A Matter of Values

A Matter of Values

Philippians 3:7-11, Mark 10:17-22

            Sunday I preached this passage from Philippians.  I emphasized Paul’s self-emptying, as he set aside everything he had, and everything he was in order to become one with “Christ Jesus, my Lord.”

            Monday morning I began my devotions reading the story of the rich young man in Mark’s gospel.  I was struck immediately by the contrast between this man and Paul.

            Paul was highly educated in Hebrew and Torah law, and most likely in Greek and Greek philosophy as well.  Apparently he was not from a wealthy family.  He was a tentmaker, probably descended from a line of tentmakers, a skilled laborer from a blue-collar family.  He most likely owned little of the world’s goods, but he was rich in knowledge, intelligence, and promise.  He studied with Gamaliel, one of the outstanding Jewish teachers of his generation. His prospects were much brighter than his present circumstances.

            We don’t know much about the young man who came to Jesus.  Luke identifies him as a ruler but gives no clue as to what he ruled.  Three gospel writers tell us he was rich.  That’s all we really know, but there are several assumptions we can make based on what we know about first century Middle Eastern culture.

We can assume that, since he was young, he probably had not had time to earn his wealth.  It was most likely inherited.  In the first century the way most people increased their wealth was by decreasing someone else’s.  That may have been the way his family accumulated their wealth.  We should assume that he wasn’t alone in the world, that he had family obligations.  Whether he was married with a family, or responsible for his parents—or both, there were quite likely people who depended on him.

            Does Jesus’ reaction mean he condemned this young man for being rich?  That is an assumption we should not make.  Nowhere does Jesus condemn anyone for having wealth.  He has a lot to say about the way a person’s wealth is used.  He makes clear that what we have should be used for improving the lives of those less fortunate. 

Instead of condemning, Jesus looks on this man and loves him—the only person in the gospels about whom this can be said.  What Jesus saw in this man was not that he was too wealthy, but that he was too attached to his riches.  They were standing in the way of his relationship to Jesus, costing him his place in the kingdom of God.

Contrast him with Paul.  While Paul had little to give up in the way of worldly goods, he gladly gave up everything in order to possess Jesus Christ completely.  Gone was his rich Jewish heritage.  Gone was his place as an up-and-coming member of the Pharisees.  Gone was his standing as one who believed in the law so completely he was willing to persecute the members of this new religion.  Gone was everything he had worked and lived for.

Paul’s letter to the Philippians brims with the joy he feels as a result of his self-emptying.  He couldn’t be happier.  In Philippians 1:21 he says, “For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”  Possess nothing but Christ, and be satisfied. 

The young man was disheartened by Jesus’ words, and “went away sorrowful.”  No joy for him.  He couldn’t see past what he had to realize what he could become.

The same choice faces each of us today.  What must I give up to gain Christ?  What roadblock prevents me from completely following the one I call Lord?  What is it that I grasp so tightly that I cannot clasp the hand of Jesus? 

Perhaps most important, which of these two men should be my role model?