You can't bribe St. Peter
As I read this passage, I would like you to be aware any emotions you may have about this story. And after I will ask you to share your feelings.
There are many other times in the Gospel where Jesus talks about money. In other stories, Jesus' message is very different from the one in this story.
There is the story of Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector who was short and rich. Zacchaeus repented his sins and offered fourfold restitution to those he had cheated. Jesus celebrated his change of heart and life, and most important, allowed him to keep half of his fortune.
There is the instance in which Jesus does not rebuke the woman who anoints him with a very costly ointment and approves of such extravagance despite the objections of the disciples.
But now, here is this story of the rich young ruler who comes to Jesus asking what must be done to inherit eternal life. Jesus counts out the commandments. And then the rich young man says that he has kept all these since his youth. Jesus answers that he lacks one thing. Jesus tells him to go, sell what he owns, and give the money to the poor and then come and follow him. That is what he must do to inherit eternal life.
Something is going on here that is different from the other stories. That something is Jesus' unearthly ability to be present, totally present, to another person. People who entered his life experienced something unlike anything else. It was as if time stood still inside the total attentiveness of this man. Jesus could be with people, truly be with them and see through to who they really were. He could see through to what would challenge them. It was as if he could see into their hearts.
And what he sees in the heart of this young ruler is that he is possessed by his possessions. He sees that this young man's wealth is a hindrance to his relationship with God. And so Jesus challenges him on it. He knows what this man must do for his heart to be loving - for his heart to belong to God.
Jesus is not giving us a rule to live by. We are not told that all people must sell all their things and come and follow Jesus to inherit eternal life. Jesus knows what will challenge this man. Jesus knows what is in this man's heart and what he has to let go of, in order to inherit eternal life, in order to be in a right relationship with God.
There is a story of a man who attended church regularly. One Sunday the minister preached on money being the root of all evil. As the man was on his way out the door, he said to the minister, "Quiet frankly Rev. Smith, I think that not having money is the root of all evil."
Money may be a hindrance to being in relationship with God. Money may be a hindrance to following Jesus and following the Holy Spirit guiding our lives. It is our job to make sure it is not a hindrance. It is our job to make sure our wealth does not prevent us from living a Christian life.
One winter evening, Ralph Milton came home to find his house lit only with candles on the dining room table. Bev stood at the front door to greet him.
"That's very romantic, Bev," said Ralph cheerfully.
But Bev was not in a mood to be either cheerful or romantic. Earlier that afternoon, their smoke detector had gone berserk. Bev tried to turn it off. But this particular smoke detector had no battery, and no off switch. It ran off the electrical power lines.
Bev tried every fuse. Eventually in desperation, she turned off the main switch, and plunged the whole house into darkness.
Sometimes even the best of things can turn on you. No one would want to do without a smoke detector. And a smoke detector must make enough noise to get everyone's attention. But when it can't be turned off, it becomes a problem.
No one wants to live in abject poverty either. We want to live in relative comfort. We want to buy our food, not search for it; we want professional medical care, not folk remedies; we want microwaves and dishwashers to make our work easier. So we try to earn, and to accumulate, money.
But when the desire to accumulate money can't be turned off, it becomes a problem.
That was why Jesus asked the rich young man to turn off his main power switch. Accumulating money became a problem, a hindrance to his relationship with God.
This passage is not about following rules. This passage does not give us a rule for life. Partly, this passage reveals the kind of man Jesus was. An amazing man for whom time stood still when people encountered him. Let us stop and reflect on this next question: What would Jesus say to you?
The good news is what Jesus would not say to us. He would not criticize us in ways that other people do. He would not tell us that we have to be upstanding citizens, that we have to be successful, that we have to follow the rules. All the pressures that have been put on us all our lives do not come from God. What our parents and our friends expect from us is not what Jesus asks. In many cases, this can mean it is actually easier for us, for the things the world demand require hard work, intelligence, and perseverance, but God merely asks us for our loving hearts.
All the pressures that have been put on us all our lives do not come from God, for God merely asks us for our loving hearts.
"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God" Jesus says. That certainly sounds demanding. That sounds like we don't have much hope when we take it out of context. But then the disciples ask the question we may be asking, "Then who can be saved?"
"For mortals it is impossible, but not for God, for God all things are possible." We can't earn our way into heaven. We simply give our loving hearts to God, to Jesus, to others. And God takes care of the rest, takes care of us. For God all things are possible.
