A Different Kind of Wealth

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Good morning Chapel family. We’re taking this winter to walk through the Gospel of Mark. And any time you’re teaching the life of Jesus, there’s a topic that it’s tempting to avoid—because it’s very personal and private, and sometimes people get defensive when you bring it up. Do you know the topic I’m talking about? Money. You cannot get away from the fact that Jesus talked about money all the time. He obviously thought it was important.

In fact, in today’s passage, a man comes up to Jesus and asks him a very spiritual question: “What do I need to do to get eternal life.” And Jesus winds up talking to him about his money. Why? Why didn’t Jesus just stick to spiritual things? Well, because money actually is a spiritual thing. And Jesus knew that the way we view money affects our relationship with God deeply.

So…I want to invite you to let down your guard and allow Jesus to speak into this area of your life.

Mark chapter 10, verses 17 to 27. Let’s hear the Word of God…

17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’[d]”

20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is[e] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” This is the Word of the Lord.

So, three points today. Here’s the first one: Tested by Jesus. So this man runs up to Jesus and falls on his knees in front of him. If you read Luke’s version of this event, you find out this man is a ruler—it doesn’t say what kind, but he has some kind of position of leadership. In Matthew, you find out he’s a young man. And all three Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—tell us he’s a wealthy man. So this is a guy who has a lot going for him; the energy of youth; the power of wealth; and a prominent position in the community.

And yet, he’s smart enough to know that he’s not immortal. He’s going to die someday. And he’s not exactly sure what’s going to happen after that. So he approaches Jesus with this profound question: Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?

And Jesus says, “Why do you call me good?” No one is good—except God alone.” Have you noticed how often Jesus did that? Answering a question with another question? That was a very common approach of rabbis. You might have heard about the student who went up to his rabbi, and he said, “Teacher, why is it that whenever I ask you a question, you always answer with another question?” And the rabbi said, “Does it bother you that I answer your question with another question?” (That was a New York rabbi by the way).

But rabbis did that all the time! Why? To make you think. To make you examine your own question and your own assumptions. “Why do you call me good? Everybody knows the only one who’s truly good is God. So do you realize what you’re saying? Are you acknowledging that I’m the divine Son of God? Are you ready to receive what I’m about to say as not just the words of a wise teacher, but the words of God? Think about what you mean when you call me ‘good.’”

So Jesus makes this guy think, but he doesn’t force the issue; he doesn’t connect the dots for him. He just kind of leaves that hanging.

And then he addresses the man’s question more directly. The question was, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Do you hear the assumption buried in that question? It assumes that eternal life comes through …what? Something we do. So Jesus goes with that—he humors the guy—verse 19: You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’” He lists six out of the Ten Commandments. And the guy goes, “Check, check, check, check, check, check. I’m good on all those.”

Are you buying that? I can maybe buy the first three—he’s never murdered or committed adultery or even stolen. But he’s never lied? One of the guys in my men’s group said, “You’re telling me this guy got through his teenage years without lying to his parents once? Impossible.” Good point. And speaking of that, he’s never dishonored his parents in any way? Never mocked them or grumbled behind their backs? Ever? I have a little note that I wrote in one of my Bibles years ago—right after this verse, I wrote, “Yeah, right.”

So it seems like this sharp young guy doesn’t have very accurate self-awareness. He has a very high view of his own morality. You know who the hardest people to save are? People who don’t think they need saving.

So Jesus is testing this man. And up to this point, the guy thinks he’s crushing the test! “The Commandments? Oh yeah—I do all that stuff.” And once again, Jesus doesn’t correct him or argue with him. He leaves that hanging. “Okay.”

In John 2:25 it says Jesus didn’t need man’s testimony about man, because he knew what was in a man. In other words, Jesus can see through the bluffing and the posturing and the masks we wear. He can see right to the heart. Hebrews 4:13 says Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. So this rich, young ruler has no idea that he’s about to have his heart uncovered and laid bare before Jesus.

That’s a scary thought, isn’t it? That there’s this person named Jesus who looks into my heart with x-ray vision; he’s not impressed with my titles or my education or my image; he knows exactly who I really am. That’s a little intimidating! And that’s why I’m so thankful for what it says next.

Right after the guy says, “Yep—I’ve kept all the commandments,” Mark 10:21 - Jesus looked at him and loved him. I’m so glad Mark included that. Because if somebody is about to rip open my heart and uncover my deepest secrets, it’s really nice to know that person loves me. Isn’t it? So today, if you feel rebuked or challenged by what Jesus says…don’t forget that the one who’s challenging you loves you. A lot. That makes all the difference.

So now, Jesus (lovingly) goes for the jugular—verse 21: 21b “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” A silence falls over the room. And this confident, successful young man, who’s never been at a loss for words, has no clue what to say. Because Jesus has just exposed him. Jesus has pinpointed the one thing in his life that’s keeping him from God.

That same thing happened to a guy named Jay Gould, a few years ago. He was living out his dream in Denver, Colorado. Multi-millionaire, happy marriage, kids all grown up. And then suddenly, he lost his wife to lung cancer. At first, he tried to fill his time with golf and vacations, but that got old. Until he sat in church one day, and he heard a message on this very passage. And he said, “I felt like God was talking directly to me.” Don’t you hate when God does that?

So he did something radical. He gave away all his money. He moved from his luxurious home in the Denver suburbs, into a simple room in a monastery, with a picture of his wife and kids on the wall. And until his death, he worked with the Franciscan Friends of the Poor, serving the homeless.

He was once interviewed by a reporter, and he said, "So many times in the Gospels, it says 'Take care of the poor, take care of the poor.' So that's what I do, and every day I do that, I feel fulfilled."

See, for him—just like for the man standing in front of Jesus—that was the issue that was holding them back. It was the thing that was blocking them from either knowing God at all, or from knowing God more deeply. And it required a radical step.

Is it possible that Jesus is telling you to do something radical like that? Ccould it be that the thing that’s is blocking you from God is a money thing? And if so, wouldn’t you want to take that blockage out of the way?

Point number two: Blinded by Wealth. Verse 22: 22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth. Apparently, he never expected Jesus to get that personal, and that invasive. So if that’s the way it is, no deal.

You know, if Jesus was trying to build a following, he had a strange way of doing that, didn’t he? I mean, this is a great opportunity to win a convert—and not just any convert! An influential, young, socially connected guy. So what does Jesus do? He raises the bar so high, the guy turns away! Why would Jesus do that? Because he understood the deceptive power of money.

So as the guy walks away, Jesus turns to his disciples. And he comes up with one of his most memorable analogies. The largest animal in Palestine was a camel—everyone knew what camels looked like—they were huge. The smallest opening Jesus can think of is the eye of a needle. So he says, Listen… 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. Why? Because money has this strange power to take the place of God in your life. Think about it: all the things that God offers you—security and confidence and joy—money says, “I can give you all that.” So as long as you make money your god, you will never enter the kingdom of the true God.

In Revelation 3:17 Jesus is speaking to a wealthy church. Listen to what he says: You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. Money has the power to blind us to spiritual reality.

A few years ago AARP Magazine did a survey (and yes, I read AARP magazine. When they first started sending it to me I was angry, but I got over that and now I read it—it’s pretty good!) So they did a survey on people’s attitudes toward heaven. One of the questions was, simply, “Do you believe in heaven?” And this was so interesting: they reported the results based on the household income of the person answering the question. Can you guess what that looked like? The more money someone made, the less likely they believed in heaven. It was completely consistent. Why? Because if you have everything you need here, why would you need there?

Now: let me pause for a minute. Because I know what some of you are thinking, “Man, this is such a good sermon...for my friend. She’s rich. She gets her clothing custom made! This sermon definitely doesn’t apply to me—because I get my clothes the same place I get my groceries.” Anybody else—you get your food and your shirts at Costco? Some of you are completely letting yourself off the hook! Let me challenge that.

Let me tell you a story, and this is very timely, because it’s a story I heard from Tom Clark. Some of you saw the eNews I sent last week—Tom was a pastor here at The Chapel back in the 80s and 90s, and he passed away about two weeks ago. And I still remember a story he told about two missionaries he knew. One of them had a lot of money, and he owned a car—which was rare in that country. The other missionary was poor, and he only owned a bicycle.

The missionary with the car would always leave his keys on the kitchen table, and he told all his friends and all his fellow missionaries, “Any time you need my car, just come in my apartment and take the keys. You’re free to use it; just put the keys back on the table when you’re done.” And he meant it! So people borrowed his car all the time; it got a little beat up, but he was fine with that.

The other missionary—the guy with the bike—was extremely protective of his bike. He never let anyone use it; he always locked it up when he wasn’t riding it. And everyone knew: don’t ask him to borrow his bike—the answer is “no.”

And then Tom said, “So tell me: which of those two missionaries was materialistic?” And of course, the answer was, “the poor one. The one with the bike.”

And I never forgot that lesson: that being a lover of money, a lover of material things, is not just a problem for rich people. You can be dirt poor, and be just as blinded by wealth as the rich young ruler who approached Jesus that day. So it’s not about the amount of money you have; it’s about your attitude toward money.

So, why did Jesus tell the guy to give all his money away? Would the act of giving away his money earn him God’s acceptance? Not at all! There’s nothing we can do to earn the forgiveness of God! Entering God’s kingdom is all about who has your ultimate trust. And he knew this man’s trust was in his money, which by definition means he couldn’t put his trust in God. His heart was blinded by wealth. And that can happen to us no matter how much money we have. We can be blinded by the wealth we do have, or blinded by the wealth we wish we had.

And that leads our last point: Transformed by God. Verse 26: 26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?” Why are the disciples so amazed that it’s harder for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven? Because in that culture, if you had money, that meant you were close to God! God was

blessing you! But Jesus seems to be saying just the opposite! And they’re confused: “If those upstanding, moral, blessed people can’t be saved, who can be? Jesus, you’re making it sound impossible!”

Verse 27: Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” The only way this is going to work is with some kind of supernatural intervention. In other words, you can’t just say, “Okay, okay. I guess money is a little too important to me. I’m going to cut down on my materialism and start trusting God. Got it.” That won’t work. You know why? Because the pull of money is too strong. The cultural cues about wealth are too persistent. That’s why Jesus says, “With man this is impossible.” Because it’s too hard to resist. You’ll do okay for a week, and then you’ll turn on HGTV and see the Dream Home, and you’ll say, “That’s what I need—7 bathrooms and an elevator—how can I live without that?”

So how do you overcome the pull of materialism? You need something stronger.

There was a Scottish pastor named Thomas Chalmers, and he wrote a book called—ready for this title? The Expulsive Power of a New Affection. They just don’t title books like that anymore. The Expulsive Power of a New Affection. Bear with me here—because this is life-changing.

The word “expulsive” means it has the power to expel things—to push things out. Let me give you a strange illustration of that. When I was about fifteen years old, I realized that I couldn’t hear out of one of my ears. Everything sounded kind of muffled. So finally I went to the doctor, and the doctor said, “The reason you can’t hear is because your ear is completely clogged with ear wax.” So you know what he did? He didn’t try to pull it out or scrape it out. He took this high-pressure water jet, and he aimed it right into my ear—actually, I realize now that he aimed it right at the edge of the wax, so he could get water back behind it. And eventually the water built up enough pressure behind the wax that the wax just fell right out. It was this big, hard-packed plug of really disgusting ear wax. And I cannot tell you how amazing it felt to have that wax out. Suddenly, the world came alive with music and laughter and birds singing. I realize that’s a really gross story, and I debated whether to use it, but I decided to tell it because I think you’ll remember it. It might even ruin your lunch. But I want you to remember that some things are so deep-seated in us that they need an expulsive power to drive them out. They need to be displaced by something else.

So here’s the question: what is it that’s powerful enough to drive out our love for money? And in the book, Thomas Chalmers says you need a new affection. We already have an affection for money, so we need to develop an affection that’s even stronger than our affection for money, to force it out. And the only thing strong enough to do that is a deep affection for Christ. Here’s what I’m not saying: You need to get more religious. You need to get more disciplined in your prayer life. You need to stop slacking off in your Bible reading. You need to stop cleaning the kitchen while you watch church online. No! I’m saying you need to fall more in love with Jesus than you are with money.

So how do you fall more in love with Jesus? I can’t script that for you, but let me tell you a few ways that it happens for me:

When I stand in church and worship, it has become so personal to me. I’m not just singing about Christ’s love for the world; I’m receiving his love for me.

When I open my Bible early in the morning, I’ve come to expect that Jesus will meet me there and speak to me in highly personal ways—things I need to know that day.

When I’m driving in my car, I’m learning to recognize the presence of Jesus in the car—I always picture him in the passenger seat (even though I know Jesus is supposed to take the wheel). And I’m learning to talk to him exactly like I’d talk to a friend.

When I catch myself in an obvious sin—like when I’m unkind to my wife, or when I’m envious, or prideful, or vengeful—I’m learning to quickly remember that Jesus died for that sin, so I just need to confess it and move on, instead of beating myself up.

When I’m about to go under anesthesia for surgery, which has happened a few times recently, I remember that even when I’m asleep, Jesus stays awake, and he’s got me.

The list goes on. And every one of those things makes my love for him deeper, and it makes my affection for him stronger than my affection for anything else…including money. My love for Him begins to actually push out my love for money. So I can enjoy my house and my car and other material things…but they’re in their place. They don’t have my heart anymore…because Jesus does.

You know, as a preacher, I always ask myself: what do I want people to walk away with? What’s the action step? So here’s what I want you to do: Let your heart be captivated the beauty and wonder of Christ. That’s it! Let your heart be captivated by the beauty and wonder of Christ. Because as you do that, you’re going to find yourself holding your money more loosely, and holding onto Jesus more tightly.

In his autobiography, Billy Graham tells the story of visiting an island in the Caribbean with his wife, Ruth. They were invited to have lunch at the home of one of the wealthiest men in the world. And throughout the entire meal, this guy seemed close to tears. He said, “I am the most miserable man in the world. Out there is my yacht. I can go anywhere I want to. I have my private plane, my helicopters. I have everything I want to make my life happy, yet I am as miserable as hell.” And they talked to him and tried to point him to Christ.

That same day they went down the hill to the little cottage where they were staying on the island. And they got a visit from the pastor of a little church on the island. He was an Englishman, and he was a widower, and he spent most of his time taking care of his two sick sisters. And this guy was just filled with passion for God and love for people. And they remember him saying, “I don’t have two pounds to my name, but I am the happiest man on this island.”

When they were on the plane flying home, Billy turned to his wife Ruth, and he said, “Who do you think is the richer man?” And she didn’t have to say a word, because they both knew.

Listen: today, Jesus looks at you and loves you. Allow that love to become so big in your heart that money just doesn’t matter so much anymore.