it this way. It is indeed possible to put a large camel through the eye of a needle, but it is extremely hard on the camel.

What's the point? Last week I had said that the point Luke was trying to make can be said with one word, Grace. Luke is now illustrating that same point. One's entrance into the kingdom is a GIFT of God; it is by the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that we enter the kingdom as little children who have nothing on which to rely, except Jesus Christ alone! The astounded disciples were correct; if the rich man cannot save himself, then no one can! Jesus' answer is key: "What is impossible with men is possible with God." A very simple point: only God can bring salvation. We cannot do it for ourselves or for anyone else; only God saves. And it IS possible for God to save, even a rich man!

We have already noted that this is the same point that we made last week. Only here Luke is demonstrating that if a person is to become like a child then he must NOT rely upon his own means to enter eternal life. She must rely on Jesus Christ alone.

Here, again, is the point for you and me. Are we spiritually bereft because we have been relying upon our job, or our savings, or something else to make it through life? Are we trying hard to be good Christians, but forgetting to put God first in our lives? Are we having a hard time becoming like little children, who live and confess our total dependence upon our Lord, Jesus Christ?

I don't really think that Jesus was all that upset with the rich man being so rich. There are rich people and there are poor people. What Jesus realized was that this man was committing idolatry; he was worshiping his wealth more than he was worshiping the LORD.

There are all kinds of barriers that we can place in front of the Lord so that He is pushed back onto the back shelves of our lives. The example from scripture today involved the barrier that riches, or money can place in front of God.

I believe that the passage that follows the story of the rich man explains an aspect of what we are talking about. On the one hand we have the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ who made it possible for us to be saved. In verses 31-35 Jesus made another prediction of his up-coming passion. He was going to Jerusalem and there he would be arrested, flogged, crucified and on the third day be raised from the dead.

On the one hand we have the Grace of Jesus. But in these verses we see just how costly that grace was for Jesus. He had to suffer and die on the cross for our sin. It is a costly grace, not a cheap grace. It is an immeasurable gift for humankind. It is also a gift that, if we choose to receive, demands our total being. It demands that God be placed first in our lives, nothing else.

Good teacher, what must we do to be saved? You can do nothing; Jesus does it all. Just don't allow anything to come before your devotion to Him. Amen.

The Rev. Daniel E. Hale, D. Min.