Proper 23B (Mark 10:17-31) – 10/11/2009

The story of the rich man seeking Jesus’ advice about the path that leads to eternal life is a lesson many of us have heard several times. This is likely so because the story is presented in all three synoptic Gospel accounts. The lesson is familiar and the words of the preacher can often be familiar, but the teaching can often be difficult to incorporate into one’s life. 

A favorite story of mine involves a Sufi and a dervish, two Muslim men who seek a closer relationship with God by living a lifestyle unencumbered by worldly possessions. “Ibrahim Adham, a great spiritual leader of the Sufis, was wont to live in much pomp and splendor, surrounded by a large number of servants. Even his tents were pitched with golden pegs. A wandering dervish once happened to pass by his tents, and was enormously surprised at this display of wealth by a Sufi. So he went, begging-cup in hand, to Ibrahim and questioned him thus: ‘It is strange that you call yourself a Sufi, and yet you are surrounded by luxury and material wealth of a kind, that even your tents are fixed with golden pegs.’ Ibrahim welcomed him, and bade him to rest awhile and asked his servants to feed him well. After some time he asked the dervish if he would like to go along with him to Mecca, and the dervish readily agreed. They both set out on their pilgrimage, the princely Sufi leaving all his wealth and luxury behind him without a thought. They had not walked far, when the dervish suddenly remembered that he had left his wooden cup in Ibrahim’s tent and wanted to go back to fetch it. Ibrahim smiled and said, ‘My friend, I left all my wealth behind without the least worry. Yet you are so much attached to a cup of practically no value that you cannot proceed to Mecca without it. The golden pegs which so much surprised you were driven into the earth, not into my heart.’”[i] In this story we hear that the Sufi, unattached to his vast display of wealth is free to travel where God calls him, yet the dervish clings to his wooden begging-cup and looks back toward his worldly possession instead of moving forward toward Mecca.

Our Gospel lesson this morning provides us with a similar story, but in the Gospel lesson the man surrounded by wealth appears to be distracted by his numerous possessions. We are told that the man is a faithful follower of God; a man who has followed the many commandments of the Torah. Did you know that there are more than 600 commandments detailed in the Torah and this man has “kept all of these since his youth.” According to Jewish traditions his wealth should be a sign of his righteousness and the blessings of God, but the man has a sense, somewhere deep inside of himself, that there is still more to be done if he is to draw close to God. He approaches Jesus and inquires about the path that leads to eternal life. After Jesus affirms the need to keep the commandments, he tells the man that he lacks one thing. This story presents us with an interesting paradox: the rich man who lives with an abundance of possessions lacks only one thing and that one thing is the ability to rid himself of his abundance. Jesus presents the man with a life changing choice: he can let go of his possessions and follow Jesus or he can choose to maintain his lifestyle and reject Jesus’ call to come and follow. The man was shocked and went away grieving. (If this was a story from the OT, we would likely hear “his countenance fell” – his entire body and face reflect his sadness and failure) Even the disciples were perplexed. Wasn’t this man a righteous man and his wealth a sign of God’s favor towards him? The disciples wonder if this righteous man cannot find eternal life, then who can possibly be saved. Jesus responds, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.” Jesus’ teaching is difficult for the disciples to understand. The disciples might admit that following the more than 600 commandments of the Torah is challenging, but they would not consider the task impossible. Jesus has seemingly “raised the bar” on eternal life, so that for mortals the goal is now impossible. But we must listen to Jesus closely and remember that Mark’s account of the Gospel stresses the vital importance of discipleship; the importance of following Jesus’ call to serve God and others in ministry, realizing there will be costs to be paid in this life.

After telling the rich man that he must follow the commandments, we are told that Jesus “looked at the rich man, loved him” and only then called him to sell his possessions and to follow him as his disciple. The “look” that Jesus gives the rich man is not a glance, but a thoughtful and considered gaze; and the love expressed by Jesus toward the man is the deep and abiding “agape” love that God shares with each and everyone one of his children. Jesus’ request is not simply a general request for the man to shed his riches; to be poor for poverty’s sake. No, Jesus’ call to the man is a very specific request based on his considered and loving understanding of what causes this man to stumble in his life and his relationship with God. Although it is true that the man has lived a blameless life and has been blessed with many possessions; his possessions have now become a stumbling block. The rich man is found to be lacking in his abundance because his abundance is an earthly abundance. The rich man cannot leave his possessions because he has come to believe that his possessions provide him with the ability and the security to do great things, whether for himself and for others. Jesus draws our attention to the difference between earthly treasures and heavenly treasures to help us understand the distinction between human control and God’s will. All of us must struggle to recognize and understand those things in our lives that we prize as the riches of our existence, yet cause us to become separated from trusting God’s love and the miracles of life that surround us every day. Jesus’ message to the rich man, and to us, is that we deceive ourselves if we believe that we, alone, have the understanding or the capacity to bring forth the kingdom of God. But Jesus brings us good news, the good news that is the Gospel; we are not alone if we are followers of Jesus and we allow ourselves to let go of our earthly stumbling blocks and listen to the call of Christ.

The dervish’s begging-cup seems to be such a small thing. The rich man’s possessions appear to be a blessing from God for his faithful and obedient life. Yet these items serve to distract and deceive their owners in their ability to listen to the will of God; they create stumbling blocks in the call to discipleship. The will of God is often given to us in the still small voice of the Holy Spirit and we can easily weigh ourselves down with the cares of the world; surround ourselves with the noises and necessities of our busy days. In the midst of our best efforts, our best personal efforts, we can become separated from the voice of God. Yet Jesus is looking at us with great care, loving us with an abiding love, and calling us to cast off our earthly burdens so that we might come and follow him, using our gifts for ministry in service to God. I pray that we may put down our wooden begging-cups, come and follow Christ, and drink from the living chalice of the Lord; for with God, all things are possible. Amen.

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[i] Ernest Kurtz and Katherine Ketcham, The Spirituality of Imperfection, (New York: Bantam Books, 1992), 171-172, as referenced from The Power of Negative Thinking and Other Parables from India by Koilpillai J. Charles