We love to domesticate the teachings of Jesus. Jesus is world-renowned as great spiritual guide. Those who seek to follow Jesus as modern-day disciples continue to study and meditate on his words as recorded in the four gospels. Jesus’ words can be inspirational. Other times they may bring comfort. Often they challenge the hearers. But there are a few passages that are simply daunting and discomforting, even for his closest followers.
Our reading for today is one such text. It is daunting because it raises the stakes for following Jesus Christ. Becoming a follower of Jesus Christ does not involve merely trying to find and meet some minimum standard nor is it simply a matter of keeping a set of external rules, but rather it involves a radical commitment to the person of Jesus and membership in the new community formed by those whose allegiance is to Jesus. It is discomforting because it asks those who would follow Jesus a tough question: If I were the person who approached Jesus, would I have gone away sad?
In our scripture lesson, Jesus encounters a man seeking eternal life. The man desires to know what must be done to inherit eternal life. Jesus answers by reciting several of the Ten Commandments. The man claims that he has kept all of these from childhood. Jesus responds by calling the man to discipleship. He invites the man by saying, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come follow me.” The man is shocked by this response. He leaves the scene in sadness because he had many possessions. Jesus then discusses the encounter with his disciples.
This story raises many questions, especially for those of us who, like the man in the story, have many possessions. Can we be faithful followers of Jesus?
The power of this text is its ability to subvert an approach to religion that may be dubbed “spiritual
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