A Challenging Invitation

This week I read a blip about a philanthropic endeavour called “the Giving Pledge.” Launched by Warren Buffet and Bill Gates in 2010- it began with them asking 40 of the world’s wealthiest billionaires to donate half their wealth to game-changing causes that will make the world a better place. As of July 2016, 154 donors had pledged over 365 billion dollars. Since then another 31 have joined the pledge.

Today we hear a story that Bible editors have titled: the Rich Young Ruler.

It is tempting to read the text from the Gospel of Mark and consider that the words are being spoken to the Warren Buffets and Bill Gates of Jesus’ time -- and of course, our time. These words couldn’t possibly be directed at us.  By comparison to Buffet and Gates, we can consider ourselves not the rich. We can rationalize away that Jesus is by no means speaking to us when he says, Sell what you have and give it to the poor.                          

Jesus’ words are important, and we will return to them, however, lost in this rich story is a priceless gem.  Many of us can retell this story: quoting the line Sell what you have, give to the poor; we remember the saying, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of needle than for a rich man enter the kingdom of heaven. In relating the story, the gem that gets read over – the point of the whole text; the Gospel- is the line, Jesus looking at him loved him. Yes, the text did contain these words. Jesus looking at him loved him.

Think of the Bible stories you have heard, the stories you chose to tell others- have you ever noticed a Gospel explicitly singling out a person in this way? This man is the only person singled out in Mark for being loved by Jesus. It really is a beautiful line, this man comes to Jesus in a sincere way, asking a genuine question, wanting a conversation.  He is not there, as others are so often represented, to trap Jesus or force him to say something that could be construed for their own purposes.  No, this man is a seeker; he sincerely wants to know how he can know, have, participate in – everlasting life.

 After being questioned, the young man tells Jesus that he has kept the Law.  A heartfelt plea of yes I have been diligent and faithful, now what? Is there not more?  The man seriously wants to engage with Jesus about important matters of life and death. At this point, Jesus looking at him loved him and said, You lack one thing; go, sell what you have and give the money to the poor; and then you will have treasure in heaven; then, come and follow me.

Jesus loved him.  I see Jesus’ eyes filled with a tenderness. Jesus has looked into the man’s eyes and understands the depth of his commitment, his efforts to follow the Covenant, and sees that the man respects Jesus – confessing Jesus is good. The man has a desire to be good, as Jesus is good – in thoughts, words, and deeds.  Jesus responds out of love, not in judgement of the man’s riches, but, rather, as an act of compassion.  Jesus’ comment is to challenge the man into a deeper understanding of the Law, a deeper knowledge of the Messiah, and a fuller relationship with God.

This compassionate, loving, challenging invitation offered to the man is received … and left to hang in the air.

This loved person -the man- is saddened, and simply walks away.

Is this not the tragedy that is a human being?  Human tragedy – the human condition – is such that our inclination is to turn away.   We turn from intimacy. We turn from challenge.  We turn when our spirits are crushed.  We interpret so much of what is directed at us as criticism, judgement, hostility, belittling. When in fact, the very opposite might be the case. And here the man, is saddened.  He walks away. How often have we turned and walked away?

This however, is not the end of the story.  Actually, we don’t know the end of the story for the man who comes to Jesus wanting to experience more and be part of what God was about. Mark leaves the story, as he does so many others, without closure. Just as at the end of the Gospel, when the women find the tomb empty, they scurry off for they are afraid for… leaving a sentenced half finished, and the Gospel with more questions than answers; Mark has left an open-ending.

At the tomb, it has been suggested that Mark left the story open-ended so that hearers and readers through the centuries would add their own stories of seeing and experiencing the resurrected Christ. Could it be that the story of the man, is left open, so that we place ourselves in the story? 

The open-ending does not tell us what happens to the rich man after he walks away, but, in this spot – in a similar moment- do we walk away from the compassionate challenge of Jesus’ or do we turn back and enter a more intimate relationship?

I love how Sarah Hinlicky Wilson, a Lutheran writer, comments that the open-ending is an open-invitation. The open-invitation offered by Jesus is “to an obedience yet unknown.”

There is within the human being, not just a bondage to human condition, there is a resilience and oft times a grasping/a seeking/or at least a dreaming of more. How many times have I had someone – often guilty for not going to church- tell me they don’t go to church, but they are a good person: they don’t kill people, or steal, or abuse anyone. Surely this counts, for something, they say.  The man who came running up to Jesus did that very thing, I keep the commandments … Fantastic! Then, Jesus looked at him with love.  Then, I look at the good person with love. We both know there is so much more, so we invite and challenge the good person to be more; to an obedience yet unknown, to a depth of intimate relationship that goes beyond one’s comprehension.

You lack one thing… In the Gospel there is a glaring omission in the list of commandments that Jesus recites. Jesus speaks commandments that refer to human beings relationships with one another. None of the commandments repeated by Jesus in the illustration are the primary ones; the ones that are about relationship with God and stated first in the Law – in the primary position- Love the Lord your God with all your heart, you shall have no others God’s before me, do not take God’s name in vain, remember the sabbath day and keep it holy.

Without these Laws, without relationship with God, it is near impossible to live the ones that describe relationship between human beings.  And if by some chance, as the man expresses, he has kept them; or we declare that we are good --- is it not from a sense of duty, keeping the Law out of pride or honour or for reputation?  The keeping of the commandments is simply keeping the commandments with no love, no intimacy, no true relationship. We lack one thing - could it be that human’s on their own, of their own will, have an inability to have truly intimate relationships; unless we divest of what we have – all that hinders and distracts us from developing an intimate relationship with God. This relationship with God lets us live into the fullness of the Covenant and builds treasure in the kingdom of God – a kingdom that draws near, when we are not living out of human tragedy.

We don’t know what happened to the man in the Gospel who walked away from Jesus. Perhaps he mulled over Jesus’ words, tucked them away to reflect on later, was continually pestered by the challenge, …maybe he gave beyond his tithe from time to time; perhaps later on he did divest of his possessions, little by little; perhaps he was there on the first Pentecost, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and added his resources to the community pot.  Perhaps he was a benefactor of an early church community, put up the money that fed the followers, cared for the widows, housed the orphans. We don’t know for the story is left open-ended…

The story is open-ended for us.

Jesus looks at us with love and says, Good people, You lack one thing…

I could suggest little steps to moving towards selling all that you have - divesting: you could downsize, death-clean, buy only what you need, trade, share, live beneath your means; give more than a tithe (which is 10%)--- but, all of this waters down Jesus’ words.  The words are a challenge, they are intended to make you uncomfortable.  I am not going to sanitize the Gospel – the Gospel has been proclaimed to put a mirror up to your life, your heart, your relationship with God, with others.

In the midst of being uncomfortable, Jesus looks at you with love, Jesus looks at us with love … and in love and compassion invite us, “You lack one thing, sell what you have, give to the poor…”