Paparazzi in league with tabloids are constantly bent on one
mission, to unmask a celebrity engaged in some nefarious action. A picture of somebody famous doing something
less than ideal will sell magazines and garner great interest from
readers. The general thinking is that if
“joe six pack” can see and read about some celebrity taking a tumble from
grace, then perhaps he or she can feel better about their own lives by
comparison. This is not a new
phenomenon. People have always attempted
to value their own lives and even spiritual well-being, comparatively with
others. Even the paparazzi and tabloid
recording of these stories may not be as new as we think. I believe the first one may have been
recorded in the Gospel of Mark in chapter ten.
I submit for your approval the first biblical article of the unmasking
of a local celebrity of that time namely one … Lazarus.
Our story begins with an understanding of the context and
history of this article. In the days of
Christ, there was one sure way to know you had God’s favor and that was
wealth. Or at least, this is what every
Jewish worshipper had been taught from birth.
Every text in scripture written as a promise from God, in which
obedience would be blessed, and disobedience would bring about catastrophic
consequences had been twisted to mean … good people can be known by their
wealth … and … poor or sick people can also be known to be evil. Those with catastrophic illnesses were also
catastrophically evil, thus demon possession, or leprosy, or being lame, or
blind. Everyone understood this concept.
Everyone accepted that it came from scripture.
And everyone was wrong.
Next, it only made sense, that the ruling class of Israel,
would be made up of rich people. Since
the rich had the means to influence society, and the power and wealth to do so;
why not make them part of the leadership of Israel. Therefore, the Sanhedrin (the ruling
council), was nearly singularly composed of rich people who would rule Israel
to the extent that Roman tolerance would permit. Now, there were other ways to get rich, but
the primary way, was to be a priest. As
a priest, or more specifically Pharisee or Sadducee, it would be your job to
decipher scripture, enforce the law, and insure the offerings flowed in from
the people … to you mostly. Talk about
your easy money. And since people were
taught that they too could be rich with the favor of God, they were far likely
to disagree with any Pharisee or member of the Sanhedrin.
Now comes our celebrity.
In this story relayed by Peter to John Mark, the name of the celebrity
is withheld, I believe on purpose. The
Bible is not like other tabloids that inflict damage without regard. However, we have in hindsight several pieces
of evidence that lean to his identity.
First, Lazarus had means, and was part of the ruling class of
Israel. Jesus (and his crew) were always
welcome in his home, where a meal for 16+ could be prepared on short notice
with what seems never a thought about the cost.
It is widely known that Jesus “loved” Lazarus (as well as Mary and
Martha, his two sisters). And despite
all this love, Lazarus never becomes a disciple. He surely would have been welcomed as
one. So why did he choose not to be
one? Perhaps that answer lies in the
scriptures we will now examine.
Picking up in verse 17 our story begins … “And when he was
gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked
him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?” Aha, here Peter is careful to refer to this
celebrity merely as “one” who came running, intentionally leaving out the
name. Later in our day, we will begin to
refer to this celebrity only as “the rich young ruler”. But in this first text is revealed something
deeply interesting; and that is a longing and a recognition. This celebrity, despite all his wealth, feels
like there is something more that must be done, some deed he has yet to do,
that would bring him peace, and salvation.
How many of us worry about exactly the same question? What is left for “us to do” that would bring
about our salvation. So we answer our
question with lists of do’s and don’ts, and when we find ourselves perpetually
short on these lists; we begin to look at others and point out their
shortcomings to make us feel comparatively better.
The story continues in verse 18 saying … “And Jesus said
unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.” The answer of Jesus reveals a focus the ruler
did not expect. Jesus takes exception to
the flattery used in this man’s question.
The man had used the phrase “Good Master” in his question. And Jesus does not like the implication. Jesus asks why the flattery, and then directs
the praise of this man off of Himself as a man, and back to God where it
belongs. For no man deserves our praise,
only God does. In this response would
end the very practice of celebrity itself.
If we treated all men as we treat ourselves, respecting them equally,
honoring them equally, and kept our reverence for God alone, the world would be
as it should be. So before any answer
could be given, flattery had to be removed as a possible motivation for the
response.
Jesus can now continue in verse 19 saying … “Thou knowest
the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not
bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.” Jesus now throws back to this man, Moses as a
response and what is written in the scriptures.
Moses is the hero of the Jewish people, and his writings have been
reviewed and studied since birth by most of them, particularly the rich. Jesus here is subtly emphasizing to this man,
that Moses had no real answer for him.
He is in effect telling those in attendance that the scripture without
Christ, lacks meaning and fulfillment.
Now as to which scriptures, Jesus also points out the very ten
commandments back to the man as the basic standard of loving others he should
live up to. But in this case, there is
one more, Jesus adds a commandment as … “defraud not” … which was never a part
of the original list. Sure this idea is
in keeping with the 10 commandments, but it is NOT part of the written word …
first proving that motives matter. But
also in this particular case it has specific relevance to the rich. Defrauding people is an easy way to make one
richer, and a great temptation to those engaged in business with the sole aim
of making money. It is as if Jesus is
adding this particular commandment just for this man to cut to the heart of the
temptations he might face.
It is also interesting the order in which Jesus lists these
commandments as they are out of sequence.
It is entirely possible that for this rich young celebrity, as well as
the crowd in attendance, they are listed from top to bottom in terms of how
often they are broken. The first is
adultery. Sexual sins, or sins of sexual
expression and lust in the heart, bind a great many people. In the days of Christ and in our own, sexual
sins quietly inhabit the church, and its people, trying desperately to keep
quiet, and avoid the shame of discovery.
Next is do not kill followed by steal followed by lie. It is so easy to hate in our day, to follow
our hatred with a justified feeling that theft must be OK, and to lie if we are
ever caught. This may actually happen at
work, more often than person to person, but the justification of stealing or
lying at work in our day is nearly universal.
Then comes the new one to defraud not, I wonder how many of us can look
at our employment and claim innocence on this score. Finally, Jesus includes honoring our parents,
perhaps in this application, He simply means spending some quality time with
our parents and listening to what they have to say. If this was His meaning, are we in
compliance, or are we simply too busy to really honor them on this score?
The story continues in verse 20 saying … “And he answered
and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.” I call B.S..
I do not believe the rich young ruler was claiming perfection, only that
he attempted to keep all of these commandments from his youth, and when he
failed, he took advantage of the sacrificial system in place for the forgiving
of sins. That would be more
truthful. But it still misses the point. He is there to find out what else he needs to
do. Because even if he has been perfect
in his keeping of these commandments, he has found it is not enough. There must be something more. And in this instance, instead of seeking the
answer from the Pharisees who will undoubtedly find it for him in the writings
of Moses, the man has come to Christ for the answer.
Peter continues his recollection in verse 21 saying … “Then
Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go
thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have
treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.” It is this recognition that instead of doing
what he has always done, to find spiritual purity in scriptures without Christ,
he has come directly to Christ that Jesus recognizes and loves. This man has in effect by this question
stated, my plan for spirituality it not enough, I need something more, I can
only find the real answer in Jesus Christ.
And so as he has sought salvation in Jesus Christ, he will find it
there. Jesus tells him he only lacks one
thing. I wish my own list of errors was
so short. Jesus tells him to go sell
whatever wealth he has and give it to the poor.
Notice he is not to take the cash to a safety deposit box, or put it in
a CD, or invest in a 401k for his retirement.
What Jesus asks him to do, is to get rid of his wealth, and distribute
it to the poor. This will end the man’s
dependence on money to sustain him, and place it ALL on Christ. But there is more.
In giving to those who have nothing, he will be changing
lives. Those lives he changes may wonder
“why” any man of this wealth would do such a thing. What would cause someone to be so greatly
charitable. They may be haunted by this
gesture, until they discern the motive for themselves. In so doing, they may be brought to Jesus as
well by this charity. They may also find
the salvation that is offered by Jesus Christ, and find themselves made free to
love this greatly. They may enter the
Kingdom of God now, and his heaven later at the end of all things. Upon entering heaven, the rich man would find
the treasure of his gift returned to him in souls that were saved because of
what he did. There is no greater riches
in heaven than the addition of precious souls who are there because of the
actions we took to point them to Christ.
This is the treasure Jesus speaks of.
For we will not need CD’s or 401k’s, or gold bullion in heaven, unless
perhaps the street gets damaged and we need to repair it with our golden concrete. The treasure Christ speaks of is infinitely
of more value.
Then Jesus offers the most praised gift of His age, an
invitation to come and be a disciple.
There was no finer gift Jesus had to offer him. There was no better place to learn about what
it means to love others, and find the salvation this man was looking for. He could spend night and day with Jesus, who
already loved him. He could hear what
Jesus said all the time. He could be
part of the inner circle of followers of Jesus Christ. The number of 12 disciples was not an
absolute, as in this offer Jesus was more than willing to make it
thirteen. If you counted Mary Magdalene
as many do, it might make it fourteen.
But in any case, and by any number, this was the ultimate prize offered
by Christ. And the response was the
revelation for this man AND for us.
The interaction concludes in verse 22 saying … “And he was
sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.” At the end of the day, this young ruler
trusted in his wealth to make him happy, more than he trusted in Jesus
Christ. And EVERY ONE of us make the
same response nearly every day of our lives.
For I see none of us, myself included, heading to the alter call to sign
over our homes, and cars, and jewels, and clothing … giving 100% to the poor in
order to follow Christ in the here and now.
Our response to even the idea of this, is that it is crazy, because
Jesus is not here anymore. Really? Jesus is no longer here. Because we cannot see, we cannot give? And yet we claim to have faith. What we fail to see, is that exactly like the
young ruler, every bit of wealth that we have amassed is because of Jesus
Christ. Our dependence on Jesus is
absolute, not partial. And our Lord is
bidding us, to stop trusting in trinkets, and start trusting in the source of
them, in Him alone. Our God is here now,
just as much as when He walked this earth.
And what He would so desperately like to teach us, is to free us to love
others so fully we would not stop to think twice about giving away our stuff to
meet the needs of another. We do not
love like that yet, but we can.
This interaction did not stop Jesus from visiting Lazarus,
loving him, and even raising him from the dead an extra time and a little
early. The salvation of Lazarus was not
lost due to this decision; it was only delayed.
The rich young ruler could have freed himself from the burden of wealth,
and found an entirely new happiness at the feet of Jesus but the man chose not
to do it. It was the not the shame of
Christ this decision was made; it was the shame of the rich young ruler. It is why his name was withheld, even though
we suspect he may have been unmasked.
But the true unmasking of this celebrity, was in the mirrors of our
homes today. It is you that responds to the
Master in this way, every time you trust to wealth for your happiness instead
of trusting to Jesus Christ. Thou are
the one, as the words were spoken to David, so they are spoken to you, and to
me. It is We who are unmasked.
But there is a better way and more to this story …
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