Have you ever been called out before? You know, been caught in a lie or proven wrong after pressing an issue? Now imagine being called out by Jesus. Ouch. That does not sound like fun, but actually happened to one young man in the Bible.
In Matthew (19:16) there is a story of Jesus meeting a wealthy man, he comes to Jesus and asks him what good things he must do to receive eternal life. Jesus tells him that God is the one who is good and he must follow his commands to get into heaven.
Still, the man presses further, asking Jesus, which commands. Jesus tells him, "Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself." (v.19)
Notice anything about these commandments? It may seem like Jesus randomly picked a few of the ten commandments, but he had major purpose behind naming these ones.
The rich man tells Jesus he has done these commands since he was a boy and asks, "What do I still lack?"
Honestly, I think he is asking for it. I mean that is a HUGE question to ask Christ. It's like saying, "Hey God, where am I really failing in life?"
And Jesus says "Sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." Verse 22 says the young man heard this and went away sad because he had great wealth.
Wow. Talk about being called out. Let's review…
The guy is pressing Christ on wanting to receive eternal life, so Jesus names commandments he knows the man can say he has followed, but notice which four he left out.
- No other Gods
- Not using the Lord's Name in vain
- Keeping the Sabbath Holy
- Coveting
These are all commandments that can be related to putting possessions before God. So unknowingly to the man, Jesus was calling him out on his weakness. He wasn't putting Christ before his stuff.
Jesus knew that the man had a good heart; relationally he was doing quite well, he wasn't stealing,or killing and was loving people but when it came down to God or money, he was choosing money.
Notice though that Jesus didn't list where the guy lacked, he simply said sell your stuff and follow me. He was giving him the option to take action, the opportunity to walk away from the materialistic life and receive the gift of eternal life.
You see it isn't enough to follow only some of God's commands, we must be willing to give up things we like (or love!) in order to walk closer with him.
So, what is Jesus calling you out on? What is coming between you and Christ? Is it your possessions, like the young man in the story? Is it too much TV? Or video games? Are you partying or hanging with the wrong crowd? Is it a personal aspiration?
With the Lords help it is very possible to give up the things that are keeping you from him. God's call on your life is uniquely designed for you so take action and seek HIS will for your life!
I leave you with a verse from 1 John 3, "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts and he knows everything." (v.17-19)
Actions and truth. That's how we find eternal life. We must live everyday with the action of loving God and honoring his vision for our lives.
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