WHAT MUST I DO?
Mark 10:17-22
INTRODUCTION
This morning I would like us to try to answer the question, ‘what is a Christian?’ There is a huge amount of confusion over this issue!
I believe it’s important to be able to provide an answer to this question for 2 reasons –
1. So we can assess where we are in relation to Christ.
2. So we can inform others what it is to be a Christian.
So let’s try to answer the question - ‘What actually is a Christian?’
Perhaps we could kick off by hearing from the floor.
· What do you think makes a person a Christian?
· Would anybody else like to contribute?
I overheard a conversation between the CEO and the Assistant CEO of the place where I was working at the time – the conversation was in the context of being good people. It went something like this: ‘I am more of a Christian (said the assistant) than those who go by that name’. ‘I do more for the community than most of them do!’ ‘And I certainly am not a bad, evil person’ The CEO responded, ‘you hit the nail on the head – most Christians are all talk! They talk about doing good more than they do it’.
To consider a person to be a Christian on the merits of what good that person does is common. I am sure we have all heard the phrase, ‘yes that’s the Christian thing to do’. We seem to equate being Christian with doing.
But is this actually right? In fact I have entitled this message, ‘What Must I Do?’.
Can anyone tell me where the word Christian came from?
It came from the Bible. The term is used there (Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1 Pet 4:16). So perhaps we can discover from the pages of the Bible the true meaning of what it is to be a Christian.
Please follow along on the screen as I read to you from the Bible. I am reading from the Gospel according to Mark (10:17-22)
WHAT TYPE OF MAN WAS THIS WHO CAME TO JESUS?
Before we consider that question, we need to realise that this man came enquiring how to become a Christian. He was seeking eternal life – never ending life. Christians claim to have that life. So this man was in effect asking how he could become a Christian.
So getting back to the question - what type of man was he?
· Looking at the description of this man who came to Jesus – what strikes you about him?
· Would any others like to comment?
Would you agree that this man who came to Jesus, eagerly wanted to know the answer to the question, ‘how can I have everlasting life?’ – we are told he ran to Jesus & began asking Him – asking Him again & again.
Would you agree that this man was a deeply religious man? – we are told that he kept the commandments, God’s laws from his youth.
Would you agree that he treated Jesus with great respect? – we are told he knelt before Him.
Would you agree that he recognised good in Jesus – he called Him good teacher, He was more than just an ordinary teacher.
Note that Jesus in verse 18 tries to pull out the full implication of this man’s comment by saying – ‘… "Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.’ The Lord Jesus Christ, the second person of the God-head tries to see whether this man understands who He really is.
The accounts of this same incident recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke also include that this man was young and that he was a ruler.
We are told that Jesus loved him. Jesus could see that here was a man who desired to do the right thing – here was a man who enthusiastically wanted to know his spiritual and eternal destiny.
Here was an enthusiastic, good, rich, young ruler who wanted to know what to do to inherit eternal life.
So what was this man like? He was a good man who had everything going for him - wealth, youth, position, religious zeal, respect & enthusiasm.
But
WHAT WAS JESUS’ ANSWER TO, ‘WHAT MUST I DO TO INHERIT ETERNAL LIFE’, WHAT MUST I DO TO BE A CHRISTIAN?
Look at verse 21 – ‘… "One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
Was Jesus condemning wealth or possessions when He said that?
Was He saying that eternal life could be obtained through good works – by suggesting that this man give to the poor?
No!
Rather, Jesus was using this young man’s wealth as an example of anything that de-thrones God from His rightful place in and over our lives. Jesus taught that human goodness, although very valuable, is not the criteria for receiving eternal life. Jesus demonstrated to this good person, that he had in fact broken the commandment given by God in Exodus 20, ‘You shall have no other gods before Me’. Nothing is to take My place, says God.
Jesus teaches you and me through this account that no matter how great our religious zeal, or how good we may consider ourselves to be, we are still sinners. Yes you are a sinner and I am a sinner.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A SINNER?
· What do you think it means to be a sinner?
· Any other thoughts?
Scripture teaches that, my actions don’t make me a sinner – my actions are to sin what symptoms are to disease. You see sin is a relational matter - the essence of sinfulness is the rejection of the one true and living God. I am a sinner because my relationship with God is marred. And God is the author of true life – so it follows that when I am separated from Him, I have no life!
When Jesus was asked what is the greatest commandment, He replied, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’ There is no greater commandment than this, Jesus said. Do I, no matter how good I am, love the Lord my God like that every second of the day – if I don’t then I have broken the greatest of all commandments. My fellowship with God is broken. And God is eternal, He is out of the realm of time, so my break in relationship is an eternal break – I have earned the wages of eternal separation from God the author & sustainer of life.
You know there are only 2 kinds of people in this world – not good people and bad people. There are bad people who admit it and bad people who deny it. And often the bad people who deny it are the best people in the community.
Some of us may be thinking, ‘Well big deal, I live separate to God now and I am having a ball!’ But you do not live separate to God, you just do not acknowledge Him. All that is good in the world, whether inside or outside the church is controlled by the Holy Spirit – for in God alone there is goodness. Can you imagine a society completely void of goodness - no love, no joy, no mercy, no justice, no understanding, no companionship, no success, no rest, no satisfaction, no peace, no truth – if you can imagine a place like that, then you have had a glimpse of a Christless eternity.
Well then, what hope have we?
HOW CAN THESE CHRISTIANS CLAIM TO HAVE ETERNAL LIFE?
Scripture teaches, ‘The wages of sin is death, BUT the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Rom 6:23). Jesus is the way to never ending life. He willingly died your death & my death. The grave could not hold Him - for He is the God-man - perfect & sinless. God justly found us guilty, pronounced the judgement & then personally paid the penalty that we deserved.
How wonderful!
All we have to do is accept what He has done, turn from trying to run our own lives and place our complete trust in Jesus Christ.
‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.’
When Jesus went into that grave all those years ago, He took me with Him. When He rose from that grave, I rose with Him. You see Jesus is my death and Jesus is my life!
God offers you & me this free gift – all we need to do is take it.
WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN?
A Christian is one whose life is lived by Christ. Did you know that Christianity is the only religion in the world where good works follow salvation. All other religions attribute salvation to works. And did you know that Christianity is the only way – for it’s founder is still living, and it is only through His life that we will see God. He has the words of eternal life. Christianity is the only religion which claims that it’s founder is still at large and it is He who will live the life that God requires in you.
A Christian is a person who has never ending life with God – a person who is not judged on whether he or she is doing right but whether he or she is right in the sight of God.
Are you relying on your good works, or religious zeal or standing in the community to receive eternal life?
If so – ponder on the words of Jesus to this young man – ‘put God first in your life and come ‘follow Me’’. I commend Jesus to you.
Don’t do as the young man in this story did – he went away sad because he was not willing, or perhaps not even understanding what Jesus was asking him to do.
