I often am reminded of how undeserving I am of God’s love, presence, and deliverance. This is a very true statement, and it also leads sometimes to great fear of my incapability to draw near to God. As I try to obey the Lord’s commandments, on my own it would be impossible for me to gain salvation- a fact that is gut-wrenching and sometimes overwhelming.
I was recently reading Matthew 19:16-26, which is a favorite passage of mine. This is the story of the rich young ruler. This rich man who is seeking eternal life, is told by Jesus that not only must he keep all of the commandments, but if he wants to be perfect, he must also sell his possessions and give to the poor- a large hit to a man who has “everything”.
The rich young ruler leaves sorrowfully, as he had such a great amount of possessions. The key to this story is what happens next. Jesus explains how difficult it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven, which the disciples are astonished by. During this time, the rich were looked upon as being favored by God. So, the disciples are thinking, “If the rich can’t enter the Kingdom of Heaven, who can?” Jesus answers with a beautiful, praiseworthy statement in verse 26.
“But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
The truth is we are incapable of deserving to be with our Heavenly Father for eternity. However, God didn’t leave us there. He sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sin. He lived a life that we could never live, and shed His perfect blood on the cross for our sins. Because of Jesus, when God looks at us, He sees Christ. Because of our Savior King we have eternal life with our Heavenly Father where we will worship Him, which is what we were created for.
Blessings in Christ,
Caleb Holt
May 24 Service Information:
Finishing the Work of Discipleship (John 17:6-19)
I. Jesus discipled His men by MANIFESTING THE FATHER’S NAME TO THEM.
II. Jesus discipled His men by GIVING THE FATHER’S WORD TO THEM.
III. Jesus discipled His men by ASKING FOR THE FATHER’S PROTECTION FOR THEM.