Saturday, February 18, 2012

Why Did Jesus Ask Him To Give

Matthew 19:16-22; Mark 10: 17-22; Luke 18:18-23
In this familiar passage of scripture Jesus encountered a young rich man who asked how to obtain eternal life. Jesus initially gave the expected Jewish response. The man should keep the commandments. The man replied that he had done so. Maybe he knew this was not enough. Maybe that was what prompted his inquiry. We don't know. What we do know is that Jesus declared the insufficiency of the man's efforts and challenged the man to give sacrificially. Jesus' response baffled His disciples and still baffles believers today. Why did Jesus ask the man to give sacrificially? We often discuss the impediment that material wealth presents to our pursuit of God, but I believe the passage reveals more.
  • Mark states that Jesus looked on the man and loved him. Jesus' request seems directly connected to His love for the man.
  • Jesus saw the man's need. The man desired eternal life but was found lacking. Jesus did not request that the man give because of Jesus' need but rather as a result of the man's own need. The man needed to give to obtain the fullness of his goal. Jesus explains in John 17:3 that eternal life is our coming to know the Father (the only true God) and the Son. As we grow in that knowledge we discover that the Father and the Son are sacrificial givers.
  • Giving is an integral part of God's redemptive plan for believers. It is a requisite component of discipleship. Notice that Jesus instructs the man to give "and come, follow me." More than simply saving us from the penalty of sin, God want us to grow. He is conforming believers into His image.
  • Jesus wanted to bless the man. Jesus spoke from an eternal perspective. Our actions on earth have eternal consequences. Our giving on earth reserves treasure for us in heaven. Jesus encouraged the man to trade temporary earthly possessions for eternal treasure. Through his giving the man wouldn't lose, he would gain.
How transforming would it be if we could help people realize that God's plan for our sacrificial giving flows from the fact that He loves us, that He knows what we need, that He is revealing Himself to us and conforming us into His image and that our giving is intended to bless us.

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