Welcome And Passage Setup

Mark 0:03

Hello everyone, this is Mark Davis, and I want to welcome you to the Gospel Explorations Podcast, where we gather together each week to take time to explore God's Word to learn how we ought to live in this present age. I'm glad you've chosen to spend some time with us today. Let's jump into today's episode. Well, hello and welcome back to the Gospel Explorations Podcast, where we're taking time to slow down, open God's Word, and explore not really only what the scripture says, but then how its truth should shape the way that we live. So today we're going to be continuing in Matthew chapter 19, verses 13 through 22. Now, at first glance, the two scenes that we're going to look at today may seem almost unrelated. First, we have these parents bringing little children to Jesus, and Jesus welcomes them. And then just a few verses later, a wealthy young ruler comes to Jesus and asks what he needs to do to have eternal life. And so as we put these two stories together, we find a fascinating contrast. The children come to Jesus with nothing to offer, and the rich young ruler comes to Jesus believing he has a lot to offer. The children simply receive, but the rich young ruler wants to achieve.

Two Encounters With Jesus

Mark 1:27

And ultimately, what Jesus exposes is that there's something in this man's heart that he values more than eternal life. So let's look at Matthew chapter 19, starting in verse 13. Then were there brought unto him little children that he should put his hands on them and pray. And the disciples rebuke them. But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not to come unto me, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them and departed thence.

Jesus Welcomes The Children

Mark 1:58

So we see these parents bringing their children to Jesus because they want him to bless them. Now this was not unusual in Jewish culture. Parents would often bring children to respected teachers and elders so that they might pray for them and bless them. And apparently these weren't just older children. Luke's account uses a word that can even refer to infants. So kind of picture this scene, if you will. Parents are coming toward Jesus with crying babies and leading little children by the hand. And the disciples decide that Jesus has more important things to do. So they begin to turn them away. Perhaps they thought they were helping Jesus. Maybe their thought was Jesus has important people to talk to, he has sermons to preach, there are sick people who need to be healed. He just doesn't have time for these children. But Jesus saw things very differently. He said, Suffer the little children and forbid them not to come unto me. And I love that picture. He says, Let them come. Don't stop them. Don't get in their way. Bring them to me.

Don’t Become A Child’s Obstacle

Mark 3:03

And I believe there's a challenge here for every Christian parent, grandparent, teacher, pastor, and church. We must be busy bringing children to Jesus. We should never view ministry to children as somehow less important than ministry to adults, because Jesus didn't. And sometimes churches can unintentionally treat children's ministry as childcare, and the real ministry happens somewhere else. But when we look at the scriptures, we realize that teaching a child God's word, that's real ministry. When we pray with children, that's real ministry. When we take the time to help children understand who Jesus is, that's real ministry. And when parents faithfully teach the scriptures in their homes, that's real ministry. And Jesus says, let them come unto me. But notice the other half of Jesus' statement, he said, and forbid them not. In other words, don't become an obstacle between a child and Jesus. And I think that's worth thinking about. Because we can tell children that Jesus is important while living as though he isn't. We can tell them to read their Bible while they never see us reading ours. We can tell them they need to pray, and yet they never hear us utter a word in prayer. We can tell them that church matters, while allowing almost anything else on the calendar to take priority over worship. And we need to be careful to understand that children learn the importance of our relationship with Christ, not only from what we teach, but from what we model? And that should cause every parent and every Christian that has the opportunity to influence children to ask this question. What does my life teach them about Jesus? Does my life say that Jesus is worthy of everything? Does it demonstrate that God's word is trustworthy? Can they see a faith that extends beyond Sunday morning? Because at the end of the day, we cannot make children follow Jesus. Everyone must ultimately respond to Christ personally, but we can bring them to Him, we can teach them, we can pray for them, and we can model genuine faith before them, and remove as many unnecessary obstacles as possible from their path. In Matthew 15, we read that Jesus laid his hands on them and departed. What the disciples saw as an interruption, Jesus saw as individuals worth blessing.

The Rich Young Ruler Arrives

Mark 5:35

And then Matthew introduces us to another person who comes to Jesus, starting in verse 16. And behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is God. But if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, honor thy father and thy mother, and thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth, what lack I yet? And Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Outside of Matthew's gospel and the other gospel accounts, we learn other additional information about this man. He's a young man and he's wealthy. Luke tells us that he's a ruler, so we often refer to him as the rich young ruler. And from the outside, he seems to have everything going for him. He's successful and respected. He's religious and moral. He's even interested in eternal things. I mean, if this man walked into many churches today, we probably would have been thrilled to have him. But there's a problem hidden inside his question. He says, What good thing shall I do? You see, that's his understanding of eternal life. Tell me what I need to accomplish. Give me the requirement. Show me the box that I haven't checked. Tell me the good deed I need to add to everything else I've already done. You see, his entire approach was built around achievement. And that's still how many people think about salvation. They imagine a giant scale where good deeds go on one side and bad deeds go on the other. And as long as the good side outweighs the bad, they hope that God will accept them. But friend, that's not the gospel.

Why Good Enough Fails

Mark 7:44

The gospel isn't about becoming good enough for God. It's about recognizing that we aren't good enough and that we desperately need a Savior. So Jesus responds to him and says, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, and that is God. Now Jesus is not denying his own goodness. He's challenging this young man to think carefully about the words that he's using. He's asking him, What do you mean by good? Because if you're talking about being good enough for eternal life, we first need to understand God's standard of goodness. And God's standard is not better than your neighbor, or better than average, or mostly good. God's standard is perfect righteousness. And if you're going to earn eternal life through keeping the law, you have to keep it perfectly. So Jesus tells him, if you will enter into life and keep the commandments, in essence, Jesus is saying, if you want to earn eternal life by doing, then let's talk about what God really requires. So the young man asks, Well, which commandment? Jesus begins listing the commandments to not murder, to not commit adultery, to not steal, to not bear false witness, to honor your father and mother, to love your neighbor as yourself. And notice here that Jesus focuses initially on commandments dealing primarily with how he treat people. And then notice what the young man says in verse 20. Now that's an incredible statement. Oh, I've done that. And perhaps externally he had. Maybe this young man had lived an incredibly moral life. Paul once said something very similar about himself in Philippians 3. As he was describing himself according to the outward requirements of the law, Paul said that he was blameless. But we've already learned from the Sermon on the Mount that God's law reaches deeper than the outward behavior. You see, you may never physically murder someone, but what about hatred? And you may never commit the physical act of adultery, but what about lust? And you may appear righteous to everyone around you and still have a heart very far from God. And I find the young man's words fascinating. He says, What lack I yet? You see, I think he knows that something is missing. He has money and morality and position and religion, and yet there's still an emptiness that those things cannot fill. He knows he doesn't have what he's looking for. And so Jesus puts his finger directly on the one thing this man doesn't want to surrender. And verse 21, Jesus says, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell all thou hast and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come and follow me.

When Money Becomes An Idol

Mark 10:52

Now I think we need to pause here because we need to understand what Jesus is doing. Jesus is not teaching to us that we purchase eternal life by giving away our possessions. He's not necessarily commanding that every Christian sell everything they own. We know there were wealthy followers of Christ in Scripture who used their resources for God's purposes. You see, the issue isn't simply that this man has money, the issue is that money has this man. His possessions had become his God. He claims to have kept the commandments, but Jesus is exposing the idolatry that hides underneath his outward morality. And Jesus effectively asked him, Do you love God more than your possessions? And for this man, the answer is no. You see, Jesus' command exposes his heart. And that's why the final part of Jesus' invitation is so important. He says, Come and follow me. That's the real invitation. Follow me. Jesus isn't primarily asking for money, he's asking for him. He wants his heart and his allegiance, his trust, his identity, his future. He wants everything because the possessions simply reveal the place where he refuses to surrender. And I think verse 22 is one of the saddest verses in this entire passage. We read these words. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. He walked away from Jesus. Let that sink in. Think about that. He came looking for eternal life. He stood face to face with Christ. Jesus personally invited him to follow me. And yet he walked away. Why? It's because there was something he loved more. And I think this is where this story becomes intensely personal.

What Are You Refusing To Surrender

Mark 12:55

Because maybe your issue isn't money. Maybe you could give away every dollar and still have something you're unwilling to surrender. The question isn't simply do I have possessions? The question is what possesses me? What is the one thing that if Jesus asked for it, would make you hesitate? Is it your career? Your reputation? A relationship? How about your plans for the future? Your comfort or your independence? Your success? Your possessions? What is the thing that you would struggle to place into Jesus' hands? Because anything that we refuse to surrender to Christ has the potential to become an idol.

The Gospel Contrast Children And Ruler

Mark 13:43

Now, I want you to think for just a moment about how Matthew has arranged these two scenes in his gospel. First come the children. They don't come bringing resumes or wealth or any great accomplishments. They don't come to tell Jesus how good they've been. They simply come. And Jesus receives him. Then comes this impressive young man. He has wealth, status, morality, achievement. But when Jesus asks him to let go of what he's trusting and simply follow, he can't do it. There's a beautiful picture of the gospel found here. We don't enter God's kingdom because we have accumulated enough goodness. We must come like children, empty-handed, dependent, trusting, receiving what we could never earn for ourselves. The rich young ruler's great problem wasn't that he possessed too much. It was that he couldn't admit how desperately he needed what only Jesus could give him. And maybe the most important question in this passage comes from the rich young ruler himself. What lack I yet? You know that's a pretty good question to bring before God. Lord, what am I missing? Is there something in my life that has become more important than you? Is there something that I refuse to surrender? Is there an area where I appear obedient outwardly, but my heart isn't truly yours? And we need to be willing to let Jesus answer that question. Because sometimes we want Jesus to affirm us when what we really need is for Jesus to expose us. In Mark's gospel, we find something beautiful about this encounter. Before Jesus challenged this man, Mark tells us, then Jesus, beholding him, loved him. Don't miss that. Jesus was willing to expose this man's idol because he loved him. And when God's word exposes something in our lives, it's not because God wants to rob us of something good. It's because he loves us far too much to allow us to find our identity, our security, our satisfaction, or even our salvation in something that could never save us.

Two Invitations And Closing Charge

Mark 16:03

So as we finish this passage, there are really two invitations here. First, bring the children to Jesus. If God has placed children in your life, point them to Christ. Pray for them, teach them the scriptures, model Christianity before them. Don't underestimate what God can do in the heart of a child. And then the second invitation is even more personal. Come and follow me. Not simply admire Jesus, not add him to everything else you value, but to follow him. The rich young ruler wanted eternal life, but he wanted his possessions more. And Jesus loved him enough to show him the truth. So maybe we need to ask ourselves this question What am I holding on to that keeps me from following Jesus completely? Because whatever Jesus asks us to surrender, what he offers us in himself is infinitely greater. Thanks for taking time, friends, to join me today for the Gospel Explorations. I hope you'll take some time this week to read through Matthew chapter 19, verses 13 through 22 again. Think about it carefully and what these encounters reveal about your own relationship with Jesus. And as always, be sure to check out the show notes for reflection and study questions that can help you continue exploring this passage throughout the week. I want to encourage you to keep opening God's word and keep asking questions. Until next time, thanks for listening. I hope that you've been both encouraged and challenged today. If you want to connect with us further, please be sure to check us out on the web at Gospelexplorations.com. We look forward to having you join us again next time.