As we have followed Jesus’ teaching and the training of the Twelve through the Gospels, we have seen Him emphasize this issue of dependence. Having taught the concept in the Sermon on the Mount, He sent the disciples out in pairs to proclaim the Kingdom, and to experience God’s daily provision for their personal needs. In feeding the multitudes, He stretched them further, putting them in positions where they had to trust Him, not only for themselves, but also for the needs of those they were ministering to.
Now, let’s look at His interaction with the Rich Young Ruler (Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30), where He will stretch the disciples further yet.
He is approached by a man whom Luke identifies as a ruler, asking Him how to obtain eternal life. Glancing ahead in the story, we see Jesus tell him, “Sell all you have, give it to the poor, and come follow me.”
So, let me ask you, when the man asks, “What must I do to obtain/inherit eternal life?,” what is the question you hear him asking?
If you’re like me, it sounds a lot like he is asking, “How can I go to heaven when I die?”
And, it sounds like Jesus is saying that to go to heaven when I die, I must sell everything I have and give it to the poor.
Which sounds a lot like works salvation, and goes against everything Paul says about justification by faith. It also misunderstands Jesus’ answer.
To rectify this, we must put it into the context of The Story.
As we have said before, through Scripture, God is telling us, not just a story, but The Story. It has plots, subplots, climax, conflict, suspense, mystery, heartbreak, triumph, and a myriad of characters, both heroes and villains – all of the things that make a story. And it has an ending. But to understand all of this, we need to know the beginning, because it is in the beginning that we find out what The Story is all about.
So, let’s return to Genesis – to The Beginning.
Genesis is, itself, a series of smaller stories that tell us about the beginnings of many of the things that we will need to be familiar with to understand The Story
In the first story of Genesis (1:1-2:3), we are introduced to the beginning of the world in which we live. God orders and fills it, and places man in it to rule over it as His representative, and to continue to filling it. At the end of this first story, everything is good.
The next story (2:4-4:26) tells us what happened to this original creation. In it, God forms a garden with abundant food and water. It is full of provisions and beauty. He places man in the middle of all this, with instructions to care for it.
The man may eat freely of any tree in the garden, but if he eats from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he will die. The implication is that he has life, but will loose it if he eats of this tree.
Finally, God provides him a wife – someone to share life with, to compliment him, filling in areas where he is lacking. Both of them are completely naked and unashamed. No fear or hiding. No sense of vulnerability or fear of exploitation.
But then, along comes one of the creatures he is to rule over – a snake. This snake proceeds to upend the established order, convincing the woman, and through her, the man, that they can become like God. They just have to do the one thing that God told them not to do – eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
So, they eat, and assume for themselves the right to determine what is good and what is evil.
But this didn’t go like they planned. The serpent had made being like God sound positive, but the results were anything but. Immediately, the world in which the man and woman lived changed. Where there had been freedom and trust, there was now shame, hiding, and accusation. The oneness of the marriage relationship has turned to conflict. Abundant provision has become futility. And the prospect of living forever is now gone. Death is everywhere. They will return to dust. Animals are slaughtered to cover their shame. And they are barred from access to the tree of life.
From this point on, every character to enter The Story will face Life and Death.
In the realm of Life, there is abundant provision, beauty, relationships, freedom, and eternity.
On the other hand, the realm of Death brings, not only the prospect of physical death, but shame, hiding, accusation, conflict, sorrow, and futility.
And, just as there are two realms, there are two paths.
The path leading to the realm of Life requires only one thing – faith. That we believe in God and in His goodness. It is the path dictated by His agenda. It is a path of trust and dependence.
The other path involves the active pursuit of life. It involves taking command of your own destiny, making the right choices, being master of your own fate. It is the path of independence and control. But it is the path to death.
Throughout The Story, these are the only two options. And each character must choose.
And it is this choice which brings the Rich Young Ruler to Jesus.
We will return to his question, and ours, next week.