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And Jesus said to His disciples, 'Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.
(v. 24) 'And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.'
(v. 25) And when the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, 'Then who can be saved?'
(v. 26) And looking upon them Jesus said to them, 'With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'
The disciples answered (to my mind) like, "So how are we going to get saved? We're all rich and you say a rich man can't get into heaven!!!" Obviously, only 1% were rich. The vast majority were poor, so it stands to reason 99% were going to heaven. So why this question, Who then can be saved? I don't get the logic.
The disciples answered (to my mind) like, "So how are we going to get saved? We're all rich and you say a rich man can't get into heaven!!!" Obviously, only 1% were rich. The vast majority were poor, so it stands to reason 99% were going to heaven. So why this question, Who then can be saved? I don't get the logic.
Thrillobyte ... The love of money is the root of all evil. THe disciples at that time in Christs ministry did not know he was going to die on the cross. They believed they were going to rule with Christ in their life time. They were thinking that they would be glorified and enriched quite literally in their life time. The disciples were being chastised in as many words by Christ for their misunderstanding the purpose for his first advent. They were convicted by his words, and it caused them to fear for their own greed. But what is important is what Christ says there at the end. All things are possible unto God.
I am not sure where I read it and it was a long time ago, so I really don't know if it was ever verified but it is a really neat explanation. I seem to recall that it said when a rich man arrived at a city, he would go to the main gate, and have his presence announce and all of his prestige and wealth was paraded in front of everyone there, his camels, etc,. But I think, as the story went, there was almost always an entrance known mostly to beggars and the poor whereby you could quickly enter into a city where no one noticed your entrance and you just mingled with the crowd. And as iI recall, at one particular city, not sure which, that entrance was known as the needle because it was very narrow and low and adults could only get in that way by abasing themselves practically crawling in on their belly, Nothing much could be brought in with them and it was a very humbling entryway. This entrance of course was very well hidden so that enemies could not easily find it. As I said, I have no verification and don't remember where I read it, but I liked it. I like the implications. What man of wealth would willingly enter a city that way?
That passage is all about the intent of the heart and about where our treasures lie. It's about the idolatry of putting anything, especially money, in front of God. Obviously, if you have a lot of money, you'll be far more tempted to do that than if you have none.
The disciples answered (to my mind) like, "So how are we going to get saved? We're all rich and you say a rich man can't get into heaven!!!" Obviously, only 1% were rich. The vast majority were poor, so it stands to reason 99% were going to heaven. So why this question, Who then can be saved? I don't get the logic.
I think because the point was not strictly about riches. It was more general than that. We each have something that we hold just as dear as the rich man did his riches, that we would have a terrible time giving up if Christ told us to give it up and follow Him. I think the disciples recognized that Christ's request was just an example of a principle that applies to anyone who wants to enter the kingdom of God.
John 12:25 He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal
Luke 17:33 Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.
I think because the point was not strictly about riches. It was more general than that. We each have something that we hold just as dear as the rich man did his riches, that we would have a terrible time giving up if Christ told us to give it up and follow Him. I think the disciples recognized that Christ's request was just an example of a principle that applies to anyone who wants to enter the kingdom of God.
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That passage is all about the intent of the heart and about where our treasures lie. It's about the idolatry of putting anything, especially money, in front of God. Obviously, if you have a lot of money, you'll be far more tempted to do that than if you have none.
I think the disciples were too dense to have comprehended such advanced theological principles. I must be just as dense as them cause I'm still scratching my heads over it too. I can see how we know that in hindsight 2000 years later, still. To the disciples, though, kingdom's answer grabs me a little about they might have thought they were going to make a mint and get positions in high authority if they followed Jesus. Much like how self-serving people hitch their wagons to people like osteen today.
But thanks for the replies, still and kingdom. I'm sure it's just me.
I think the disciples were too dense to have comprehended such advanced theological principles. I must be just as dense as them cause I'm still scratching my heads over it too. I can see how we know that in hindsight 2000 years later, still. To the disciples, though, kingdom's answer grabs me a little about they might have thought they were going to make a mint and get positions in high authority if they followed Jesus. Much like how self-serving people hitch their wagons to people like osteen today.
But thanks for the replies, still and kingdom. I'm sure it's just me.
I don't think they had to be spiritual giants to see this. Think of it this way... a guy walks up to Christ and asks how he can have eternal life. Christ says keep the commandments. They guy says, I did that. Christ then implies, that's not really enough, you have to sell everything you own and give to the poor. Put yourself in the disciples shoes. Does it sound like it's easy or extremely hard to enter the kingdom of God? To me it sounds insurmountably hard. So they ask "who then can be saved????" All they had to do was extrapolate a bit. Even if they viewed it narrowly and literally... who in this world even among the relatively poor can sell all they own?
I agree. It is where your heart is and people who count on their money to take care of them rather than God have a hard time trusting in God and not their wealth. One time Jesus asked a new convert to go and sell everything and follow him, but the man was very rich and just couldn't do that. God must come first in our lives, and being human as we are that is very difficult most of the time. We let our jobs, our things, our kids, our money, our reputation,our schedules, our looks, everything get in the way of putting God first in our lives.
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I'm sure it's just me.
