Rich young man

Bible verse:
“You will have treasure in heaven." (Matthew 19: 16-22)

Inspiration:
There are many examples in the Bible of wealthy people who found favor with God, starting with Abraham, the patriarch of the Jewish people. In those days, great riches were considered a blessing from God. So the rich young man who approached Jesus wanting to know what he must do to get into heaven did not expect the answer he got.

“Sell your possessions,” Jesus said, “and give to the poor.”

We’re told the man left with a heavy heart because he had many possessions that he could not bring himself to sell. That young man could be anyone of us today. We enjoy creature comforts and wealth that he couldn’t possibly have imagined, and this surfeit of riches has led to some disturbing trends.

For example, the size of the average American home is now 2,200 square feet, up 57% from the 1,400 square feet that housed larger families in 1970. Our abundance of food has led to an epidemic of obesity among our children. In the 1960s, just over four percent of 6- to 17-year-olds were overweight. Today, the number has tripled to over 15 percent. Our cars are obese, too. In 1987, the U.S. vehicle fleet weighed in at an average of 3,220 pounds. Today, the average U.S. vehicle tips the scales at 4,142 pounds, a 29% increase.

Meanwhile, the average home in Asia is only 400-600 square feet. Each night, 815million people worldwide go to bed hungry, and on any given day 24,000 die of hunger. Almost half the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day, or about what we pay in ATM fees to withdraw all the money we want from those ubiquitous cash machines.

“Sell your possessions,” Jesus said, “and give to the poor.”

The problem lies not with our wealth, but with the misuse of it. Used properly, it can be a cause for great good. But the seduction of riches can lead us to turn away from God toward a more self-reliant, self-indulgent, narcissistic consumerism in which too much is never enough. It can lead us to turn our back on the poor, the sick and the hungry – the very people who Jesus sought out.

In John 10:10, when Jesus said, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly,” He expected us to be good stewards of our abundance and share it with the less fortunate.

Poverty is the root cause of much of the world’s problems. It’s a breeding ground for hunger, sickness, ignorance, fundamentalism and terrorism. As the gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ widens, it’s being cleared by rockets and missiles.

The problems are so daunting that it is possible to throw up our hands and say, “What can I do? I’m just one small person.” True, none of us has the billions of dollars that Warren Buffet and Bill Gates can marshal to fight the disease, hunger and ignorance. But we do possess greater wherewithal than the young man who disappointed Christ. We can make a difference in our corner of the world.

In Christ’s time, it was the practice of farmers to leave the corners of their fields unharvested so that the poor could collect the gleanings. By cutting back at the corners of our lifestyle, we can use the gleanings to support the less fortunate of society. We can fast once a week; adjust the thermostat by a few degrees; cut back on the number of cable TV channels; drop the call waiting feature; and drive a more fuel-efficient car. We can give more generously to charitable causes. With a little imagination – and a spirit of sacrifice – we can span the gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots.’

 

Verse of the Day is available as a free web service from BibleGateway.com Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The
Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.