The Rich Young Ruler (Part 5)
Mark 10: 21
And looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him, and said to him, “One thing you lack . . . come, follow me.”
What was the one thing that the rich young ruler lacked? I believe it was a deep abiding trust in the Holy One. I think Jesus was preaching Proverb 3: 5 to him which reads; “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” We know that this young man was holy because he kept the commandments. We know that he loved God. That is why he kept the commandments. He had a deeper longing for God also. He was not prideful either. Those two are demonstrated in the fact that he ran to Jesus and that he threw himself at Jesus’ feet. He wanted to know how to come closer to God and was willing to chase down the man he thought could teach him that.
His problem was not that he had riches. Really it is not hard to get into heaven with riches. You just leave them behind here on earth. You go, they stay. No, his problem was that he had learned to trust in his wealth. He trusted in his skills. He knew how to live and be prosperous but his trust was in himself and his ability to take care of himself. Jesus called him to leave that life and his possessions behind and follow him. Peter, John, etc. left their goods behind and it did not seem to bother them much. They did not have their trust tied into their fishing nets. This young man didn’t know how to walk by faith though. This is what Jesus wanted to teach him. In the fourth chapter of Mark, Jesus compared the kingdom of God to seed which is planted and having been planted, after a time, yields a crop. He was trying to teach them all the law of sowing and reaping.
When Jesus called Andrew and Peter, he told them that he would make him fishers of men. In the rich young ruler’s case, he would have shown him how to sow and reap in the kingdom of God. He would have taught him how to make money by sowing, but also he would have taught him how he (the young ruler) could plant the seed of God’s word and reap souls saved and destiny bound. He could have become a great evangelist because he already knew the principles of business. He just needed to learn to operate as God and Jesus did. And he needed to learn what we are all still learning even to this day. Walk wherever Jesus calls you without fear or concern for your own livelihood. Do what he calls you to do and have no thought for your own needs. They are the responsibility of the Father. The rich young ruler couldn’t step out of his comfort zone and follow Christ. He couldn’t step out on that water and trust Christ to hold him up. He couldn’t go where Jesus called because of his fear and lack of faith and trust. Now the real question is, “Can we?”
