O Bless Your Heart

Mark 10: 13-31, page 716

People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. 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. I tell you the truth; anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.
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?”
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good – except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do no murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”
“Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”
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.”
At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad because he had great wealth.
Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”
The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle then for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”
Peter said to him, “We have left everything to follow you!”
“I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sister or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields – and with them persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
Sermon
Jesus says, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth; anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
Now what Jesus means here is up for your own interpretation – as the quality of children that Jesus sees as vital for entering the kingdom is not clearly stated.
Some would say that children, unlike adults don’t see race or nationality, and so aren’t susceptible to the prejudices that afflict their older counterparts – so it could be that in seeing all people as equal children are to be emulated. Others would say that to enter the kingdom of God you must become innocent like a child, while still others would look to some instance of children sharing toys and come to the conclusion that you must become selfless like a child, sharing what you have.
Before deciding which quality it is that Jesus is talking about, let me remind you that there’s a word to describe people who use words like “without prejudice” “innocent,” or “selfless,” to describe children: “Delusional.”
As far as prejudice goes, if our daughter Lily could deport all men with beards I know that she wouldn’t hesitate – she has come to the early conclusion that they are not to be trusted, even her bearded grandfather is not to be trusted at all.
And though our little Lily can’t talk yet, she communicates in high pitched squeals and urrrr, but I hear her quite clearly when she demands, “I want my bottle and I want my bottle now! Not in 5 minutes – not when you’re done writing your sermon – NOW!”
So I get it for her – as children are many wonderful things, but above all else, children are dependent, completely and utterly dependent on those bigger and more powerful for their well-being.
Interesting then, that Jesus would urge his followers to emulate children.
But regardless of the peculiar nature of his teachings, people came to Jesus that he might lead them on the path to eternal life. “Good teacher,” a rich man asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good – except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”
“Teacher,” the rich man declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”
Before scripture tells us Jesus’ response to this statement, the author of the Gospel of Mark wants you to know that, “Jesus looked - at this rich man who has apparently never sinned in his entire life - and loved him.”
Now the writer of Mark wrote in Greek about a Palestinian Jew named Jesus who spoke Aramaic, a language that never developed its own literary tradition, but remained an oral derivation of Hebrew only. So these words, first retained as a spoken story told in Aramaic, then translated and written down in Greek, were then translated into English to form the words, “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” So it’s possible then, that what we have is a mistranslation of how Jesus actually looked, how Jesus actually felt. In fact, I’m confident that what the author of Mark meant to use to describe Jesus here is an expression Grandmothers in the South say often when their grandchildren do something stupid but they’re too naive to know any better – if this event here with the rich man were taking place here in Lilburn, and Jesus were not a Palestinian Jew but a Gwinnett County Grandmother then the words would not be, “Jesus looked at him and loved him;” but, “Jesus looked at him and said, well bless your heart.”
What the author of Mark didn’t take the time to write down, I assume he just ran out of parchment, was that, “after looking at the young man and loving him, Jesus said to Peter under his breath, this guy thinks he’s never sinned! Can you believe that?”
This rich man goes to Jesus asking, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life.”
What must I do?
As though this rich man could pull himself up by his bootstraps right up into the kingdom of God. As though he didn’t need anyone to help, as though he could do it all himself, as though he were all grown-up, self-sufficient, and self-secure.
But here is an independence based on an illusion – an illusion provided by the perceived security of affluence – for wealth convinces us all to believe the lie that we are not children dependent on God – we are not dependent on anyone or anything.
Wealth closes our eyes to the insecurity of human existence.
The rich man can’t seem to face this fact – that those fields that provide him so much income would be bear, dry ground, if it were not for the God who provides the rain.
That his property would not be nearly so beautiful and valuable if it were not for the God who prevented the river from rising above her banks – at least most of the time.
And that his life would not be so pleasurable if it were not for God – who keeps that heart inside this man's chest beating – if it were not for God who provides him air to breath and eyes to take in the majesty of creation.
So Jesus asks him to give up his wealth willingly that he might figure it out.
But we’re not always so lucky. We feel safe in our nice houses – but then the water rises and we face the fact that we are victims to the whims of powers bigger and stronger than ourselves.
We feel secure with money in the bank – but should the job market dry up, stock prices drop – should powers out of our control choose to shift the winds of favor - how self-sufficient do you feel now?
We feel as though we may just live-forever – but who knows when the heart that beats in our chest might just stop beating?
So Jesus addresses the disciples as children, not because they are innocent, kind, or unblemished by the prejudices of the day, but because we are not in control of our lives – though we are often blinded to it – we are more like children then we like to admit.
And the rich man isn’t ready to admit it.
He isn’t sick – so he doesn’t need Jesus to heal him – and so he walks away.
He isn’t poor – so he doesn’t need Jesus to feed him – and so he walks away.
He came to Jesus looking for some wisdom – calling him “good teacher” – but when Jesus couldn’t offer him anything, besides urging him to face his own limitation – he just walked away.
“Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 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.”
How hard it is – but it’s not just hard. It’s impossible.
It’s impossible for you to do it on your own. But the rich man thought otherwise – Good teacher, what must “I” do to inherit eternal life. So you see - the rich man wasn’t looking for a savior either – so he walks away.
Some would say he walked away doomed – but he’s no more doomed than any of us.
For 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. It’s impossible in fact. “But not with God; all things are possible with God.”
So give thanks for the one who intercedes on your behalf.
Who grants you the salvation that you cannot earn on your own.
Praise God for the high priest – the one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart and exalted above the heavens.
For he is no good teacher – he is your savior.
Thanks be to God.
-Amen.