31 Fallen Condition Focus: We want to enjoy the benefits of God’s kingdom and hold on to the treasures of this world.

Proposition: Jesus’ example shows us that the kingdom requires us to empty ourselves, so to receive the Kingdom we must lay aside the things that give us importance in our own eyes.On The Way

During lent it is common for the church to focus on the stories of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem immediately prior to Easter.

It’s on the way to Jerusalem that Jesus focuses his attention on the calling of Christians to a unique form of life.

So in the weeks remaining in Lent, I want to look at a few of these stories.Introduction – It’s Hard to Give Things Up

On our recent trip to Cuba, Nelson and I experienced a reality that is much less comfortable than we’re used to

blackouts, spotty internet, limited food options, dribbly showers

We might describe it as somewhat spartan

To the Cubans we were working with, our conditions were luxurious.

They had no AC, their fans weren’t on generators, no private bathrooms.

This shows its hard to give up what we’re used to having

Imagine, then, the sacrifice of Jesus.

He dwelt eternally with his father, but chose to come to earth to live as a poor man

He knew hunger, fatigue, political oppression, and finally the humiliating death of a condemned criminal

Paul describes this as Jesus emptying himself (Philippians 2:7) and explains that it is a pattern of life we should also emulatePhilippians 2:5–8NRSVue

5 Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, assuming human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human, 8 he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.

Because Jesus loves us, he humbled himself, giving up his status and power so we could be reconciled to God

But this isn’t something Jesus does just to save us, it’s also a pattern for the new life of those he has saved.

To receive God’s reign in our lives, we must empty ourselves. This means that just like Jesus, we lay aside our power and status, humbling ourselves in obedience to God.

Humbling ourselves can be easy or it can be hard. The difficulty changes depending on our level of investment in the treasures of this world.

Today we’ll look at two passages, one right after the other, that show us how our ability to receive God’s reign is directly tied to our attachment to the wealth and status we enjoy in the world.The Humble and the Kingdom

The first such story comes in Mark 10:13-16Mark 10:13–16NIV

13 People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” 16 And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.

A chapter earlier Jesus had told his disciples to welcome little ones (like children) in his name (Mk. 9:37).

But by their actions the disciples’ show they haven’t understood the message.

What is it about children that makes it important for them to be welcomed?

Is it their innocence? Their naiveté? Their cuteness?

I think what Jesus has in mind is that children, who don’t naturally possess wealth and power, are free to come humbly to God because laying aside what you don’t have is easy.

Further, Children (at least those from healthy family backgrounds), understand that they are loved, and that their status as beloved isn’t tied to their performance.

What 8-year old lays awake wondering “Will Mom and Dad still love me if I can’t contribute 30k to the family budget this year?”

Kids know Mom and Dad love them because they’re, well, Mom and Dad

It’s not such a large leap, then, to say that I while I have nothing to offer God, he loves me anyway

So Children are more easily able to humble themselves, and to come to God and receive his grace.

In our passage the disciples tried to keep the kids away because they thought the kids couldn’t make a meaningful contribution to the cause

They assumed the cause was raising a revolutionary army to overthrow the Romans.

But they have mistaken assumptions about what Jesus is up to

His mission is about reconciling people to God.

For us to receive this reconciliation, we need to learn to humble ourselves, giving up our power and status like Jesus did.

It means we must learn to accept God’s mercy as a gracious gift (since we have nothing God needs)

So the children aren’t a distraction from Jesus’ mission. They are a reminder to all of us about how we must come to God.Application

Have you ever wondered why God would want to save someone like you?

Maybe you’ve realized you’re a broken, sinful person

You think God must really want to save people more remarkable than yourself. ‘What can I offer God?”

This is exactly where God wants you. It’s not that he wants you to be down on yourself, but it’s only when we understand how unlovely we are, that we can finally clearly see the depth of God’s love for us.

So don’t try to deny your brokenness to God. Embrace it, thanking God that he has extended his grace to someone like you.

As you understand God’s extravagant love for you, you’ll be better able to extend love extravagantly to others.

A person who hasn’t come to grips with their own fallenness can proudly condemn others. When we have wrestled with our own fallenness, extending grace comes more naturally to us.

The humble don’t have anything to prove to others, so as we lay aside our status and power, we can find belonging with others who know they too are sinners saved and transformed by God’s grace.The Proud and the Kingdom

Those without power and status have an easier time humbling themselves. The next story serves as a warning to us about the difficulty of humbling ourselves when we have these things.Mark 10:17–22NIV

17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’” 20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.” 21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

First – the confusing part – why does Jesus say the man shouldn’t call him Good

God is good and Jesus is clearly God. So what’s the problem

Jesus tells this man how to have eternal life, and he rejects the offer. His actions show he doesn’t believe Jesus is God, so calling him good is just an act of flattery.

We might have a two-dimensional picture of rich people as wicked, mustash-twirling villains, but this man isn’t, morally speaking, a bad guy

When he says he’s kept the commands since his childhood, Jesus doesn’t push back

But true righteousness isn’t about our external behaviour. Rather it starts with a humble heart.

Unlike the children, who don’t have power and status, this man has both. And his pride makes giving them up a difficult thing to do.

We may start out as children understanding our value because our parents love us, but

As we become adults and must learn to make our way in the world, we find that the world isn’t as caring as our parents were.

In our culture our value is based on our achievements – and it’s defined relative to other people.

Meaning that for me to feel valuable to need to be better, richer, smarter than those around me.

Since our sense of who we are is tied to how we stack up to others, so it’s very difficult to lay aside things that make us important.

If, for example, my value is tied up in being smarter than others, to stop doing things that call attention to my intelligence, feels like it strips me of value

If my value is tied up to having more money than other people (this seems to be the rich man’s problem) then divesting myself of that money would strip me of what sets me apart from others.

If we must empty ourselves to come to God, the ask becomes almost unbearable for those who are invested in the treasures of this life

humbling themselves means zeroing out the investment that they’ve made in cultivating value

When we have invested so much of ourselves in something, giving it up becomes a very difficult thing to do

This is one of the reasons why Jesus tells us that we can’t serve God and money

When we’ve set our hearts on this world’s treasures, laying them down, even for heaven’s treasures, becomes so much harder.

We might envy the rich man for his wealth, but his difficulty in emptying himself, casts the disciples’ lack of wealth in a totally different light

The story continues:Mark 10:23–31NIV

23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” 28 Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!” 29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

What appeared like a great blessing from God has kept this man from receiving a much greater blessing.

While the OT presents a nuanced vision of the causes of wealth and poverty, many people of means could point to individual texts that justify their wealth as a sign that God was blessing them. Proverbs 10:22NIV

22 The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it.

or in Deuteronomy’s, God promises those who are faithful to the requirements of the covenant:Deuteronomy 28:11NIV

11 The Lord will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you.

But this story challenges these sorts of simplistic readings of scripture.

If the wealthy have an especially hard time entering the kingdom, perhaps those who have been giving great wealth aren’t necessarily the lucky ones.

So the first turned out to be last and the last turned out to be first. Here we see the upside-downness of Jesus’ kingdom.

Because the disciples had so little to give up, they were better positioned to make the sacrifices necessary to follow Jesus.

Like the children, because they had so little, giving up everything was a comparatively easy sacrifice.

In this life they gave up the things they have, and have gained a new family who together have great resources, and who will stand with them in persecution.

Does Jesus’ demand seem harsh, considering how hard he knew it would be for this man to comply?

First, as I mentioned in the introduction, Jesus gave up far more than any of us could imagine. He did so because God’s kingdom, not his comfort or status, was his highest goal.

So Jesus isn’t asking this man to do something he wouldn’t be willing to do himself.

The kingdom requires Jesus to give these things up so that he can love and serve

God’s kingdom doesn’t take place when good people get to tell everyone else what to do.

If that were the case, it would be appropriate for him to seize power.

God’s kingdom comes when people lovingly submit to God and to one another – it’s not compatible with coercion

The rich man wants to retain the things that give him authority.

If he is unwilling to give the money because he is attached to the comfort and the power over others that money affords him

The power dynamics this creates aren’t compatible with God’s kingdom of mutual love and submission

To allow him to receive the kingdom without laying aside his expectation to be in charge, would make it his kingdom, not God’s

Since Luke tells us he’s a ruler – we can conclude that letting him ‘in’ would transform God’s place of bountiful flourishing into a copy of the world we already have

Salvation isn’t about keeping what we already have, it’s about God setting aright all that is broken.Application

How does this man’s story instruct us?

The story isn’t just about how rich people need to be generousFirst, we need to mind what we set our hearts on

There are many things we aspire to in this life. Many of them are even good things, but they must never become our ultimate objective.

Maybe I want to achieve the greatest level of success in my professional life so I can have a sense of accomplishment

Maybe I want to make sure my children get the best possible education so they have the best chance of a happy life

Maybe I want to finally pay off my debts so I can be debt free

These may all be worthwhile goals, but if they become my primary focus,

Otherwise, they will become more important to me than receiving God’s kingdom.

It’s not that God doesn’t care for our lives, but we must order our priorities correctly.

As Jesus tells usMatthew 6:31–33NIV

31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

So unless we set our hearts on God’s priorities, other priorities will take over.

Second, we need to learn to humble ourselves

“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”

When we’ve invested so much energy in cultivating power and status, we are unable to set our true affections on heaven’s treasure.

What God offers us—salvation, belonging, reconciliation—is better than what we must give up

But rather than desiring something that is better, we desire what makes us feel superior to others

And we may resent God’s call to lay aside what gives us status over others.

None of the things we seek for ourselves impress God.

Even God empties himself in love. So when we exalt ourselves, who do we think we are?

Freely accepting salvation as a gift of grace means admitting to myself and God that the things I’ve invested myself in have no ultimate importance. That’s hard to do.Conclusion

Do you have little? Don’t let it bother you.

In God’s kingdom, those with little find it easier to surrender everything so they can have Jesus.

Your heart is more easily directed toward God’s kingdom if doing so doesn’t mean giving up a great deal

And since God’s grace is a free gift, having less, often means we’re better able to understand the depth of God’s love because we’re not under the illusion that God needs what we have.

Do you have much? There’s still hope

As Jesus says, nothing is impossible with God

Having more can make it easier to be wrongly related to our stuff.

But if we remember the treasure God offers us is a greater blessing than the treasures of this world, we can maintain a right relationship to the sources of our power and status.

And the things with which God has blessed us can be a blessing we share with others to knit us together with bonds of love.

So let’s remember to be humble.