Broadway Christian Church · Columbia, Missouri
Morning Worship · June 1, 2008
Third Sunday After Pentecost
Prayer of the Day
Living God, we come to worship you, praising you for the past and trusting you for the future. We come to join our will to your will, make your purpose our purpose, and your love our love. We come in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Scripture
Mark 10:17-31
As Jesus was walking down a road, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him and asked, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus replied, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. But as for your question, you know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not lie, do not cheat, honor your father and mother.’”
The man answered, “I have obeyed all these commandments since I was a child.”
Jesus looked the man in the eye and loved him. “One thing you lack. Go, sell everything you have and give the money to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and 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 get into the kingdom of God!”
The disciples were shocked to hear this. So Jesus told them again, “Children, how hard it is to get into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for the rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.
Jesus looked at them and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible, but not with God. Everything is possible with God.”
Peter replied, “We left everything to follow you.”
“I assure you that anyone who gives up home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or land or property for me and the message (the good news, the gospel) will be rewarded. In this world they will be given a hundred times as many houses, families, pieces of land, though they will also be persecuted, mistreated. And in the world to come, they will have eternal life. But many who are now first will be last, and many who are now last will be first.”
Message
The Path to Greatness
Rick Frost
One of the things I get to do from this vantage point is to see who is here. I am always amazed at who shows up. On any given Sunday, we have this incredibly wide berth of folks here. That is wonderful. That is fantastic.
Sometimes we have folks who have, indeed, heard about Jesus, but they may be a little bit confused. They have seen pictures of the guy in the loin cloth on the cross. They probably have used the word “Jesus” in lots of different ways. They have heard the teaching, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” That seems like a good idea, but for them it is, “What’s the big fuss? A lot of people think that.”
Why? Why do people drive as far as from Fulton to come to a place like this? Why do people make the sacrifices the way some in this church do? What’s the big deal that gets made all the time about being a follower of Christ?
Then we get folks here who have heard about Jesus and have, quite frankly, investigated his claims. With some degree of integrity, they have rejected him. That person is here, because she or he is related to somebody, or they want to be related to somebody, who hasn’t rejected the Lord. They think Jesus was probably a pretty good teacher, but he was not God. He is certainly not the Creator, Sustainer, Judge, and Redeemer of all that is. Quite frankly, they can’t see how a first-century Jew could really make much significant difference in their life in the 21st century and certainly have any affect on their eternal wellbeing.
Then we get folks who come here who are, in fact, identified Christians. Within that category, by the way, there are generally extremes. On any given Sunday, you might, for instance, be in one of those extremes if somewhere along the line you came forward, made a confession of faith. You may have gotten baptized. You own a Bible. You’re really sure you do. You have been here once this year, and you pray every other Super Bowl. You are going to have your picture in the church directory this year. How wonderful. But truth: there is not very much spiritual transformation happening in your life. That is one extreme.
Then we have the other extreme. We have people here who are sort of Jesus Juniors. They walk on water. They perform miracles. They raise the dead. They feed the multitude, heal the sick.
Then there are all the rest of us who are somewhere in between. Now, the reason I go into all this and spend so much time with that is that I want you to take a second, if you will, and identify where you are in all of this? OK? Where are you on the continuum, on the spectrum? I ask you to do that, because I think it is going to be very helpful in terms of what we are going to be talking about today. More importantly than that, I think it is also going to be very important for how and what this community of faith may become in the future.
Before we go there, I want to say categorically, I am thrilled that, for whatever reason, you are here. I am thrilled that Broadway Christian Church is hopefully a safe place for you to come, to investigate, to ask questions, to try on, to grow, and to hopefully stretch. I’m thrilled that somebody cared enough about you to invite you to come into this house. I am absolutely thrilled that every single one of you is here. Please don’t misunderstand.
Now, you may or may not know this, but you are worshipping with a church this very day that is a good church, that is wanting to move from being a good church to being a great church. It is wanting to do some great things. It is wanting to be involved in the transforming of many lives. It is a church that is in the process of trying to discern what in the world greatness really means.
Now, greatness, I understand, is not a word we usually associate with church, and with Christianity, and with faith. It is probably because we have been so conditioned and taught about what humility is supposed to be all about. That is another whole story.
When I use the word “great,” I understand that it smacks for some people of the notion of gigantic. It smacks of being huge, of being exceptional, of being distinguished, high-ranking, and first-rate. That is usually associated in most of our thinking about greatness. Consequently, 80% or more of our churches in this country seem to be working at being small, unimportant, ordinary, ineffective, and essentially insignificant. That concerns me.
Be it as it may, I want to offer a definition of greatness today. I think a biblical, Christian definition of greatness needs to be expressed as “The Path to Greatness.” I want you to know I am using the word to denote something that is really, really, really important. When I talk about greatness, I’m talking about something really, really, really worthy. It is something important and something worthy. In that sense, I think greatness resonates with every single person in this house today. We want to do important things. We want to be worthy persons. I think that is because that is the way God made us. That’s the way we are hard-wired to be biblically great. Did you know that?
Folks, I do not believe for one minute that Jesus came to this earth, announced the coming of the kingdom of God, healed the sick, raised the dead, fed the hungry, befriended sinners, confronted the injustices of the powers that be, was beaten, mocked, imprisoned, nailed to a cross, and suffered the agony of crucifixion so you and I would live mediocre, second-rate, shabby, indifferent, just-get-by kind of lives. I don’t think he did. I don’t think you think he did.
Now, I think the Creator of all that is wants you to be a great Christian. I think the Creator of all that is wants you to do great things for him. But as you know, what it takes to be a great Christian, and to do great things, and to be a great church is difficult to come by. That difficulty often causes us, consciously or unconsciously, to look for the quick fix – the quick fix to make us great. Some book, some program, some leader, some team. Something that might lead us to greatness – to lead us to something more. That’s what I want you to think about for a minute. I want you to think about your desire for something more.
I believe you want something deeper. I believe you want something more meaningful. I believe you don’t want your friendships to be average. I don’t think you want your marriages to be routine. I don’t think you want your careers to be unfulfilling. I don’t believe you want bad habits or addictions to define you, or for your kids to feel blasé about you, or your emotions to be flat. I don’t believe that. I don’t believe you want to live in a community that degenerates and deteriorates and accepts decline. I don’t think you want that. I don’t think you want to allow injustices to persist. I don’t think you want to be in a community that sells tomorrow for today. I don’t think you want that. I don’t believe you want your material possessions to fill that spiritual void in your heart. I don’t think you want to be consumed in spending a whole lot of time in conflict driven by fear, or to live a very, very forgettable life. I don’t believe anyone in this room wants that.
I believe you want something more. There has to be something more. There has to be a route – a God-given path – to biblical greatness. The good news day: there is. Surprise? Jesus gave us the how-to for our want-to.
For the next few minutes I want to take a look at an encounter that is found in Scripture between Jesus and a person who wants more. We are going to take a look at what Jesus has to offer this person – this man who wants the path to greatness. Let me tell you before we go there – let me tell you upfront – it is not going to be an easy path. OK? It’s not easy. If you want to go along, let’s jump in at Verse 17 of our text today.
As Jesus was walking down a road, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him and asked, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit – to get – eternal life.”
Now, right away, I like this guy. He runs up to Jesus. He’s not passive. He’s not laying back. He’s not hiding in the crowd. He doesn’t come knocking on Jesus’ door in the middle of the night. He’s out there. He’s ambitious. He has some attitude. He has some passion. He’s a go-getter. He wants something more. He wants the biggie. He wants the whole enchilada. He wants eternal life.
But you know what? He is also, I believe, one of those folks who want the quick fix. He wants an eleventh commandment. He wants an easy, spiritual plan.
Jesus replied, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. But as for your question, you know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not lie, do not cheat, honor your father and mother.’”
Do you see what Jesus is doing to this guy? He is guiding him back, pointing him back, toward the basics. “Do these things and you will live. You will have life. God will be pleased. Those commandments exist for a reason. They are in place so that life will be good for you.”
The man answered, “I have obeyed all these commandments since I was a child.”
That sort of comment is basically saying, “Hey, I can do that. It’s not a problem.”
“Yea. Right.”
Well, maybe he hadn’t killed anybody, and I’ll give him a free pass on adultery. But do you mean to tell me you never stole anything? You never took anything that didn’t belong to you? You never lied? You never stretched the truth? You never cheated? You never looked over your buddy’s shoulder for the answer? You never offended, slighted, disobeyed, disrespected your parents? Yea. Well…
Basically this guy is saying, “I’m perfect. I can do it. I can follow the commandments.”
And while I’m ready to filet this guy and expose him as a phony, watch what Jesus does. Jesus responds in a very different way.
Jesus looked the man in the eye and loved him. “One thing you lack. Go, sell everything you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”
In the translation, it literally says, “Jesus penetrated him.” You know how it is when you can look somebody in the eye, and it just penetrates. Then notice: Jesus didn’t filet him; he loved him.
Talk about whiplash! “Go, sell, give, come, follow.” Five hammer blows to this guy’s psyche.
You may have heard the one about the couple – both 60 years of age – who have been married since they were teenagers. They were having a birthday party, a celebration. They were having a great time. The genie appears and says, “I’m happy for you guys. You have lived a long, wonderful life of 60 years. I’ll tell you what. I’m going to give you anything you want. Name it. Name a wish.”
The woman thought for a moment and said, “We really love to travel.”
The genie said, “Done.” Poof. There were two tickets for a trip around the world. They just appeared in her hands. How cool is that? “And you, sir, what would you wish?”
The man got a rather mischievous look on his face, and he said, “Well, I would love to have a woman who was 35 years younger than me.”
Poof. He was 95.
Be careful what you ask for.
“Go, sell, give, come, follow.” These are not what this guy wanted to hear. But this is what we love about Jesus. Jesus gave him the truth. There was no quick fix. There was no easy plan. Jesus, in a spirit of love, knew what it was going to take for this guy, who loved his wealth and was very, very dependent upon his wealth, to be able to move from where he was to where the Lord wanted him to be. So Jesus raised the bar. He confronted him with the truth. It was the truth that his wealth was a roadblock, an obstacle, a blockade to what he really, really, deeply desired – a path to greatness. It involved a relationship with God, to be a follower of Jesus that would lead to eternal life.
In short, Jesus confronted him with the truth of sacrifice and challenged him to give up what was most precious to him in order to get something more. Something more important. Something of greater worth.
Result: Verse 22.
At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.”
In my translation, it reads, “His face fell off.” (That’s a little science fiction there. I’m sorry.) Actually, the literal translation goes something like this: “His face looked like the sky becoming overcast in anticipation of a storm.” Was anybody around yesterday afternoon? Did you take a look at that sky? That is sort of what happened to this guy’s face. He heard the truth that Jesus spoke to him personally. He took it in. He mixed it in with all the other stuff that was going on inside, and he knew he was not going to be able to do it, so he walked away sadly.
By the way, this is the only story in all of the gospel of Mark in which a person who Jesus calls chooses not to follow but chooses, instead, to walk away. Did you know that? It is the only one. Obviously, there were others who did, but this is the only one Mark remembers.
That gives you some incredible idea, I think, about the special awesome power of wealth to hinder Christian discipleship. It blocks the road to greatness. It can keep one from eternal life.
Now, like most of us, he wanted greatness. I think he really did, but he wasn’t willing to make the sacrifice.
Jesus [in a very teachable moment, by the way] looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to get into the kingdom of God.” The disciples where shocked to hear this. So Jesus told them again, “Children, how hard it is get into the kingdom of God. It is easier for a big, old camel to go through the eye of a needle than for the rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
A present day paraphrase might go something like this: “It is easier for the rich to get into the kingdom than it would be for Pastor Rick to walk by a macadamia chocolate turtle at the Candy Factory.” I can’t do it.
The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.
Because in their world, just like our world, wealth rules. Right? “Want more? If you want more, wealth can get it.” They were thinking, “If this guy, who has it all, can’t buy his way in, what are our chances?” The disciples were astounded that Jesus had a very fundamentally different view of wealth.
Jesus looked at his disciples and said to them, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible, but not with God. Everything is possible with God.”
Peter replied, “We left everything to follow you.”
Jesus is saying, “Hey, it is impossible for any human being to be saved, to inherit eternal life, to find the path to greatness. But everything is possible with God, on God’s terms.”
God’s terms for this guy were God wanted to be Number One in his life. It was “deal, or no deal.” Now, please do not generalize this story. This is not a story that calls all people and all people of faith to sell everything you have and give it to the poor. This is what this man needed to sacrifice, because that was Number One in his life.
This whole story has been like a slow-moving roller coaster. It has been rather slow making its way to the top of the rails. I think it is time for us to take the plunge, so buckle up, hang on to your pancreas, and here we go.
Jesus said, “I assure you that anyone who gives up home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or land or property for me and the message, the gospel, will be rewarded. In this world, they will be given 100 times as many houses, families, pieces of land, though they also will be persecuted and mistreated. And in the world to come, they will have eternal life.”
The promise of Jesus.
Now, the interpreters say this promise of Jesus is about the days back when the followers of Jesus held all things in common. Do you remember that? In Acts 2, the early church all pitched in and had this common community. It was a little commune. Nobody owned anything. It was all held in common. When you came into the community, it was like coming into this huge, extended family. What was mine, was yours, and what was yours, was mine. That’s the way it was. I get that. But the truth is now, as Christians, we don’t hold things in common today. We aren’t a commune. So, what I want to know is what’s the principle to be lifted out of this text for those of us in today’s world, where you and I live?
I think Jesus is saying to you and me, “I assure you that your sacrifice will be rewarded.” Write that down.
How much? A hundred times over. That’s a lot. As a special bonus, you will get to celebrate forever with the Living God in eternity. That’s the deal.
The point: You are going to be rewarded for your sacrifice. Folks, what I want you to take from this place and our time together is that notion: sacrifice is the investment required to take the path to greatness.
The ticket for Broadway Christian Church, in my opinion, to move from good to great is one word: Sacrifice. Not just sacrifice, but sacrifice for him, and for the gospel, and for the good news.
Let me make this personal. Let me get it past just this community. Jesus said, “If you will sacrifice one house for his sake, 100 doors are going to open up for you that aren’t open right now.” If you sacrifice one relationship that is keeping you from the Lord, you are going to have 100 relationships that are going to be like your very family, but even better. If you sacrifice one habit that is destroying your life for his sake, he is going to give you 100 new habits that are going to enrich your life in ways you don’t even know about yet. If you sacrifice your wealth for his sake, and for the gospel, you are going to experience 100-fold a depth of richness in your life you have never even dreamed of yet. Now, that’s not my promise.
Let’s get personal. Let me ask you to just imagine if you could walk up to Jesus today and say, “Lord, I want something more. I want the great life. I want what is really important. I want what really makes a difference, what really is worthy. I want what’s eternal. What do I need to sacrifice in order to have that?”
You know what my guess is? I guess what you need to sacrifice, and what I need to sacrifice, and what the other people around you in this very room need to sacrifice is very, very different.
That’s why I brought this box. This box has been in our family for generations. It’s my favorite box. I love this box. It’s our visual aid for the day. I brought it, because I think that every single person in this room already knows what Jesus would say if you asked him what you need to sacrifice. I think what you need is in your box. This is what I need to sacrifice. It is different for all of us.
Really the question is, “What’s in your box?” “What’s in your box that needs to be sacrificed?” Now, I don’t know what that is for you, and you don’t know what that is for me. It doesn’t really matter. But I can tell you what the promises of God in Christ are.
Let me say it one more time: “I assure you,” said Jesus, “that anyone who sacrifices for me and for the gospel will be rewarded.” I take that to mean “sacrifices the investment that any of us have to make to reach and move in the direction of biblical greatness.”
So, if you want the great life – the great life I believe God has planted in the soul of every single person in this room – you don’t have to walk out of here with your face down. You don’t have to let your face fall off. You can make a choice.
Can you just imagine with me, for a moment, what it would be like if the hundreds of people who are going to be in this church this day were ready to make that sacrifice? Can you just imagine what our community would be like? Can you just imagine what our homes, and our families, and our relationships would be like? You already know what needs to be sacrificed. Can you imagine your life defined by greatness rather than by what you are presently unable or unwilling to sacrifice? I know you want it. I can see it in you. I can see it in this church. I’ve watched it for 23 years. You really want the most important stuff. You really want to be about the most worthy things, and Jesus’ answer to you is, “When you begin to sacrifice, amazing things will begin to happen.”
Let it be, Lord. Let it be.
And all the people say… “Amen.”
Benediction
Good Teacher, thank you for leading us in your ways of greatness. “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.” May the sacrifice of our lives glorify and bless your holy name. Amen.
