The Blessed List: Rich Man, Poor Man
Luke 6: 17-20; 24
Dr. Michael W. Snow
August 10, 2008
I’m sure that by now many of you have seen the movie “The Bucket List.” It’s the story of two men who meet by chance as hospital roommates. As the story develops, we soon discover that one of the men is terminally ill, and the other man is incredibly wealthy. With hours to spend in their hospital room they have plenty of time to talk about how they are feeling and all that they are facing. Staring mortality in the face they each begin to rehearse some of the “if onlys” and “I wish I hads” of their lives. Finally the wealthy man said to the dying man, “so what’s stopping us?” And after a considerable amount of effort he finally persuades the dying man to spend his final days fulfilling many of the things that he had always dreamed of doing. So together they develop a “bucket list” a list of all the things they wasn’t to accomplish before they “kick the bucket.”
Now I don’t want to ruin it for you by telling you the whole story but we eventually discover that it was the dying man who was truly rich because of his faith and his family. And it was the wealthy man who though he had great riches was emotionally and spiritually impoverished.
So let me ask you, “What’s on your ‘bucket list?’” What are some of the things that you’d like to do, or places you’d like to visit, or the things that you’d like to have?
Perhaps your list would be something like the one found in The Book of History, from an ancient Chinese religion. It has a list of the Five Happinesses which include; long life, riches, soundness of body and serenity of mind, love of virtue, and an end crowning the life. That’s not a bad list.
I’m sure that the crowds who followed Jesus had wish lists as well. Those first century seekers were looking for happiness as much as anyone. Unfortunately, happiness for them seemed even further out of reach. But I’m sure that their needs and hopes and wishes were much more basic than ours. They, after all, were living in occupied territory a military state. They were forever being taxed and trampled by an oppressive foreign government.
They were also living in a two class society where the rich were getting richer and the poor were getting poorer, where the vast majority of people were being pushed aside and ignored by the wealthy upper class.
Perhaps worst of all, they were feeling shut out by their own religious leaders. For rather than offering hope or consolation, the temple legalists were continually raising the bar of expectation by adding another hoop that they would need to jump through before they would be deemed good enough for God.
As far as they could tell the only blessed or "happy" people were the ones with all the wealth, political power or religious authority. All that was left for them to do was to grit their teeth and bear it.
So when Jesus came onto the scene and began preaching and teaching and healing the sick these people began to take notice. What’s more he began to tell them about a new way of life. He began to telling them about a new kingdom that he was preparing to establish, he called it the Kingdom of God. And the more that the people followed him and the more that they listened, the more curious they became. They wondered just what this new kingdom would be like. Would it be a kingdom of the powerful and the oppressed? Would it be a kingdom of the haves and the have nots? And more importantly, they wondered who would be allowed to enter. Was this kingdom only for the powerful and influential? Only the rich and famous? Only for the pure and pious. What were the requirements for admission? Could they possibly measure up? And like expectant athletes waiting to see if they made the cut, they listened for their name to be called wondering if they had made the team.
Imagine their amazement when Jesus began to teach them
saying,
"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven."
"Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied.”
“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.”
“Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.”
What an amazing list. What a contrast it is to our lists… Our list of things to accomplish, Our list of qualities to emulate, Our list of goals to achieve, Our list of all the things which are sure to make us happy. And Jesus steps into our world and turns all our lists upside down. For Jesus tells us that true joy, true blessedness comes through being accepted by God, true joy comes through finding and experiencing his divine favor and being welcomed into his kingdom.
First Jesus said,
"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” Luke 6:20 (NIV)
Years ago, E. Stanley Jones, the great Methodist Missionary to India, would conduct special meetings that he called "ashrams." An ashram was a special time set aside for spiritual growth. It’s what we might call a retreat. Dr. Jones always began his ashrams by passing out pieces of paper and saying, "No one will see what you are about to write on this paper. But I want you to take this piece of paper write what your need is today." What need do you have?”
Whenever he would ask this question inevitably someone would raise their hand and say, "But Brother Stanley, I don’t really think that I have a need. What should I write down if I don’t have a need?" and Dr. Jones would say, "Friend, if you think you don’t have a need, then that’s your need!"
Yes, if we are truly honest with ourselves, we would all have to admit that we are poor in some way. Every one of us has some kind of need. But often we are reluctant to admit our needs because we’re afraid of what others might think. We are afraid that people will reject us. But what we really need be afraid of is the result that comes from ignoring our need, denying our poverty.
In the 19th chapter of Matthew Jesus had an encounter with a man who felt that he didn’t really have a need. Although he was a first century seeker, he could just as easily been from 21st century Wall Street. He was rich. His shoes were Italian leather. His suit was tailored and fine. His money was invested. His plastic was platinum. He lived like he flew--first class.
And He wasn’t rich rich, he was young. His muscles were toned, His belly was flat, and his eyes were sharp. He drank Red Bull for breakfast. As far as he was concerned, death was an eternity away.
And He wasn’t only rich and young, he was also powerful. An under-aged executive with more authority than experience. If you had problems. He had solutions. . If you had questions. He had opinions. He knew where he was going, and he was confident that he was going to get there. Who was he? He was the Rich...Young . . . Ruler.
Though usually he was the one with all the answers, today he had a question. Now we don’t really know if his question came from casual curiosity or a genuine concern? But we do know that this was a rare occasion that he had come to someone else for advice. For one who was used to calling all the shots, it must have felt pretty awkward seeking the counsel of a carpenter’s son turned country preacher.
But this was not just any question.
"Teacher," he asked, "what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" Matthew 19:16
The way he worded of his question betrayed his misunderstanding. He was thinking that he could acquire eternal life in the same way that he had gotten everything else--by his own devices. And so he asked, "What must I do?"
"What are the requirements, Jesus?" "No need for small talk." "I’m a businessman so go straight to the bottom line, what’II it cost me." "How much do I need to invest to be certain of the desired return on my investment?"
Jesus’ answer to the man was intended to make him wince. Jesus said,
"If you want to enter life, obey the commandments." Matthew 19:17
Notice that Jesus didn’t say “If you want eternal life,” he said, “If you want to enter life.” Yes, in God’s Kingdom eternity is now, and even with all of His wealth and health and power, that man had yet to find life.
But the man didn’t quite get the point. Most people given that kind of response would have just thrown up their hands and said, "Keep the commandments? Keep the commandments! Do you know how many commandments there are? Have you read the Law lately? What you’re asking is impossible. I’ve tried- honestly, I’ve tried--but I can’t."
That’s what the rich young ruler should have said, but confession wasn’t a familiar exercise. Instead of asking for help, he grabbed a pencil and paper and asked for “the list.” “The Bucket List” "Okay which ones?" "Which commandments do I need to keep before I kick the bucket?" How do I make sure that I make the cut?
And so Jesus decided to indulge him. He said,
"Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself," Matthew 19:18
"Great!" thought the Man, “now that I’ve got the list, let’s see if I pass the test. Let’s see, Murder? Of course not. Adultery? I’m not even married. Lying and Stealing? Nothing serious, business is business you know. Honor your father and mother? Sure, I call them on the weekend and I visit them on holidays. Love your neighbor as yourself. . .? "Hey, I love everybody and everybody loves me, why I’m the rich, young ruler.” I thought this was going to be tough. Why, I’ve done all of these since I was a kid in Sunday School. I’ve done it all. Is there anything else?
“What do I still lack?” Matthew 19:20
It’s hard to imagine how Jesus must have felt. Though the intent of His question was to show this young man how much he was lacking, in the end it only convinced him that he had already arrived.
So finally Jesus went straight to the point. He said,
Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." Matthew 19:21 (NIV)
And verse 22 says,
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. Matthew 19:22
The disciples who had overheard the conversation were bewildered. Their question could be ours. If a good and successful businessman can’t make it into heaven, then who can be saved?" And Jesus replied, "With man, it’s impossible. . . . It’s impossible."
Now notice, that Jesus didn’t say it was improbable or unlikely, or that it would be tough to do. He said it was ’impossible.’
Impossible. Yes, it’s impossible for any person to enter the kingdom of heaven on their own. Unless God steps in we don’t have a chance of having eternal life.
That’s hard for us to handle, isn’t it? After all, all of our lives we’ve been measured by performance. We get grades according to how we study. We get trophies and awards based on our success. We get money in response to our work. Our lives have always been based on achievement.
So it’s hard to imagine receiving anything we didn’t earn or have to pay for. That’s why the rich young ruler thought heaven was just a payment away. But Jesus is saying, “What you need costs far more than you could ever hope to pay. But the good news is that "what is impossible with men is possible with God."
Whatever you do don’t miss the meaning of that verse. For in it Jesus is telling us that we cannot save ourselves. We can’t save ourselves by doing all the right things, having the right doctrine, or having a particular experience. Jesus’ point is crystal clear. It is impossible for human beings to save themselves.
You see, it wasn’t the money that hindered the rich man; it was the self-sufficiency. It wasn’t his possessions; it was his pride. He was proud enough to think that on his own merits he could earn his way into heaven.
But, it’s not just the rich who have difficulty admitting their need. It’s not just the wealthy who have trouble declaring spiritual bankruptcy. The educated have trouble as well, so do the strong, so do the good-looking, so do the popular, so do the religious.
God doesn’t save us because of who we are or what we have done. He saves us because of who he is and what he has done for us.
The Apostle Paul wrote to the Church in Corinth…
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9 (NIV)
Yes, Jesus is telling us that those who are truly blessed are those who acknowledge their need. So the first step to finding God’s blessing in our life is a plea for help, it’s an acknowledgment of our true condition. It’s admitting that we are Spiritually bankrupt, that we cannot save ourselves.
It’s not an easy step to take. We’re not used to admitting our need. But Jesus is telling us that those who will enter God’s Kingdom are the ones who are fully aware of their spiritual crisis. They know that their pockets are empty. They know that their options are gone. They know that they are spiritually bankrupt. They have seen how holy God is and they know how sinful they are and they have agreed with Jesus that, apart from God, salvation is impossible.
This morning I want to remind you that it is only by God’s grace that we are saved through faith not by works, not by wealth, not by power or influence. Only by the grace of God as we admit our need, and surrender our lives to Him.
