In Matthew 19, the young ruler comes to Jesus and asks about eternal life. After some discussion about keeping the Law, Jesus tells him to go and sell his possessions and give the proceeds to the poor. The young man went away sorrowfully, because, as Matthew records in the New Living Translation, "he had many possessions." This is an interesting, and I believe a very specifc, choice of words used here. If we are to not have "many possessions," then what DO we have? It made me consider a couple of similar, but vastly different terms.
Possessions Things that I define as MINE! What I have and have control over according to my own desires, wishes and decisions. Our very language gives us away: we say, my car, my family, my job, my money, my church, etc. While I know what is meant, it also is a window into our heart. As long as we continue to reinforce this idea of MY STUFF, we will fall short of the point Jesus is making here in Matthew 19. Is there an alternative?
Commodities What we have is not meant to be kept, but to be used...commodities are consumed and meant to be replenished. You, no doubt, know about the commodities market? They trade things such as pork bellies, soy beans, corn, etc. These are replenishable goods....not meant to be hoarded o saved long term. I want to die with a million bushels of SOYBEANS in my barn, is not the object here. We need, in the spiritual sense, to think more like what we have are commodities, not possessions! It isn't so much about what we possess, but what we have been given to USE....replenished...over and over again...season after season! This is what Jesus was getting at with the young man in the story.
What kind of things do we tend to try and possess?
Our Life Are we spending our lives or trying to hoard our time and energy? It cannot be stored up! Our lives are meant to be spent.
Our Estate Those things that represent monetary or personal value to you. Are you using them?
Our Influence Relationships! This has little to do with personality types: It is about being created in the image of God, and having an eternal purpose for life! It is about spending your life with and for people....not being withdrawn in the solitude of your own created comfort zone.
Are we willing to be honest enough to do some "rethinking." Can we have a heart shift here? I think Jesus wants us to move in the direction of seeing our lives and resources as commodities, not so much as possessions.
Grace to you!
The Gatekeeper
2 comments:
True, indeed. But you missed one thing- (the thing that I have trouble getting past): possessions (esp money) mean security. I know Jesus said not to worry about our needs, because God knows them and will fill them, but still... jumping without a net (that I can see) scares me.
Yes...it always sounds easier when written out than when lived out. It scares me, too...that's one of the reasons for sanctification. We are in the process of becoming more and more like Jesus. Security is a dicey thing...we strive for it, but it rarely provides us what we are looking for. We just have to learn to live in the question much of the time.
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