The Rich Man

10:17-27 Now as Jesus was starting out on his way, someone ran up to him, fell on his knees, and said, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’” The man said to him, “Teacher, I have wholeheartedly obeyed all these laws since my youth.” As Jesus looked at him, he felt love for him and said, “You lack one thing. Go, sell whatever you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” But at this statement, the man looked sad and went away sorrowful, for he was very rich.

Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” The disciples were astonished at these words. But again Jesus said to them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” They were even more astonished and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible for mere humans, but not for God; all things are possible for God.”

How pertinent that my daily bread today was about the story of the rich man and it was just after the talks by Jackie Pullinger over the weekend.

Over the week, Victor asked me for money to help his mother pay her medical bills. I have been thinking about this for quite some time till this weekend when I heard the talk by Jackie Pullinger. She is a very down-to-earth lady who believes in giving generously to people in need even if she may not see the returns, although giving may not be monetary but it means sacrificing something in return such as time, sleep or effort.

During the 2nd lecture on Saturday when she asked if we Christians are just soul-hunters, a chord struck in my heart. I asked myself, am I just after the soul of Victor to bring him to the lord? Or am I truely a friend to him, willing to bless him even if I may not see the returns.

Immediately, I heard the Lord telling me to reply him about lending him the money for his mother's medical bills. I just decided to give even if it was going to inconvenient me and even if it means I'm going to have to save on my meals for the next few days.

But I decided to do it on two conditions:
1: That I was allowed to visit him and his mother and pray for them for healing.
2: That I was allowed to hand the money over to Victor's mother directly.

In the verses above, I felt that the lord really cares for the world.

Firstly, he loves the rich man who wholeheartedly followed the law both inwardly and outwardly as God can see the attitude of the person in following the law.

Secondly, he cares much for the poor. Although the man followed the laws wholeheartedly, he lacked the generousity and heart for the poor. He was unwilling to sell all he has and give to the poor.

When reading through the verses again, I come to think that sometimes as Christians, we talk about serving God, reading the bible and following the law. However, do we love the world?

Joh 3:16

For his is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

God loved the world so much that he gave his son to die for our sins. And Jesus died for the greatest sinners in the world regardless of whether they believed in him or not. It was all the same.

Remember the Balestier Rapist in the newspaper recently?

Yes, Jesus died for his salvation.

Remember Osama bin Laden who caused the 9-11 or even Hitler who started the Halocaust?

Yes, Jesus died for their salvation.

On the other extreme, he died for all the poor people in the world too, just like the homeless children in the papers in Iraq or the beggar on the road without a leg begging for food every morning at your MRT stations.

Yes, Jesus died for their salvation.

We, as Christians, are told to be imitators of Christ. We do not have to die for them as it was done when Jesus died on the cross. But do we have a heart for all these people? Do we turn away when we see someone coming up to you for donations?

But lord, we do not know if the money will go to the children or will it end up like another NKF.

But lord, someone else will help them.

But lord, I am not self-sufficent.

My prayer for today is that we will stop looking for excuses to turn away from the poor and needy but do our best to bless them either monetary or even by giving a simple prayer to the beggar that you see on the road. Lord, I pray that you would soften the hearts of our people so that we will always remember the poor and not be indifferent to them.

Lord, although Victor have not replied me regarding the message yet. I pray that he would understand that no matter what, I would try within my means to help him even if it means just praying for him. I pray for your grace over your people to always have a heart for the poor in the world. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

“If the Lord bid me fly, I should trust Him for the wings.” John Wesley