Matthew 19:23-24 KJV
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Mark 10:24-25 KJV
24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!
25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Luke 18:24-25 KJV
24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
As we begin this lesson let us think about what an “idol” is.
An “idol” is anything or anyone that has all of our attention and takes our love, security and dependence away from God and placed upon the “idol.”
Now let us ask ourselves the question “where is my love, security and dependence placed?”
In our scriptures above, we see that these words from Jesus regarding “those who are rich with material goods” were very important. So much so that Matthew, Mark and Luke were inspired to include them in their gospels.
So, let’s think and meditate upon the words.
Jesus tells the disciples that a rich man will hardly enter the kingdom of heaven and further explains the difficulty by saying it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.
The part about the camel and the eye of a needle was a well-known Jewish adage to explain the degree of difficulty in a situation. Contrary to an explanation put forth by some, this does not refer to a small gate in a wall, but does actually refer to the eye of a sewing needle.
Regardless, Jesus is saying that it is very difficult for a “rich” man to enter the kingdom of heaven, but not impossible.
So, two questions immediately come to mind. Why is it so hard for anyone with riches or wealth to be saved and enter the Kingdom of Heaven? And, what amount of riches, wealth or money constitutes being a “rich man or woman?”
The First Question
So, let’s look at the first question which is “Why does Jesus say it is so hard for a rich or wealthy person to inherit the Kingdom of God?"
Here are a few reasons as we see them.
- As the rich and wealthy begin to “hoard” their money and possessions, these very riches beget the covetousness that God has warned against. This covetousness or love is the very root of all evil.
1 Timothy 6:10 KJV
10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
It isn’t the money or wealth that is the root of all evil, but rather it is the LOVE of money or wealth and we must keep this in mind.
- Secondly, it is very difficult to possess them and not put trust in them, which trust should be placed in God our Father only.
- Thirdly, it is likely that wealthy individuals might look upon their wealth as their sources of happiness and then depend upon them, completely ignoring or forgetting about their dependence on God.
- Then, the accumulated wealth of can cause someone to think more highly of ourselves than we should. We’ve all heard the expression “they seem to look down their noses at people.” Accumulated wealth can certainly cause arrogance and pride and even the disregard of those who are poor.
- Finally, as one’s wealth grows, there becomes a predisposition to want more. Always more. While others may have little, the desire for more can be strong and powerful.
So, you see, there is a lot to battle, defeat and overcome for those who are rich in money or material goods.
The Second Question
The second question is “what amount of riches constitutes being a rich man or woman?”
The answer to this question in my view has no definitive numeric value.
In other words, it depends on the attitude of the holder and whether they succumb to any of the points listed under the first question.
It may be $1,000,000 or it could be $1,000 or anywhere above, in between or below.
In other words, if any amount of money or riches takes our trust and dependence away from God or causes us to disregard the needs of others, it has become something we covet and we are in danger of the warning from Jesus.
Regardless of the balance of our account or amount of our wealth, are we greedy and selfish in the manner of Ebeneezer Scrooge? Not caring about the needs of others but only concerned with protecting our riches?
It's The Love of Money, Not the Money Itself
In closing, there is a lot to be digested and thought through in this lesson. If we have been blessed by God in having what can be called riches, then we have an obligation to be a good steward in using them.
We cannot allow ourselves to covet our riches. Or trust and depend upon our riches. We cannot think of our riches as the source of our happiness. We cannot think more highly of ourselves because we have gained riches. And we cannot allow greed to drive us, where we constantly strive for more in the way of riches and material goods.
Covetousness or love of our money and riches is the very start of the downhill slide and falling away from God.
God tells us in Exodus 20:17 as one of the ten commandments, “Thou shalt not covet!”
Luke and Paul give us further warnings against covetousness.
Luke 12:15 KJV
15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
Ephesians 5:3 KJV
3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;
To covet means to yearn to possess or have something. Covetousness means having an eager or excessive desire for material wealth or possessions.
No matter how large or small the balance of our account, or amount of our wealth might be, are we greedy and selfish in the manner of Ebeneezer Scrooge, not caring about others but only concerned with protecting our riches?
One thing we must remember is that we are only stewards of what God has allowed us to have, and we will have to give account for our stewardship.
Regardless of the amount, whether great or small, if we covet or love our riches, depending on them more than on God, we ARE the rich man or woman that Jesus was talking about.
Please think seriously about this. Are we that rich man or woman?
1 Timothy 6:10 KJV
10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
RVH