By Jeff Kimes - Executive Pastor
In Luke 18:18-23, we see the interaction that Jesus has with the rich young ruler. In this encounter, a very knowledgeable and wealthy young man quizzes Jesus about what it takes to gain eternal life. He had a good knowledge of the Word of God, Jesus even acknowledges that he knows the Word. In verse 20, Jesus actually says “you know the commandments”. The young man even confirms this by his testimony, “All these things I have kept from my youth”. But Jesus could see what was truly in his heart. He sees that his heart was tied to his possessions. Jesus challenges him to go sell all that he has and give it to the poor and then he will have treasures in heaven and come follow Him. In verse 23, we see confirmation of the heart of the young man. “But when he had heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich.”
Jesus is not asking this young man or us to take a vow of poverty in order to follow Him. He is asking us to give Him our heart, those things that mean the most to us. It could be our wealth, our job, our family, our status, or many other things. He wants to use us to accomplish His goals.
In Matthew 22:37 Jesus says “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind.” We are to love God with all that we have and all that
we are.
I have heard it said, “the distance between heaven and hell is about 12 inches”, which is the distance from the head to the heart. The rich young ruler had all the knowledge, but his heart was tied to the world and he was unwilling to change. Are there things in your life that you are unwilling to give to the Lord? If so, give them to the Lord and allow Him to have control of your life.
Blessings,
Jeff Kimes