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The world thinks it has what it takes to get eternal life, but even the model nation of Israel was exposed in Jesus’ day. In this familiar conversation between Jesus and a rich man, we are shown with vivid clarity why ‘with man this is impossible’, and see Jesus’ invitation to the little children with fresh wonder.
13 Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, 14 but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” 15 And he laid his hands on them and went away.
16 And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” 17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, 19 Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
23 And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” 26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” 27 Then Peter said in reply, “See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” 28 Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
This transcript has been automatically generated
The reading for tonight is taken from Matthew chapter 19, verses 13 to 30.
That’s Matthew chapter 19, verses 13 to 30.
Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, Let the children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them and went away.
And behold, a man came up to him, saying, Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? And he said to him, Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments. He said to him, Which ones?
And Jesus said, You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. Honour your father and mother, and you shall love your neighbour as yourself.
The young man said to him, all these I have kept. What do I still lack? Jesus said to him, if you would be perfect, go sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come Follow me. When the young man heard this, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, Truly I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven.
And again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God. When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, Who then can be saved? But Jesus looked at them and said, With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. Then Peter said in reply, See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?
Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for my name’s sake will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
Have you got what it takes? Have you heard that question before? Of course you’ve heard that question before. We’ve all heard it loads of times, haven’t we? Have you got what it takes?
We hear it in so many different contexts, whether it’s, have you got what it takes to get into this university? Have you got what it takes to get a first? Have you got what it takes to succeed at your job? In so many different arenas, we are constantly bombarded with the weight of that question: have you got what it takes? But of all of the areas that we could ask that question tonight, we’re thinking about it in the most important one.
Have you got what it takes to get eternal life?
Rutger Bregman, whose book I mentioned last week, basically says yes. I mean, he doesn’t believe in God or eternal life, so he’d probably reject the question in the first place, but he thinks that we are basically good enough. We have got what it takes inside ourselves. He admits in the introduction, or in one of the first chapters, that we’re obviously not angels. We’re complex creatures with a good side and a not-so-good side.
But he thinks that we can still do it. He says the question is just which side we turn to. Have you got what it takes to get eternal life? Well, Rutger Bregman says yes.
A friend of mine said a similar thing when I was chatting to him earlier this week. We were actually looking at John’s Gospel, But wonderfully, the conversation worked around, not deliberately, but to exactly what would illustrate this passage for this, this weekend. And he said to me, I’m more good than bad. Have you got what it takes to get eternal life? He thinks, yes.
Well, that’s the question that we’re thinking about in tonight’s passage. Have you got what it takes to get eternal life? And if you were one of Matthew’s first readers then at the very least you would have said that Israel might have what it takes. Israel, God’s specially chosen nation, the ones who had God’s law, who had God’s temple, who rather than following all the pagan practises of the nations around them, like child sacrifice or cult prostitution, they were the ones with, you shall not commit murder, And you shall not commit adultery. They were a light on a hill, a beacon to the surrounding world.
If anyone had what it takes, well, surely Israel did.
But as our passage explores that question, you all know the answer it gives at the end, don’t you? Verse 26, unambiguously, with man this is impossible. Have you got what it takes to get eternal life?
No. And if even Israel don’t have what it takes— Israel, the nation with God’s law, God’s temple, God’s promises— if even they didn’t have what it takes, what hope is there for the rest of us? Now, this whole section of Matthew that we’re exploring over these next few weeks lays out the case against Israel. We said that last week. It explains the reason why judgement was coming on them.
And as we see more and more clearly through this section, we’ll see accusations levelled against Israel, but we’ll see that they could just as easily be levelled against our culture. And if even Israel didn’t have what it takes, what hope is there for the rest of us? Yet there is hope. William’s mentioned it already several times this evening. It’s even there in verse 26, with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.
Have you got what it takes to get eternal life? I guess lots of us know where this passage is going. You can almost guess what’s going to fill those gaps between the, the headings on the handouts. You might have studied this episode loads of times in one gospel or another, and you might know exactly what I’m going to say, but it’s possible, isn’t it, to so fix your eyes on the destination that you don’t really acknowledge the journey and you don’t really realise how significant it is to have arrived there. It’s possible to stop feeling, when we get to verse 21, the bridge collapsing beneath our feet.
It’s possible when we get to verse 26 not to feel it like a roller coaster, and so to coast into the conclusion with your eyes half closed. It’s possible to have studied this episode so many times that you know the answer, but it no longer fills you with the wonder that it once did. Isn’t that so many of us? But if you were to open that door, I just— around here, the, the TARDIS, as it’s called. I’m sorry if you’ve never been to St. Helens, you’ll have no idea what I’m talking about.
But if you were to open door there and to find Jesus behind it, and you were to ask him, Jesus, do I have what it takes to get eternal life? Even if you knew exactly what he was going to say, wouldn’t you, wouldn’t you be longing to hear every word that he said in answer? Wouldn’t you pay attention to him like a devoted child?
And of course, you don’t need to open that door to get Jesus’ answer. You just need to open this book or keep it open at Matthew 19. We’ve got Jesus’ answer, Jesus’ answer right here in front of us. And even if you’re familiar with it, for a moment just push your memory to one side and come with fresh eyes to see how extraordinary this conversation is. And it starts with the demand of the law.
The demand of the law. And we’ll come back to verses 13 to 15 later. Let’s jump straight in at verse 16. And behold, a man came up to Jesus saying, Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? And he said to him, Why do you ask me about what is good?
There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments. He said to him, Which ones? And Jesus said, You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness. Honour your father and mother. And you shall love your neighbour as yourself. The young man said to him, all these I have kept. The guy starts with a similar question to ours, doesn’t he?
Verse 16, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? Have I got what it takes? What do I need to do? And so Jesus opens up the Law of Moses and quotes from probably the most famous list of rules going, the Commandments. And he picks out some of them: you shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, honour your father and mother.
And don’t we have to agree what an amazing list that is? Aren’t we so much happier in a world where murder rates are down, in a world when marriages are stable, in a world where there are low rates of theft, How annoying it was when my bike got stolen. It was years ago now, but I’m still annoyed. Aren’t we happier where there’s more honesty? Aren’t we happier where there’s respect for parents?
It’s a great list. And Jesus caps it all with that sort of summary commandment that he’s picked from elsewhere in the law, a kind of summary rule that condenses a whole chunk of Old Testament law. You shall love your neighbour as yourself. What a brilliant list of commandments! What a great standard to reach.
And in fact, there seems to be some sense in which the guy has met it. Look at verse 20. The young man said to him, all these I have kept. Having heard Jesus’ list, he reflects on his life and he’s able to say, at least in some sense, yeah, that’s what I’ve done. Imagine you’re trying to get into a university with— which is a particularly impressive university.
I don’t know what unis are doing at the moment with all of the rigmarole around exams and COVID, but there’s always a sort of high standard for the, the top-tier universities, isn’t there? Maybe 3 A’s, something like that. Have you got what it takes to get into that university? That’s the question. And of course, there’ll be some people who don’t manage it.
But at least some who do have what it takes, some who get the grades. And that seems to be this guy, doesn’t it? He’s got his list of grades and he says, yeah, I’ve done that, I’ve got the A’s that I need, all these I have kept.
I think it’s fascinating that Jesus at this point doesn’t correct the man, because he could, couldn’t he? Take the, the particular things that Jesus has listed there— murder, for example. Already in Matthew 5, we know that even if you don’t physically kill someone, if you’ve got anger in your heart, you’re liable to judgement. It’s not just the outward act but the inward orientation of my heart. Or take adultery.
Again, back in chapter 5, Jesus said that if I look lustfully at someone, I’ve committed adultery with that person in my heart. It’s not just the outward act, but the inward orientation of my heart. Jesus could easily have worked through this list and said, I’m sorry, mate, but you haven’t done them. You think that’s an A, but it’s actually an F. But it’s not where he goes, because he wants to show that even if you had done all of those things, even if you had obeyed on all of them, it still wouldn’t be enough. That even if this man really had kept them all, he’d still not got what it takes.
To get eternal life. And it gets exposed by the man’s wealth. And we’re on point 2, if you’re still following on the handouts— the exposure of riches. I look again at verse 20. The young man said to him, all these I have kept.
What do I still lack? I’ve done all of that stuff, Jesus. Do I have what it takes? And Jesus’ answer in verse 21 is devastating, isn’t it? Can you picture the man hearing Jesus say this?
Verse 21, Jesus said to him, if you would be perfect, go sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come follow me. When the young man heard this, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. I just see the bridge collapsing beneath his feet, so, so close to grasping eternal life And then all of a sudden he turns around. He went away. He’s lost it.
And it seems to be tied to these great possessions. They seem to be related, don’t they? He went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Why are they a problem? Well, because they expose that he doesn’t love God.
They expose that he doesn’t love God. I mean, think about the rules that Jesus had just listed. The commandments on which he’s performing well are all those that are summarised by love your neighbour as yourself. But as we’ll see later in this section, there are 2 summary rules for the Old Testament law: love your neighbour as yourself and love the Lord your God with all of your heart and all your soul and all your mind. Now we’ll see Jesus saying both of those later in the section.
And this man, however well he’s doing on loving his neighbour, There’s a whole other side to the law, and it’s that other side to the law that’s the more important one. To pick up our exams illustration, in many courses you need to get certain grades across the board, but there might be some that are especially important. When I was applying for university to study medicine, I had to get good grades across the board, but I particularly had to do well in biology and chemistry. Do you have what it takes? It’s not just about generic performance.
There’s areas that particularly matter. Well, even more so with getting into heaven. It’s not like I can just love my neighbour and hope that’s enough to get me in. Loving God, Jesus says, is the first and great commandment. I can’t miss it out.
In fact, it is the most important of the 2 summary rules. And of course, that makes sense, doesn’t it? How can we be qualified to enter God’s heaven if we don’t love God?
There’s an absurd idea in the world today that God is obliged to welcome people who’ve spent their whole lives ignoring him, that he owes it to them to give them eternal life when they’ve lived the whole of their existence in rebellion against him. Of course, it makes sense that love of God might be the most important on the list. But when this man chooses his great possessions instead of Jesus, he’s choosing his money instead of God.
Jesus had already warned when he last talked about treasure in heaven that no one can serve 2 masters, for either he’ll hate the one and love the other, or he’ll be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. For the man to choose his wealth, well, he shows what he loves and what he hates, or more accurately, who he hates. He’s failed on the first and great commandment. However much he might have his A-stars on one side, when you turn over to the other side, to the ones that count even more, it’s Fs all the way down.
His wealth exposes him. He doesn’t love God.
But this man didn’t start getting it wrong in verse 22. It’s not like that’s the moment when he made that choice that it all went wrong. He started going wrong long before that. In fact, the very first moment that we met him, he got it wrong, didn’t he? Verse 16, the question he asks is a problem.
The man asked, Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? And do you notice what Jesus said in reply? I said he responded with a list of commandments, but it’s not quite true, is it? No, Jesus started by saying, why do you ask me what is good? There is only one who is good.
Only God is good. Why are you asking me what’s good? The man’s very question seems to be a problem. It’s as though he’d asked what grades he needs to get to get into that university, and the reply comes, why are you asking me about what grades you need? No one is capable of getting the right grades.
That’s the theme Jesus goes on to in verse 30— verse 23, isn’t it? Verse 23, Jesus said to his disciples, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich man enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God. If you’ve been knocking around Christian circles for any length of time, you’ll have heard that illustration. It’s a very easy one to get hold of, isn’t it?
I decided to bring in a needle. I very nearly didn’t because I thought you can’t tell from that distance whether I’ve actually got a needle in my hand. I have, I assure you, I’ve got a needle here. But I couldn’t bring in a live camel because I think I’d have got in a bit of trouble from William. So I’ve brought in the next best thing.
Now, how do you rate my chances of getting this through there? It’s not very hopeful, is it? I mean, I could try and squash his face a little bit smaller, but that’s not going to happen. I could try and get him through one hair at a time, but I’m not sure you’re going to wait for that. I could get an industrial-sized blender and stick him in and get it all sort of ground up and try and see if, if he’ll then fit through the needle, but he won’t, will he?
It’s never going to happen. It’s not hard, it’s not just challenging, it’s impossible. Not get a blender out and see how fine you can grind them up. No, it’s never going to happen. And that’s what Jesus concludes in the end of verse 25, isn’t it?
End of verse 25, they ask him, who then can be saved? But Jesus looked at them and said, with man this is impossible.
You see, it’s not that he’s failed to love God and needs to try harder. He has failed to love God, but he’s never going to do it. It’s impossible.
Can you see why that’s such an important illustration for the Israel of Jesus’ day? Because they too had utterly failed to obey God’s law. Whatever they were managing to do in terms of loving neighbor— and we’ll actually see later in the section that they hadn’t got very far with that. However far they had got, they certainly hadn’t loved the Lord their God with all their heart and soul and mind. They weren’t even close to the mark, and they needed to see that it’s not just that they’d failed and needed to try harder, it’s that they were never going to do it.
It’s impossible. Have you got what it takes to get eternal life? Even to ask the question is laughable.
And we need to see that’s true of our culture too, today still. Interestingly, towards the end of this book— I do keep reading books, I do get closer to the end— towards the end, interestingly, he, he quotes some of Jesus’ teaching in a really positive light. He quotes from Matthew, in fact, more than once, in an apparent recognition of how good Jesus’ teaching is and suggests that the, the standard that Jesus sets is a standard that we can reach. But he only looks at love of neighbour. He only looks at love of neighbour.
He’s just interested in the horizontal. There’s nothing there on the first and great commandment. And that’s not just an irrelevant exam that you can ignore. It’s the most important one, the first and great commandment. And while we’re overlooking it, we can kid ourselves that we’re managing to hit the mark.
We can kid ourselves we’re getting the right grades. Have you got what it takes? We’ll fool ourselves into thinking the answer is yes.
I wonder if our wealth makes us particularly struggle on this. You can tell me later whether or not you think this is right, but I’ve been trying to work out why Jesus particularly picks out the wealthy here. I mean, it’s certainly not the case that being rich is sinful. There’s numerous examples in the Bible of rich men and women who receive God’s seal of approval. But I wonder if it makes it harder to see that you’re dependent.
And the more I’m in a situation where I have got what it takes, the harder it is to see when I don’t. If I’ve got enough money to pay for next week’s food— and I guess that’s probably all of us here— Well, then I’m relying on my debit card, not on God. I don’t realise how dependent I am. Have you got what it takes? Well, the more situations in which I can answer that question yes, the harder it is to see when the answer is no.
But however much money you have in your bank account, the answer here— have you got what it takes to get eternal life? The answer here is always no. You can spend all of your life trying to squeeze that camel through that needle and you’re not going to do it. With man, it is impossible.
Do we believe that? Do you believe that? And do you believe that about the world that we live in, that no one is going to manage it? That when you stand in the queue for the kingdom of heaven and you hear the verdict of everybody in front of you, that for everyone, no one will have what it takes to get eternal life. They’re not going to get that camel through that needle.
If it didn’t happen for Israel, it’s not going to happen for anyone else. With man, this is impossible.
I’ve hammered that home because we need to hear it, and I think we’re constantly hearing that it’s not true. But the danger is that we can miss that there is hope. There is hope. Verse 26, with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. There is hope, and it comes in the way of the King.
That’s the 3rd point on the handout there, the way of the King. Having heard that it’s impossible, you can imagine that people might be concerned. You can imagine Peter there being concerned. I think that’s something of what’s going on in his question, verse 27. Then Peter said in reply, see, we have left everything and followed you.
What then will we have? And Jesus actually has loads to say to him. His answer is going to stretch all the way to 20:16, so we’re going to revisit Peter, his question, and the answer next week. But even now you can see something of his element of concern, can’t you? You just said that’s impossible, so what about us?
Was all of this sacrifice that we’ve done not worth it? Last summer there was considerable upheaval over the exams for getting into university, wasn’t there? Lots of work that had gone into preparing for those exams, and then they got cancelled and all of their efforts seemed to be wasted. But imagine Peter’s dismay to hear Jesus say, with man it is impossible. It wasn’t that long ago that he and his brother Andrew had ditched their nets to come and follow Jesus.
They’d banked everything on being his disciples? Was it all a complete waste?
Well, whatever Peter’s concern, Jesus gives him some real reassurance. Verse 28, Jesus said to them, truly I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. He paints this picture of a new world A new Genesis, a whole new start. Even if Israel failed, even if it is impossible with man, that doesn’t mean it’s the end of God’s purposes. It doesn’t mean it’s the end of God’s kingdom.
There will still be a kingdom. Jesus is going to sit on His glorious throne. In fact, the 12 disciples are given a massively significant role sitting on the 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. Indeed, there are other rewards that Jesus promises to others in the kingdom there, all of which we’re going to need to think more about next week. But even though Israel is being judged here, the comfort is that Jesus is still building a kingdom, even in some sense Israel.
Whatever Peter’s concerned, there is still a kingdom to come.
But if we followed up to this point, surely the question we’re asking is, how is anyone going to get into it? Who is going to be there if no one has got what it takes to enter eternal life? Who will get to enjoy it?
At which point you’re basically going to want to scream at me, aren’t you? Tim, you missed that bit at the beginning of the passage. It was there in those first few verses. Of course it was. Chapter 19, verse 13: Then children were brought to Jesus that he might lay his hands on them and pray.
The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, let the child— the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them and went away. The disciples here seem to be a bit unenthusiastic about all these kids swarming around Jesus. Why would somebody as great as Jesus take any interest in these little kids? And much as first-century Israel would have held a positive view of children, there was nothing particularly special about them.
That warranted the attention of someone as great as Jesus. But wonderfully, Jesus has a wholly different attitude, doesn’t he? Indeed, he ushers them in. Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven. You might not be impressed by them, Jesus seems to be saying, but children are exactly the kind of people who make it into the kingdom.
And some people think that’s children as in innocence. Oh, you’ve just got to come innocently like a little child, which I can only assume is from somebody who’s never had any kids. If you are here under the delusion that kids are innocent, find somebody with children and they will quickly clarify that for you. Mickey is nodding emphatically there for us.
No, being a child is not about innocence, it’s about empty-handedness. Now that’s how children come, isn’t it? They’re not trying to bring anything, they’re not trying to pay their way. They’re nothing like the rich man in verse 16. What good deed must I do?
As though there’s something that they can contribute. No, they come fully aware that they’re bringing nothing to the table. They come empty-handed.
And ultimately, that’s what the rich man had needed to learn. The fault in his question was the idea that he could bring something to the table. What good deed must I do when the only way into the kingdom of heaven is to come empty-handed? It’s the lesson that Israel needed to learn, coming to this Old Testament law like it’s a list of exams that will get them into heaven, when all along it was a massive list at which they were constantly graded F. The only way into the kingdom of heaven is to come empty-handed.
And it’s what our world needs to hear today too— not to trust that we can bring anything to the table, that we’ll manage to love our neighbour enough that we can trust somehow in humankind. No, the only way into the kingdom of heaven is to come empty-handed like a child. But see what Jesus says to those children: let the little children come to me and do not hinder them. Isn’t it a wonderful offer? A Jesus in full awareness of their weakness, as though their, their exam grades is kind of posted on the wall and everybody can see them, and it’s Fs all the way down.
And Jesus says, let them come to me.
Do you realise what a position you are in if you’re a Christian? Do you realise that he extends that invitation to all of us today?
In the world, our performance is constantly being measured, and when you hear you’re not good enough, it’s normally a bar to entry. But not with Jesus. Jesus says, you’re not good enough, with his arms wide open. Let the little children come to me.
It’s hard to admit we’re dependent, isn’t it? That we bring nothing to the table because we’re in a culture that’s constantly screaming at us, have you got what it takes? Have you got what it takes to get into this university? Have you got what it takes to, to get a first? Have you got what it takes to succeed?
In your job, in so many different arenas, we’re bombarded with the weight of that question, have you got what it takes? Our performance is constantly being measured. But in the most important arena that you could possibly consider, have you got what it takes to get eternal life? The answer is a resounding no. We don’t love our neighbour as we should.
We don’t love God as we should. We’ve failed all of our life exams. We’ve done especially poorly in the ones that matter most. And yet wonderfully, unlike all of those other areas where it really seems to matter to us, where it sets a bar that stops us getting in, in the one that really matters, Jesus says you’re not good enough with his arms wide open. He says, let the little children come to me.
If we want to be part of his kingdom, there’s only one way in. Are you going to keep trying to get that camel through that— that camel through that needle, or will you come to him like a child?
Let me lead us in a prayer.
Our Father, we thank you so much for Jesus’ extraordinary invitation, let the little children come to me. Thank you for showing us that we cannot obey as we should, we cannot love as— love our neighbour or love you as we should, but we praise you that though it is impossible for man, all things are possible for you. And so we thank you for the wonderful salvation that you have given to us in the Lord Jesus. How we praise you. In his name, amen.
