And the scene still etched in the memory of many
of us surrounding JFK's assassination. John Junior
was a rich, young man from a ruling family. Perhaps
not unlike, in some respects, the young man in
Luke chapter 18, around whom our text today focuses.
I invite you to turn there with me. We revisit
this account in Luke 18, the third time in this
summer series, as we look at some of the hard
sayings of Jesus. We have already examined the
conversation between this rich young ruler and
Jesus. And now, as Paul Harvey likes to say,
we're going to look at the rest of the story.
After the conversation had ended, Mark tells
us in his gospel that Jesus looked at this young
man apparently as he was walking away and he
felt a love for him. There was compassion in
the heart of Jesus for this young man. And Jesus
said to him, one thing you lack, go and sell
all you possess and give to the poor, and you
shall have treasure in heaven and come and follow
me. This young man turned away from Jesus. When
he heard these words of Jesus, it says that his
face fell and he walked away. And yet Jesus loved
him. And it was out of his heart of compassion
for this young man that he spoke the words that
he did in verse 24. Jesus looked at him and said,
how hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter
the kingdom of God. For 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. Today,
the message title is, Camels and Needles, as
we think about what Jesus said, particularly
in verse 25. Here Jesus uses a striking image
to state a strong warning, not only to the rich,
but to us all. What did Jesus mean by these words
that he used? Attempts have been made through
the years to avoid the obvious difficulty in
interpreting them. For example, there are some
who say that the word camel here really is the
Greek word for rope, because the two Greek words
for a rope or a cable and the word for camel
are very similar in their spelling and in their
sound. And so some say that there has been here
some textual corruption. And what Jesus really
said was that how hard it is for a rope, a cable,
to go through the eye of a needle. That's easier
for us to understand, isn't it, in our Western
minds? And yet it's very unlikely that there
was any corruption here in the Greek language
as Luke was writing it and then as it was recorded
and copied in years later. The best of textual
criticism tells us that what Jesus really said
was it's hard for a camel to go through the eye
of a needle. Recognizing that, there are others
who say, well, it's the needle that's the problem.
Because what this needle is, they say, is a city
gate. And they point to the reality that in some
ancient city gates that were very large, there
were, in fact, smaller gates. that could be accessed
when the large gate was already closed for the
day. And rather than opening this monstrous gate
and all that that would entail, there was simply
a door, a small door by which travelers might
enter. F .F. Bruce, the commentator, has this
to say regarding this possible explanation. He
says, this is a charming explanation of relatively
recent date. But there is no evidence that such
a subsidiary entrance was called the eye of a
needle in biblical times In other words there
were gates like this But there is never any evidence
and any documents that we have from the ancient
world they were ever called the eye of a needle
And so as we think about the meaning of Jesus
words It's best to conclude that he meant them
exactly as they are written for us here, and
he meant them literally. It is an example, though,
of a figure of speech that we might call hyperbole
or exaggeration. Jesus is purposely stating something
here that, in the mind's eye, seems to be absurd
and impossible. There is some evidence, in fact,
that what Jesus said was a common expression
in his day. H. B. Sweet, who is another commentator
in his Gospel on Mark's account, says this, to
contrast the largest beast of burden known in
Palestine with the smallest of artificial apertures
is quite in the manner of Christ's proverbial
sayings. In other words, what Jesus says here
is a typical way of expressing a proverb in His
day. Again, F .F. Bruce says, in Jewish rabbinical
literature, an elephant passing through the eye
of a needle is a figure of speech for sheer impossibility.
There is, in the Talmud, a reference to an elephant.
passing through the eye of a needle, which seems
to arise out of Babylonian culture. So what Jesus
apparently did was to take that expression and
exchange the elephant, which was the largest
animal known to the Persians, for the camel,
which was the largest animal known in the area
of Palestine. And so we should not be surprised
that Jesus would use this expression. It's a
rabbinical type expression, a proverbial kind
of an expression. And Jesus intended for it to
be striking, perhaps even with a squeeze of humor
in it. And He certainly wanted it to be pointed.
Can you imagine in your mind's eye trying to
squeeze a camel through the eye of a needle,
even a big needle? We're familiar with that.
that image of a camel getting his nose under
the tent, and what happens? Pretty soon, the
camel is in the tent. That is an expression or
an illustration that sometimes is used in our
own language and culture. If you've ever seen
a camel, you know that when you try to force
a camel to do something, you are in for trouble.
It would not even be akin to your mother -in
-law. A camel is very temperamental. And to cause
one of those creatures to try to enter into the
eye of a needle would cause all kinds of problems,
believe me. So I think that Jesus may have intended
this to be a little bit of humor as well. But
his point is that it's impossible, or rather
it's easier for a camel to go through the eye
of a needle than for a rich man to enter the
kingdom of God. So you see the parallel Jesus
is drawing? We want to go on that next step now
and see what the warning is that Jesus is intending
by this hard to understand illustration. Jesus
puts it this way that it's easier for the camel
to go through the eye of a needle than for the
rich man to enter the kingdom of God. One way
of saying this it is hard for those with riches
to enter the kingdom of God Let's think about
that idea for a moment. Why is that true? For
there are lots of reasons including these that
those who have material possessions are often
distracted by them They become entangled in the
concern of preserving their material goods and
gaining more And as a result of that entanglement,
they are too busy to consider the issues of the
soul. In other words, their focus is so on material
things that they are completely preoccupied,
and they miss what are the key issues of life,
those that deal with the heart of man. In fact,
Jesus tells another story. that illustrates this
in the twelfth chapter of Luke, and I invite
you to turn back there and look at it with me.
Someone in the crowd that Jesus was talking with
said to him, teacher, tell my brother to divide
the family inheritance with me. We have a family
dispute going on here, dispute going on. As two
brothers are... arguing over the inheritance
of the family. But Jesus said to him, man, who
appointed me a judge or arbitrator over you?
Jesus is here stepping back from being a judge
over these kinds of temporal affairs. And he
said to them all, in light of what this man had
just said in front of them, Beware and be on
your guard against every form of greed. For not
even when one has an abundance does his life
consist of his possessions. That is the fundamental
error of the American culture in the 1990s. A
culture that is sold out to the idea that material
things consist of the meaning of life. But Jesus
says, even if you have an abundance of them,
that does not form the meaning of life. And so
he told them this parable. The land of a certain
rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning
to himself, saying, what shall I do since I have
no place to store my crops? So here's a man in
agribusiness who has a major problem. He has
been so successful and has become so productive
with his land that he had no place to store the
things that he was raising. And he said, this
is what I will do. And so he had thought through
his potential choices. And he decided, here is
the thing that I will do. I will tear down my
barns and build larger ones. And there I will
store all my grain and my goods. There I will
preserve my wealth. There I will keep what my
life is all about. And he said to his soul, soul,
you have many goods laid up for many years. Your
retirement is secure. You have laid up enough
money so that you won't have to worry about anything
from now and forever. So take your ease, soul.
Eat, drink, and be merry, and live in light of
the wealth that you have. Enjoy the good life.
It's yours to have. But God said to him, you
fool. Have you ever noted the times that God
calls people fools? It's not very often, but
here's one. God spoke to this prosperous, self
-centered man who thought that his life was all
put together and the meaning of his life was
to be found. in what he owned, what he possessed.
God says you're a fool, because this night, this
very night, your soul is required of you. And
now who will own what you have prepared? He says
to this man, tonight you are going to die. And
then who is going to look after all of the wealth?
of your life. And so Jesus concludes, so is the
man who lays up treasure for himself and is not
rich toward God. In other words, he has taken
no time to invest in spiritual things in his
life. He is impoverished with God. He has no
relationship with God. Because his life has been
solely focused on material things. Having looked
at that example, let's go back to Luke chapter
18. Here we have another young man who is distracted
by his possessions. He is a little different
in this way. He wanted to know what he could
do to have eternal life. He wanted to know what
he could perform, what one thing he might do
in addition to all of the other things he had
done to have eternal life. And so this young
man is better off than the rich farmer who had
no thoughts of God at all. Jesus, in response
to the young man, knowing his real need and knowing
his sense of self -righteousness, basically said
to him, well, keep the commandments. If you want
to do something, to gain eternal life, then keep
the commandments, and Jesus listed several of
them. And the young man said, I've done all of
these things from my youth. The young man was
sincere in this. His religion had taught him
that righteousness was external, that the fulfillment
of the law was in keeping certain external commands
that one would do to prove his righteousness.
And if one did these external things in his life,
then God would surely accept him. And so he was
very sincere in saying, well, I have done all
of the external things that the rabbis have told
me to do to keep the law. But Jesus knew his
heart condition and told him to go and sell what
he had, thus exposing a heart problem in him.
and that heart problem was covetousness, the
one command Jesus did not mention when He listed
the commands earlier. And so the young man was
at a point of decision. Was he going to deal
with the sin that was in his heart and which
he now recognized was there and follow Jesus,
or was he going to turn from it? and preserve
his possessions. And his crucial decision was
the latter. And so although he was better off
in one sense than the rich farmer that Jesus
told about, in the end he basically made the
same decision. He was distracted by his possessions.
Only God knows how many people have missed heaven.
because they have been distracted by their possessions,
their material wealth. And they either took no
time for spiritual things, or facing the choice
between spiritual things and their possessions,
they chose possessions. It's also hard for those
who are rich to enter the Kingdom of God because
they trust in their possessions. to help them
with their problems. Those who are wealthy think
that they can solve their problems with their
money very often. Their money has often gotten
them out of difficulties and they think somehow
that this will continue to be true. In a way
I think this is the devil's anesthesia for their
souls. It puts them to sleep regarding real -life
realities. and spiritual realities. So often,
having a lot of money gives those who are rich
a false sense of security, a sense of being invulnerable.
As the accident scene seems to be developing,
or the accident event seems to be developing
regarding JFK Junior, it appears that he made
a reckless decision to fly his airplane in conditions
for which he was not trained. And in taking that
risk, perhaps feeling invulnerable because of
who he was and what he had at his disposal, it's
very easy for those who are wealthy to fall into
that mindset. And so often those who are rich
trust in their possessions That becomes their
God. That becomes what they rely upon to help
them in life, and perhaps even in eternity if
they stop to think about it at all. It is hard
for those who are rich to trust in the Lord,
to admit their sinfulness and their vulnerability.
that they have needs spiritually, and to turn
from the preoccupation of their life to submit
themselves to His Lordship. But when we explain
the verse this way, I think we are somehow missing
the point and perhaps softening the intent of
Jesus' statement. For when Jesus said what He
did in verse 25 and using that illustration,
He was not merely saying it's hard for the rich
to be saved. He is saying it is impossible for
them to be saved. Because it's not hard to squeeze
a camel into the eye of a needle. That just frankly
can't be done. It is impossible to do that. You
say, well, is that really what Jesus meant? Well,
if you look on in the context, I think you'll
see that it is. Because when the disciples heard
Jesus say this, their response immediately was,
well, then who can be saved? Because you see,
their thinking as a result of the rabbinic teaching
was that those who are rich are already in the
kingdom. And that is proof of it. John D. Rockefeller
had a similar idea. He made the statement one
time that riches are a gift from God that says,
this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.
So often we think that those who are rich, obviously,
are being blessed by God. They must have it together
with God. God must be pleased with them somehow.
They must be in the kingdom. That was certainly
what the average person thought in the Jewish
culture, and the disciples thought that. And
so when Jesus made this statement, they said,
wow! If the rich aren't in the kingdom, then
who can be saved? And notice what Jesus said.
The things impossible with men are possible with
God. Jesus was affirming that it is impossible
for man to be saved by his own achievement, by
his own works, by his own efforts. It is impossible,
not only for the rich. But for the poor and anyone
else in between to be saved through their own
efforts, their own works, even their own external
keeping of the law like this rich young ruler,
it's impossible. But God, through grace, can
do the impossible. God can save anyone rich or
poor by grace as a gift, as something that He
gives to those who come broken and impoverished
of spirit and who believe. This event reminds
us that life's most crucial issue is entering
the kingdom of God. There's nothing that surpasses
that. You and I are not in this world for very
long. And when we leave it, after 37 or 38 years,
or 87 or 88 years, when we ultimately leave this
world, we take nothing of our material gain with
us. Two men were talking about a rich man in
the town who had died. And one asked the other,
well, how much did he leave? And his friend replied,
all of it. Have you ever seen a hearse with a
trailer hitch? Shrouds do not have pockets in
them. You see, the real issue of life is entering
the kingdom of God, which in the context here
clearly means being saved, having a right relationship
with God, entering into the family of God. We
also learned from this event that God measures
success differently than humans. Because don't
we tend to measure an individual's prestige and
success in life by how much he possesses? Most
human beings think that success is spelled M
-O -N -E -Y. And you don't have to be in America
to think that. But God says that success belongs
to those who enter the kingdom. That's why Jesus
said in Matthew 6, Seek ye first the kingdom
of God and His righteousness, and all of these
things will be added to you. Earlier He said,
your Heavenly Father knows that you have need
of these things. He takes care of the sparrows
and He takes care of the flowers. He will take
care of you with regard to material possessions.
But make it, He says, the focus of your life,
the very first thing, the priority of life, to
seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
Another way of saying entering the kingdom. One
who enters the kingdom. is one who has found
genuine success in life. All the other factors
are secondary. Success is coming to know God
personally and having eternal life. This event
also warns of the danger of materialism. G .K.
Chesterton said to be clever enough to get a
great deal of money, One must be stupid enough
to want it. We have fallen into that stupidity
in our culture. Living for what money buys and
permits one to have is self -condemnation. Now,
it's not just being rich that's the problem.
The problem is one's attitude toward riches.
Isn't that right? Because one can have an abundance
and have the right attitude toward that abundance,
be using it for the kingdom of God, under God's
blessing. Or one may be poor and covetous for
what he doesn't have and be under condemnation.
Materialism is not a belief of those who are
rich. It is a belief of those people, regardless
of their wealth, who think that the essence of
life is found in what one possesses. James writes
these strong words, come now you rich, weep and
howl for your miseries which are coming upon
you. I think that these are words that could
be written to Americans right now. Your riches
have rotted, and your garments have become moth
-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted.
Their rust will be a witness against you, and
consume your flesh like fire." And he says this,
it is in the last days that you have stored up
your treasure. Of all times, in these eschatological
times, in these times of the Lord's coming, In
these times of judgment, in these times of God's
dealing with mankind, in these last times, it's
now that you have so greatly erred in storing
up your earthly treasures. He goes on to say,
behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your
fields and which has been withheld by you cries
out against you. and the outcry of those who
did the harvesting has reached the ears of the
Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on
the earth and led a life of want and pleasure.
You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter."
Those are strong words to all of us who live
in this culture because materialism is not just
the sin. of those who are lost and on their way
to hell. Materialism is a sin and a great sin
of the people of God. Jimmy Carter said, someone
who's obsessed with making money to the exclusion
of other goals in life has likely foregone the
possibility of the acceptance in God's kingdom.
That's a statement by President Carter I agree
with. Jesus, in giving the parable of the soils,
warned at one point in there about the deceitfulness
of riches and how that can choke out the word
in the life of a person. In closing, let's just
think for a moment about how camels and needles
affect our lives. Let me quote Warren Wiersbie
in making this important point again, that possessing
riches doesn't keep you out of heaven, but being
possessed by riches and trusting in them does.
Are you today living for your earthly possessions?
Is the focus of your life your money? preserving
it and getting more of it? Are you trusting in
your money to get you out of hard places in life
to the exclusion of your soul's needs and trusting
in the Lord? If so, then camels and needles have
something to say to you today. We all need to
beware lest our attitude regarding money corrupt
our souls. Let me close by telling you about
Bill Borden. It's a name that you may not recognize.
Bill Borden lived at the turn of the last century,
born in 1887. Bill Borden was born into a wealthy
and privileged family in Chicago. It was the
Borden Milk Company. family, which was a big
name, especially here in the Midwest in years
past. Phil Borden became a Christian at some
point in his journey. And it was while he was
at Yale that God really began to move in his
heart. And he decided to go to Princeton Seminary,
which he did. And it apparently was there that
Samuel Zwemer greatly influenced his life. Swimmer
was about 20 years older and was a committed
and dedicated servant of Christ, a man who had
the Muslim world upon his heart. And he influenced
Bill Borden to give up his life of prestige and
wealth and to go in the name of Jesus Christ
to the Muslims that they might be saved. Swimmer
was a product of the student volunteer movement
of the 1880s, when the Spirit of God came upon
many, many college and university and seminary
students, men and women, who dedicated themselves
to serve Christ on the mission field. And now
Borden was affected by that same zeal. And he
faced this hard decision about whether to serve
God with his life. or to continue in the line
of his family and live for his wealth. And in
his case, what he decided he needed to do was
to give it all up. And so he gave up and gave
away all of his inheritance so that that money
would not any longer be an allurement to his
soul. And he gave himself to go. to the mission
field. Now his life is interesting because he
left in 1913, 26 years of age, to go to Egypt
there to study the culture of the Muslims and
to learn Arabic. And while he was there, he caught
meningitis and died. And his life seems like
a waste, doesn't it? And yet here we are. 80
some years later talking about the level of commitment
of that man and how he was able to turn away
from the wealth of his life and his privilege
and his position to serve Jesus Christ, whatever
it meant. His life has touched thousands of people
down through the decades. I hope we don't forget
men like Bill Borden. Now God is not necessarily
calling you to give up all of your wealth. and
to go to the mission field. But I can tell you
this, with all of my heart I know that God is
telling all of us today that we dare not allow
our money to run our lives. If we today are living
for and trusting in money, then we are condemned.