WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.299 And the scene still etched in the memory of many 00:00:04.299 --> 00:00:10.679 of us surrounding JFK's assassination. John Junior 00:00:10.679 --> 00:00:19.199 was a rich, young man from a ruling family. Perhaps 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:22.899 not unlike, in some respects, the young man in 00:00:22.899 --> 00:00:27.300 Luke chapter 18, around whom our text today focuses. 00:00:28.109 --> 00:00:32.909 I invite you to turn there with me. We revisit 00:00:32.909 --> 00:00:36.469 this account in Luke 18, the third time in this 00:00:36.469 --> 00:00:39.369 summer series, as we look at some of the hard 00:00:39.369 --> 00:00:43.429 sayings of Jesus. We have already examined the 00:00:43.429 --> 00:00:47.929 conversation between this rich young ruler and 00:00:47.929 --> 00:00:51.509 Jesus. And now, as Paul Harvey likes to say, 00:00:51.570 --> 00:00:54.590 we're going to look at the rest of the story. 00:00:57.929 --> 00:01:02.429 After the conversation had ended, Mark tells 00:01:02.429 --> 00:01:05.129 us in his gospel that Jesus looked at this young 00:01:05.129 --> 00:01:09.609 man apparently as he was walking away and he 00:01:09.609 --> 00:01:16.790 felt a love for him. There was compassion in 00:01:16.790 --> 00:01:25.840 the heart of Jesus for this young man. And Jesus 00:01:25.840 --> 00:01:28.980 said to him, one thing you lack, go and sell 00:01:28.980 --> 00:01:32.219 all you possess and give to the poor, and you 00:01:32.219 --> 00:01:34.519 shall have treasure in heaven and come and follow 00:01:34.519 --> 00:01:43.980 me. This young man turned away from Jesus. When 00:01:43.980 --> 00:01:46.459 he heard these words of Jesus, it says that his 00:01:46.459 --> 00:01:51.959 face fell and he walked away. And yet Jesus loved 00:01:51.959 --> 00:01:57.930 him. And it was out of his heart of compassion 00:01:57.930 --> 00:02:00.230 for this young man that he spoke the words that 00:02:00.230 --> 00:02:05.310 he did in verse 24. Jesus looked at him and said, 00:02:05.569 --> 00:02:09.849 how hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter 00:02:09.849 --> 00:02:14.750 the kingdom of God. For it is easier for a camel 00:02:14.750 --> 00:02:18.330 to go through the eye of a needle than for a 00:02:18.330 --> 00:02:24.240 rich man to enter the kingdom of God. Today, 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:28.000 the message title is, Camels and Needles, as 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:29.960 we think about what Jesus said, particularly 00:02:29.960 --> 00:02:36.300 in verse 25. Here Jesus uses a striking image 00:02:36.300 --> 00:02:42.139 to state a strong warning, not only to the rich, 00:02:42.919 --> 00:02:50.620 but to us all. What did Jesus mean by these words 00:02:50.620 --> 00:02:53.909 that he used? Attempts have been made through 00:02:53.909 --> 00:02:58.129 the years to avoid the obvious difficulty in 00:02:58.129 --> 00:03:01.889 interpreting them. For example, there are some 00:03:01.889 --> 00:03:06.909 who say that the word camel here really is the 00:03:06.909 --> 00:03:10.830 Greek word for rope, because the two Greek words 00:03:10.830 --> 00:03:15.750 for a rope or a cable and the word for camel 00:03:15.750 --> 00:03:18.710 are very similar in their spelling and in their 00:03:18.710 --> 00:03:22.740 sound. And so some say that there has been here 00:03:22.740 --> 00:03:26.000 some textual corruption. And what Jesus really 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:32.099 said was that how hard it is for a rope, a cable, 00:03:32.120 --> 00:03:36.400 to go through the eye of a needle. That's easier 00:03:36.400 --> 00:03:38.719 for us to understand, isn't it, in our Western 00:03:38.719 --> 00:03:41.979 minds? And yet it's very unlikely that there 00:03:41.979 --> 00:03:44.879 was any corruption here in the Greek language 00:03:44.879 --> 00:03:48.240 as Luke was writing it and then as it was recorded 00:03:48.240 --> 00:03:54.930 and copied in years later. The best of textual 00:03:54.930 --> 00:03:57.030 criticism tells us that what Jesus really said 00:03:57.030 --> 00:04:00.729 was it's hard for a camel to go through the eye 00:04:00.729 --> 00:04:04.469 of a needle. Recognizing that, there are others 00:04:04.469 --> 00:04:07.129 who say, well, it's the needle that's the problem. 00:04:08.129 --> 00:04:11.789 Because what this needle is, they say, is a city 00:04:11.789 --> 00:04:16.790 gate. And they point to the reality that in some 00:04:16.790 --> 00:04:20.790 ancient city gates that were very large, there 00:04:20.790 --> 00:04:25.269 were, in fact, smaller gates. that could be accessed 00:04:25.269 --> 00:04:27.970 when the large gate was already closed for the 00:04:27.970 --> 00:04:32.430 day. And rather than opening this monstrous gate 00:04:32.430 --> 00:04:34.790 and all that that would entail, there was simply 00:04:34.790 --> 00:04:38.269 a door, a small door by which travelers might 00:04:38.269 --> 00:04:44.589 enter. F .F. Bruce, the commentator, has this 00:04:44.589 --> 00:04:47.089 to say regarding this possible explanation. He 00:04:47.089 --> 00:04:50.610 says, this is a charming explanation of relatively 00:04:50.610 --> 00:04:54.379 recent date. But there is no evidence that such 00:04:54.379 --> 00:04:57.360 a subsidiary entrance was called the eye of a 00:04:57.360 --> 00:05:01.839 needle in biblical times In other words there 00:05:01.839 --> 00:05:06.920 were gates like this But there is never any evidence 00:05:06.920 --> 00:05:09.319 and any documents that we have from the ancient 00:05:09.319 --> 00:05:12.160 world they were ever called the eye of a needle 00:05:12.160 --> 00:05:16.300 And so as we think about the meaning of Jesus 00:05:16.300 --> 00:05:20.730 words It's best to conclude that he meant them 00:05:20.730 --> 00:05:23.089 exactly as they are written for us here, and 00:05:23.089 --> 00:05:28.490 he meant them literally. It is an example, though, 00:05:28.490 --> 00:05:31.069 of a figure of speech that we might call hyperbole 00:05:31.069 --> 00:05:36.750 or exaggeration. Jesus is purposely stating something 00:05:36.750 --> 00:05:40.189 here that, in the mind's eye, seems to be absurd 00:05:40.189 --> 00:05:44.230 and impossible. There is some evidence, in fact, 00:05:44.310 --> 00:05:47.759 that what Jesus said was a common expression 00:05:47.759 --> 00:05:53.980 in his day. H. B. Sweet, who is another commentator 00:05:53.980 --> 00:05:57.579 in his Gospel on Mark's account, says this, to 00:05:57.579 --> 00:06:01.040 contrast the largest beast of burden known in 00:06:01.040 --> 00:06:06.040 Palestine with the smallest of artificial apertures 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:09.860 is quite in the manner of Christ's proverbial 00:06:09.860 --> 00:06:13.759 sayings. In other words, what Jesus says here 00:06:13.759 --> 00:06:19.019 is a typical way of expressing a proverb in His 00:06:19.019 --> 00:06:24.779 day. Again, F .F. Bruce says, in Jewish rabbinical 00:06:24.779 --> 00:06:28.519 literature, an elephant passing through the eye 00:06:28.519 --> 00:06:32.639 of a needle is a figure of speech for sheer impossibility. 00:06:34.720 --> 00:06:39.279 There is, in the Talmud, a reference to an elephant. 00:06:39.860 --> 00:06:42.259 passing through the eye of a needle, which seems 00:06:42.259 --> 00:06:47.079 to arise out of Babylonian culture. So what Jesus 00:06:47.079 --> 00:06:50.720 apparently did was to take that expression and 00:06:50.720 --> 00:06:52.899 exchange the elephant, which was the largest 00:06:52.899 --> 00:06:55.399 animal known to the Persians, for the camel, 00:06:55.439 --> 00:07:00.040 which was the largest animal known in the area 00:07:00.040 --> 00:07:04.379 of Palestine. And so we should not be surprised 00:07:04.379 --> 00:07:06.500 that Jesus would use this expression. It's a 00:07:06.500 --> 00:07:09.779 rabbinical type expression, a proverbial kind 00:07:09.779 --> 00:07:13.000 of an expression. And Jesus intended for it to 00:07:13.000 --> 00:07:16.920 be striking, perhaps even with a squeeze of humor 00:07:16.920 --> 00:07:21.740 in it. And He certainly wanted it to be pointed. 00:07:23.579 --> 00:07:26.699 Can you imagine in your mind's eye trying to 00:07:26.699 --> 00:07:28.839 squeeze a camel through the eye of a needle, 00:07:29.120 --> 00:07:33.579 even a big needle? We're familiar with that. 00:07:33.639 --> 00:07:36.800 that image of a camel getting his nose under 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:40.379 the tent, and what happens? Pretty soon, the 00:07:40.379 --> 00:07:44.879 camel is in the tent. That is an expression or 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:48.740 an illustration that sometimes is used in our 00:07:48.740 --> 00:07:52.879 own language and culture. If you've ever seen 00:07:52.879 --> 00:07:57.180 a camel, you know that when you try to force 00:07:57.180 --> 00:07:59.439 a camel to do something, you are in for trouble. 00:08:01.069 --> 00:08:03.230 It would not even be akin to your mother -in 00:08:03.230 --> 00:08:08.410 -law. A camel is very temperamental. And to cause 00:08:08.410 --> 00:08:11.930 one of those creatures to try to enter into the 00:08:11.930 --> 00:08:14.230 eye of a needle would cause all kinds of problems, 00:08:14.449 --> 00:08:17.550 believe me. So I think that Jesus may have intended 00:08:17.550 --> 00:08:21.910 this to be a little bit of humor as well. But 00:08:21.910 --> 00:08:26.790 his point is that it's impossible, or rather 00:08:26.790 --> 00:08:29.430 it's easier for a camel to go through the eye 00:08:29.430 --> 00:08:32.840 of a needle than for a rich man to enter the 00:08:32.840 --> 00:08:35.179 kingdom of God. So you see the parallel Jesus 00:08:35.179 --> 00:08:38.299 is drawing? We want to go on that next step now 00:08:38.299 --> 00:08:41.059 and see what the warning is that Jesus is intending 00:08:41.059 --> 00:08:47.120 by this hard to understand illustration. Jesus 00:08:47.120 --> 00:08:50.019 puts it this way that it's easier for the camel 00:08:50.019 --> 00:08:53.620 to go through the eye of a needle than for the 00:08:53.620 --> 00:08:58.830 rich man to enter the kingdom of God. One way 00:08:58.830 --> 00:09:01.809 of saying this it is hard for those with riches 00:09:01.809 --> 00:09:05.529 to enter the kingdom of God Let's think about 00:09:05.529 --> 00:09:09.269 that idea for a moment. Why is that true? For 00:09:09.269 --> 00:09:11.909 there are lots of reasons including these that 00:09:11.909 --> 00:09:15.029 those who have material possessions are often 00:09:15.029 --> 00:09:21.309 distracted by them They become entangled in the 00:09:21.309 --> 00:09:25.129 concern of preserving their material goods and 00:09:25.129 --> 00:09:29.840 gaining more And as a result of that entanglement, 00:09:29.860 --> 00:09:32.759 they are too busy to consider the issues of the 00:09:32.759 --> 00:09:38.879 soul. In other words, their focus is so on material 00:09:38.879 --> 00:09:41.419 things that they are completely preoccupied, 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:45.799 and they miss what are the key issues of life, 00:09:46.779 --> 00:09:50.799 those that deal with the heart of man. In fact, 00:09:50.860 --> 00:09:54.110 Jesus tells another story. that illustrates this 00:09:54.110 --> 00:09:56.190 in the twelfth chapter of Luke, and I invite 00:09:56.190 --> 00:09:59.330 you to turn back there and look at it with me. 00:10:02.610 --> 00:10:07.289 Someone in the crowd that Jesus was talking with 00:10:07.289 --> 00:10:11.269 said to him, teacher, tell my brother to divide 00:10:11.269 --> 00:10:15.309 the family inheritance with me. We have a family 00:10:15.309 --> 00:10:18.889 dispute going on here, dispute going on. As two 00:10:18.889 --> 00:10:21.950 brothers are... arguing over the inheritance 00:10:21.950 --> 00:10:26.309 of the family. But Jesus said to him, man, who 00:10:26.309 --> 00:10:29.230 appointed me a judge or arbitrator over you? 00:10:30.110 --> 00:10:33.389 Jesus is here stepping back from being a judge 00:10:33.389 --> 00:10:39.149 over these kinds of temporal affairs. And he 00:10:39.149 --> 00:10:42.970 said to them all, in light of what this man had 00:10:42.970 --> 00:10:46.460 just said in front of them, Beware and be on 00:10:46.460 --> 00:10:51.480 your guard against every form of greed. For not 00:10:51.480 --> 00:10:54.279 even when one has an abundance does his life 00:10:54.279 --> 00:11:00.779 consist of his possessions. That is the fundamental 00:11:00.779 --> 00:11:08.879 error of the American culture in the 1990s. A 00:11:08.879 --> 00:11:12.200 culture that is sold out to the idea that material 00:11:12.200 --> 00:11:21.620 things consist of the meaning of life. But Jesus 00:11:21.620 --> 00:11:24.779 says, even if you have an abundance of them, 00:11:26.100 --> 00:11:32.940 that does not form the meaning of life. And so 00:11:32.940 --> 00:11:34.980 he told them this parable. The land of a certain 00:11:34.980 --> 00:11:38.600 rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning 00:11:38.600 --> 00:11:41.559 to himself, saying, what shall I do since I have 00:11:41.559 --> 00:11:44.789 no place to store my crops? So here's a man in 00:11:44.789 --> 00:11:48.590 agribusiness who has a major problem. He has 00:11:48.590 --> 00:11:52.610 been so successful and has become so productive 00:11:52.610 --> 00:11:56.570 with his land that he had no place to store the 00:11:56.570 --> 00:12:01.149 things that he was raising. And he said, this 00:12:01.149 --> 00:12:03.610 is what I will do. And so he had thought through 00:12:03.610 --> 00:12:12.059 his potential choices. And he decided, here is 00:12:12.059 --> 00:12:15.600 the thing that I will do. I will tear down my 00:12:15.600 --> 00:12:19.919 barns and build larger ones. And there I will 00:12:19.919 --> 00:12:24.740 store all my grain and my goods. There I will 00:12:24.740 --> 00:12:31.220 preserve my wealth. There I will keep what my 00:12:31.220 --> 00:12:41.379 life is all about. And he said to his soul, soul, 00:12:42.139 --> 00:12:47.179 you have many goods laid up for many years. Your 00:12:47.179 --> 00:12:51.860 retirement is secure. You have laid up enough 00:12:51.860 --> 00:12:54.720 money so that you won't have to worry about anything 00:12:54.720 --> 00:13:00.700 from now and forever. So take your ease, soul. 00:13:01.120 --> 00:13:05.659 Eat, drink, and be merry, and live in light of 00:13:05.659 --> 00:13:10.080 the wealth that you have. Enjoy the good life. 00:13:10.639 --> 00:13:16.840 It's yours to have. But God said to him, you 00:13:16.840 --> 00:13:20.860 fool. Have you ever noted the times that God 00:13:20.860 --> 00:13:25.000 calls people fools? It's not very often, but 00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:29.860 here's one. God spoke to this prosperous, self 00:13:29.860 --> 00:13:32.860 -centered man who thought that his life was all 00:13:32.860 --> 00:13:34.600 put together and the meaning of his life was 00:13:34.600 --> 00:13:37.830 to be found. in what he owned, what he possessed. 00:13:39.629 --> 00:13:44.049 God says you're a fool, because this night, this 00:13:44.049 --> 00:13:49.429 very night, your soul is required of you. And 00:13:49.429 --> 00:13:54.110 now who will own what you have prepared? He says 00:13:54.110 --> 00:14:00.990 to this man, tonight you are going to die. And 00:14:00.990 --> 00:14:04.090 then who is going to look after all of the wealth? 00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:11.559 of your life. And so Jesus concludes, so is the 00:14:11.559 --> 00:14:16.500 man who lays up treasure for himself and is not 00:14:16.500 --> 00:14:21.700 rich toward God. In other words, he has taken 00:14:21.700 --> 00:14:24.879 no time to invest in spiritual things in his 00:14:24.879 --> 00:14:29.559 life. He is impoverished with God. He has no 00:14:29.559 --> 00:14:33.559 relationship with God. Because his life has been 00:14:33.690 --> 00:14:42.409 solely focused on material things. Having looked 00:14:42.409 --> 00:14:45.529 at that example, let's go back to Luke chapter 00:14:45.529 --> 00:14:52.529 18. Here we have another young man who is distracted 00:14:52.529 --> 00:14:56.029 by his possessions. He is a little different 00:14:56.029 --> 00:14:59.409 in this way. He wanted to know what he could 00:14:59.409 --> 00:15:04.250 do to have eternal life. He wanted to know what 00:15:04.250 --> 00:15:07.009 he could perform, what one thing he might do 00:15:07.009 --> 00:15:08.870 in addition to all of the other things he had 00:15:08.870 --> 00:15:12.429 done to have eternal life. And so this young 00:15:12.429 --> 00:15:15.649 man is better off than the rich farmer who had 00:15:15.649 --> 00:15:22.149 no thoughts of God at all. Jesus, in response 00:15:22.149 --> 00:15:24.789 to the young man, knowing his real need and knowing 00:15:24.789 --> 00:15:28.730 his sense of self -righteousness, basically said 00:15:28.730 --> 00:15:30.970 to him, well, keep the commandments. If you want 00:15:30.970 --> 00:15:35.500 to do something, to gain eternal life, then keep 00:15:35.500 --> 00:15:37.720 the commandments, and Jesus listed several of 00:15:37.720 --> 00:15:41.159 them. And the young man said, I've done all of 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:44.980 these things from my youth. The young man was 00:15:44.980 --> 00:15:48.840 sincere in this. His religion had taught him 00:15:48.840 --> 00:15:54.019 that righteousness was external, that the fulfillment 00:15:54.019 --> 00:15:57.279 of the law was in keeping certain external commands 00:15:57.279 --> 00:16:00.700 that one would do to prove his righteousness. 00:16:01.149 --> 00:16:04.610 And if one did these external things in his life, 00:16:04.970 --> 00:16:07.110 then God would surely accept him. And so he was 00:16:07.110 --> 00:16:09.870 very sincere in saying, well, I have done all 00:16:09.870 --> 00:16:12.250 of the external things that the rabbis have told 00:16:12.250 --> 00:16:18.190 me to do to keep the law. But Jesus knew his 00:16:18.190 --> 00:16:22.350 heart condition and told him to go and sell what 00:16:22.350 --> 00:16:28.470 he had, thus exposing a heart problem in him. 00:16:28.809 --> 00:16:31.809 and that heart problem was covetousness, the 00:16:31.809 --> 00:16:34.830 one command Jesus did not mention when He listed 00:16:34.830 --> 00:16:41.110 the commands earlier. And so the young man was 00:16:41.110 --> 00:16:46.049 at a point of decision. Was he going to deal 00:16:46.049 --> 00:16:48.250 with the sin that was in his heart and which 00:16:48.250 --> 00:16:53.529 he now recognized was there and follow Jesus, 00:16:54.330 --> 00:16:58.899 or was he going to turn from it? and preserve 00:16:58.899 --> 00:17:04.240 his possessions. And his crucial decision was 00:17:04.240 --> 00:17:08.420 the latter. And so although he was better off 00:17:08.420 --> 00:17:11.319 in one sense than the rich farmer that Jesus 00:17:11.319 --> 00:17:14.539 told about, in the end he basically made the 00:17:14.539 --> 00:17:18.640 same decision. He was distracted by his possessions. 00:17:21.359 --> 00:17:26.220 Only God knows how many people have missed heaven. 00:17:27.529 --> 00:17:30.630 because they have been distracted by their possessions, 00:17:30.869 --> 00:17:35.089 their material wealth. And they either took no 00:17:35.089 --> 00:17:40.470 time for spiritual things, or facing the choice 00:17:40.470 --> 00:17:43.009 between spiritual things and their possessions, 00:17:43.430 --> 00:17:50.990 they chose possessions. It's also hard for those 00:17:50.990 --> 00:17:53.069 who are rich to enter the Kingdom of God because 00:17:53.069 --> 00:17:56.339 they trust in their possessions. to help them 00:17:56.339 --> 00:18:01.640 with their problems. Those who are wealthy think 00:18:01.640 --> 00:18:04.220 that they can solve their problems with their 00:18:04.220 --> 00:18:08.500 money very often. Their money has often gotten 00:18:08.500 --> 00:18:11.559 them out of difficulties and they think somehow 00:18:11.559 --> 00:18:15.279 that this will continue to be true. In a way 00:18:15.279 --> 00:18:19.359 I think this is the devil's anesthesia for their 00:18:19.359 --> 00:18:23.579 souls. It puts them to sleep regarding real -life 00:18:23.579 --> 00:18:29.269 realities. and spiritual realities. So often, 00:18:29.329 --> 00:18:32.269 having a lot of money gives those who are rich 00:18:32.269 --> 00:18:38.789 a false sense of security, a sense of being invulnerable. 00:18:40.630 --> 00:18:43.890 As the accident scene seems to be developing, 00:18:43.970 --> 00:18:46.190 or the accident event seems to be developing 00:18:46.190 --> 00:18:50.289 regarding JFK Junior, it appears that he made 00:18:50.289 --> 00:18:54.289 a reckless decision to fly his airplane in conditions 00:18:54.589 --> 00:19:02.230 for which he was not trained. And in taking that 00:19:02.230 --> 00:19:06.529 risk, perhaps feeling invulnerable because of 00:19:06.529 --> 00:19:13.269 who he was and what he had at his disposal, it's 00:19:13.269 --> 00:19:16.009 very easy for those who are wealthy to fall into 00:19:16.009 --> 00:19:22.390 that mindset. And so often those who are rich 00:19:22.390 --> 00:19:26.000 trust in their possessions That becomes their 00:19:26.000 --> 00:19:31.339 God. That becomes what they rely upon to help 00:19:31.339 --> 00:19:35.819 them in life, and perhaps even in eternity if 00:19:35.819 --> 00:19:44.900 they stop to think about it at all. It is hard 00:19:44.900 --> 00:19:48.839 for those who are rich to trust in the Lord, 00:19:50.700 --> 00:19:54.000 to admit their sinfulness and their vulnerability. 00:19:54.440 --> 00:19:59.299 that they have needs spiritually, and to turn 00:19:59.299 --> 00:20:03.940 from the preoccupation of their life to submit 00:20:03.940 --> 00:20:09.119 themselves to His Lordship. But when we explain 00:20:09.119 --> 00:20:12.740 the verse this way, I think we are somehow missing 00:20:12.740 --> 00:20:17.579 the point and perhaps softening the intent of 00:20:17.579 --> 00:20:23.490 Jesus' statement. For when Jesus said what He 00:20:23.490 --> 00:20:26.089 did in verse 25 and using that illustration, 00:20:27.130 --> 00:20:30.930 He was not merely saying it's hard for the rich 00:20:30.930 --> 00:20:38.869 to be saved. He is saying it is impossible for 00:20:38.869 --> 00:20:43.809 them to be saved. Because it's not hard to squeeze 00:20:43.809 --> 00:20:48.069 a camel into the eye of a needle. That just frankly 00:20:48.069 --> 00:20:53.809 can't be done. It is impossible to do that. You 00:20:53.809 --> 00:20:56.990 say, well, is that really what Jesus meant? Well, 00:20:56.990 --> 00:20:58.650 if you look on in the context, I think you'll 00:20:58.650 --> 00:21:03.789 see that it is. Because when the disciples heard 00:21:03.789 --> 00:21:07.349 Jesus say this, their response immediately was, 00:21:07.430 --> 00:21:11.670 well, then who can be saved? Because you see, 00:21:11.829 --> 00:21:14.230 their thinking as a result of the rabbinic teaching 00:21:14.230 --> 00:21:17.890 was that those who are rich are already in the 00:21:17.890 --> 00:21:25.119 kingdom. And that is proof of it. John D. Rockefeller 00:21:25.119 --> 00:21:27.640 had a similar idea. He made the statement one 00:21:27.640 --> 00:21:31.059 time that riches are a gift from God that says, 00:21:31.339 --> 00:21:34.039 this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. 00:21:39.940 --> 00:21:43.579 So often we think that those who are rich, obviously, 00:21:44.339 --> 00:21:48.990 are being blessed by God. They must have it together 00:21:48.990 --> 00:21:52.710 with God. God must be pleased with them somehow. 00:21:54.289 --> 00:21:57.230 They must be in the kingdom. That was certainly 00:21:57.230 --> 00:22:00.930 what the average person thought in the Jewish 00:22:00.930 --> 00:22:04.210 culture, and the disciples thought that. And 00:22:04.210 --> 00:22:06.829 so when Jesus made this statement, they said, 00:22:06.950 --> 00:22:12.470 wow! If the rich aren't in the kingdom, then 00:22:12.470 --> 00:22:16.490 who can be saved? And notice what Jesus said. 00:22:18.089 --> 00:22:24.549 The things impossible with men are possible with 00:22:24.549 --> 00:22:33.609 God. Jesus was affirming that it is impossible 00:22:33.609 --> 00:22:39.230 for man to be saved by his own achievement, by 00:22:39.230 --> 00:22:44.289 his own works, by his own efforts. It is impossible, 00:22:44.809 --> 00:22:50.220 not only for the rich. But for the poor and anyone 00:22:50.220 --> 00:22:54.759 else in between to be saved through their own 00:22:54.759 --> 00:22:59.460 efforts, their own works, even their own external 00:22:59.460 --> 00:23:01.799 keeping of the law like this rich young ruler, 00:23:02.700 --> 00:23:10.660 it's impossible. But God, through grace, can 00:23:10.660 --> 00:23:17.849 do the impossible. God can save anyone rich or 00:23:17.849 --> 00:23:24.869 poor by grace as a gift, as something that He 00:23:24.869 --> 00:23:28.789 gives to those who come broken and impoverished 00:23:28.789 --> 00:23:35.009 of spirit and who believe. This event reminds 00:23:35.009 --> 00:23:39.210 us that life's most crucial issue is entering 00:23:39.210 --> 00:23:43.529 the kingdom of God. There's nothing that surpasses 00:23:43.529 --> 00:23:48.990 that. You and I are not in this world for very 00:23:48.990 --> 00:23:54.849 long. And when we leave it, after 37 or 38 years, 00:23:55.509 --> 00:23:59.410 or 87 or 88 years, when we ultimately leave this 00:23:59.410 --> 00:24:02.509 world, we take nothing of our material gain with 00:24:02.509 --> 00:24:07.650 us. Two men were talking about a rich man in 00:24:07.650 --> 00:24:10.130 the town who had died. And one asked the other, 00:24:10.190 --> 00:24:13.490 well, how much did he leave? And his friend replied, 00:24:13.730 --> 00:24:19.319 all of it. Have you ever seen a hearse with a 00:24:19.319 --> 00:24:25.940 trailer hitch? Shrouds do not have pockets in 00:24:25.940 --> 00:24:32.380 them. You see, the real issue of life is entering 00:24:32.380 --> 00:24:35.740 the kingdom of God, which in the context here 00:24:35.740 --> 00:24:39.700 clearly means being saved, having a right relationship 00:24:39.700 --> 00:24:49.230 with God, entering into the family of God. We 00:24:49.230 --> 00:24:52.250 also learned from this event that God measures 00:24:52.250 --> 00:24:55.910 success differently than humans. Because don't 00:24:55.910 --> 00:24:59.150 we tend to measure an individual's prestige and 00:24:59.150 --> 00:25:04.309 success in life by how much he possesses? Most 00:25:04.309 --> 00:25:07.190 human beings think that success is spelled M 00:25:07.190 --> 00:25:11.089 -O -N -E -Y. And you don't have to be in America 00:25:11.089 --> 00:25:17.450 to think that. But God says that success belongs 00:25:17.450 --> 00:25:24.670 to those who enter the kingdom. That's why Jesus 00:25:24.670 --> 00:25:27.349 said in Matthew 6, Seek ye first the kingdom 00:25:27.349 --> 00:25:32.869 of God and His righteousness, and all of these 00:25:32.869 --> 00:25:36.990 things will be added to you. Earlier He said, 00:25:37.069 --> 00:25:39.289 your Heavenly Father knows that you have need 00:25:39.289 --> 00:25:42.480 of these things. He takes care of the sparrows 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:44.980 and He takes care of the flowers. He will take 00:25:44.980 --> 00:25:48.500 care of you with regard to material possessions. 00:25:50.000 --> 00:25:52.380 But make it, He says, the focus of your life, 00:25:52.819 --> 00:25:55.839 the very first thing, the priority of life, to 00:25:55.839 --> 00:26:00.140 seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness. 00:26:00.859 --> 00:26:05.039 Another way of saying entering the kingdom. One 00:26:05.039 --> 00:26:08.509 who enters the kingdom. is one who has found 00:26:08.509 --> 00:26:13.609 genuine success in life. All the other factors 00:26:13.609 --> 00:26:20.490 are secondary. Success is coming to know God 00:26:20.490 --> 00:26:24.990 personally and having eternal life. This event 00:26:24.990 --> 00:26:30.549 also warns of the danger of materialism. G .K. 00:26:30.690 --> 00:26:33.309 Chesterton said to be clever enough to get a 00:26:33.309 --> 00:26:36.109 great deal of money, One must be stupid enough 00:26:36.109 --> 00:26:43.289 to want it. We have fallen into that stupidity 00:26:43.289 --> 00:26:49.289 in our culture. Living for what money buys and 00:26:49.289 --> 00:26:56.009 permits one to have is self -condemnation. Now, 00:26:56.089 --> 00:26:58.490 it's not just being rich that's the problem. 00:27:01.039 --> 00:27:03.779 The problem is one's attitude toward riches. 00:27:04.079 --> 00:27:08.400 Isn't that right? Because one can have an abundance 00:27:08.400 --> 00:27:12.680 and have the right attitude toward that abundance, 00:27:12.880 --> 00:27:16.119 be using it for the kingdom of God, under God's 00:27:16.119 --> 00:27:21.779 blessing. Or one may be poor and covetous for 00:27:21.779 --> 00:27:25.359 what he doesn't have and be under condemnation. 00:27:27.160 --> 00:27:30.980 Materialism is not a belief of those who are 00:27:30.980 --> 00:27:35.420 rich. It is a belief of those people, regardless 00:27:35.420 --> 00:27:38.859 of their wealth, who think that the essence of 00:27:38.859 --> 00:27:44.000 life is found in what one possesses. James writes 00:27:44.000 --> 00:27:48.200 these strong words, come now you rich, weep and 00:27:48.200 --> 00:27:50.599 howl for your miseries which are coming upon 00:27:50.599 --> 00:27:54.720 you. I think that these are words that could 00:27:54.720 --> 00:28:00.240 be written to Americans right now. Your riches 00:28:00.240 --> 00:28:04.000 have rotted, and your garments have become moth 00:28:04.000 --> 00:28:07.160 -eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted. 00:28:07.519 --> 00:28:10.460 Their rust will be a witness against you, and 00:28:10.460 --> 00:28:15.039 consume your flesh like fire." And he says this, 00:28:15.759 --> 00:28:19.420 it is in the last days that you have stored up 00:28:19.420 --> 00:28:25.819 your treasure. Of all times, in these eschatological 00:28:25.819 --> 00:28:29.009 times, in these times of the Lord's coming, In 00:28:29.009 --> 00:28:31.950 these times of judgment, in these times of God's 00:28:31.950 --> 00:28:35.049 dealing with mankind, in these last times, it's 00:28:35.049 --> 00:28:39.670 now that you have so greatly erred in storing 00:28:39.670 --> 00:28:45.130 up your earthly treasures. He goes on to say, 00:28:45.230 --> 00:28:47.509 behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your 00:28:47.509 --> 00:28:51.450 fields and which has been withheld by you cries 00:28:51.450 --> 00:28:55.019 out against you. and the outcry of those who 00:28:55.019 --> 00:28:57.420 did the harvesting has reached the ears of the 00:28:57.420 --> 00:29:02.240 Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on 00:29:02.240 --> 00:29:04.579 the earth and led a life of want and pleasure. 00:29:05.400 --> 00:29:12.200 You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter." 00:29:12.200 --> 00:29:14.299 Those are strong words to all of us who live 00:29:14.299 --> 00:29:17.900 in this culture because materialism is not just 00:29:17.900 --> 00:29:22.960 the sin. of those who are lost and on their way 00:29:22.960 --> 00:29:28.000 to hell. Materialism is a sin and a great sin 00:29:28.000 --> 00:29:34.859 of the people of God. Jimmy Carter said, someone 00:29:34.859 --> 00:29:37.599 who's obsessed with making money to the exclusion 00:29:37.599 --> 00:29:41.500 of other goals in life has likely foregone the 00:29:41.500 --> 00:29:46.039 possibility of the acceptance in God's kingdom. 00:29:48.259 --> 00:29:50.079 That's a statement by President Carter I agree 00:29:50.079 --> 00:29:59.240 with. Jesus, in giving the parable of the soils, 00:30:00.180 --> 00:30:04.420 warned at one point in there about the deceitfulness 00:30:04.420 --> 00:30:10.220 of riches and how that can choke out the word 00:30:10.220 --> 00:30:14.880 in the life of a person. In closing, let's just 00:30:14.880 --> 00:30:17.640 think for a moment about how camels and needles 00:30:17.640 --> 00:30:23.680 affect our lives. Let me quote Warren Wiersbie 00:30:23.680 --> 00:30:27.380 in making this important point again, that possessing 00:30:27.380 --> 00:30:33.839 riches doesn't keep you out of heaven, but being 00:30:33.839 --> 00:30:38.420 possessed by riches and trusting in them does. 00:30:42.180 --> 00:30:46.599 Are you today living for your earthly possessions? 00:30:47.119 --> 00:30:52.440 Is the focus of your life your money? preserving 00:30:52.440 --> 00:30:59.059 it and getting more of it? Are you trusting in 00:30:59.059 --> 00:31:02.279 your money to get you out of hard places in life 00:31:02.279 --> 00:31:09.140 to the exclusion of your soul's needs and trusting 00:31:09.140 --> 00:31:13.759 in the Lord? If so, then camels and needles have 00:31:13.759 --> 00:31:19.119 something to say to you today. We all need to 00:31:19.119 --> 00:31:21.839 beware lest our attitude regarding money corrupt 00:31:21.839 --> 00:31:26.759 our souls. Let me close by telling you about 00:31:26.759 --> 00:31:31.740 Bill Borden. It's a name that you may not recognize. 00:31:31.940 --> 00:31:36.339 Bill Borden lived at the turn of the last century, 00:31:37.480 --> 00:31:42.019 born in 1887. Bill Borden was born into a wealthy 00:31:42.019 --> 00:31:44.759 and privileged family in Chicago. It was the 00:31:44.759 --> 00:31:50.380 Borden Milk Company. family, which was a big 00:31:50.380 --> 00:31:53.000 name, especially here in the Midwest in years 00:31:53.000 --> 00:31:58.720 past. Phil Borden became a Christian at some 00:31:58.720 --> 00:32:02.740 point in his journey. And it was while he was 00:32:02.740 --> 00:32:05.480 at Yale that God really began to move in his 00:32:05.480 --> 00:32:12.099 heart. And he decided to go to Princeton Seminary, 00:32:12.140 --> 00:32:15.500 which he did. And it apparently was there that 00:32:15.500 --> 00:32:20.160 Samuel Zwemer greatly influenced his life. Swimmer 00:32:20.160 --> 00:32:25.319 was about 20 years older and was a committed 00:32:25.319 --> 00:32:29.220 and dedicated servant of Christ, a man who had 00:32:29.220 --> 00:32:34.680 the Muslim world upon his heart. And he influenced 00:32:34.680 --> 00:32:39.720 Bill Borden to give up his life of prestige and 00:32:39.720 --> 00:32:43.539 wealth and to go in the name of Jesus Christ 00:32:43.539 --> 00:32:50.230 to the Muslims that they might be saved. Swimmer 00:32:50.230 --> 00:32:52.890 was a product of the student volunteer movement 00:32:52.890 --> 00:32:58.329 of the 1880s, when the Spirit of God came upon 00:32:58.329 --> 00:33:01.569 many, many college and university and seminary 00:33:01.569 --> 00:33:04.730 students, men and women, who dedicated themselves 00:33:04.730 --> 00:33:08.930 to serve Christ on the mission field. And now 00:33:08.930 --> 00:33:13.630 Borden was affected by that same zeal. And he 00:33:13.630 --> 00:33:16.490 faced this hard decision about whether to serve 00:33:16.490 --> 00:33:20.410 God with his life. or to continue in the line 00:33:20.410 --> 00:33:26.250 of his family and live for his wealth. And in 00:33:26.250 --> 00:33:30.809 his case, what he decided he needed to do was 00:33:30.809 --> 00:33:36.109 to give it all up. And so he gave up and gave 00:33:36.109 --> 00:33:41.490 away all of his inheritance so that that money 00:33:41.490 --> 00:33:44.410 would not any longer be an allurement to his 00:33:44.410 --> 00:33:49.150 soul. And he gave himself to go. to the mission 00:33:49.150 --> 00:33:53.109 field. Now his life is interesting because he 00:33:53.109 --> 00:33:58.170 left in 1913, 26 years of age, to go to Egypt 00:33:58.170 --> 00:34:02.990 there to study the culture of the Muslims and 00:34:02.990 --> 00:34:06.849 to learn Arabic. And while he was there, he caught 00:34:06.849 --> 00:34:12.630 meningitis and died. And his life seems like 00:34:12.630 --> 00:34:17.099 a waste, doesn't it? And yet here we are. 80 00:34:17.099 --> 00:34:21.019 some years later talking about the level of commitment 00:34:21.019 --> 00:34:24.699 of that man and how he was able to turn away 00:34:24.699 --> 00:34:28.099 from the wealth of his life and his privilege 00:34:28.099 --> 00:34:31.900 and his position to serve Jesus Christ, whatever 00:34:31.900 --> 00:34:34.880 it meant. His life has touched thousands of people 00:34:34.880 --> 00:34:38.179 down through the decades. I hope we don't forget 00:34:38.179 --> 00:34:43.219 men like Bill Borden. Now God is not necessarily 00:34:43.219 --> 00:34:46.119 calling you to give up all of your wealth. and 00:34:46.119 --> 00:34:49.099 to go to the mission field. But I can tell you 00:34:49.099 --> 00:34:51.380 this, with all of my heart I know that God is 00:34:51.380 --> 00:34:54.820 telling all of us today that we dare not allow 00:34:54.820 --> 00:35:01.659 our money to run our lives. If we today are living 00:35:01.659 --> 00:35:06.940 for and trusting in money, then we are condemned.