A lot of different twists and turns today, Father, but I thought of You often throughout it and I am certain that You thought of me, as well. What comfort I find in You each and every day!
Luke 18:24-30 (<<click here to read the passage)
A couple of days ago, we looked at the Rich Young Ruler. When He saw the young man’s reaction, He said,
“How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God! In fact, 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!”
Those who heard this said, “Then who in the world can be saved?”
He replied, “What is impossible for people is possible with God.” v24-27
The camel part took the forefront in my mind, as I have heard it expounded upon and have preached on the text myself.
I Googled it just to see what I would find and interestingly enough the Food for the Hungry website had some provocative thoughts. Under a heading of We Are Camels, they said regarding this passage,
If you’re…thinking of the rich as billionaires who lead Fortune 500 companies, you may need to reset your idea of wealth. Worldwide statistics show that, in fact, you are probably one of the world’s wealthiest people. According to a paper from the World Bank in 2012, if you make more than $50,000 annually, you are in the global 1 percent.
Now, compared to others in your geographic area, you might consider yourself to be middle class, or your income may even hover near your local poverty line. But if you know how to read and write, if your home has electricity, and if the device on which you are reading this article belongs to you, chances are that you are in the top tier of the world’s most wealthy people.
Understanding ourselves as wealthy changes our mindset. Rather than seeing Jesus’ teaching about wealth as a lesson for others, we must examine ourselves.
In a lot of ways, it is difficult to see ourselves in this light. I would say that we are comfortable, but I wouldn’t say that we were rich but reading this article helps align my perspective.
If we are ardently following Christ, we should be accustomed to adjustments. In fact, we should welcome adjustments. If we are the same people we were when we gave our lives to Him as Lord and Savior, we are in a bad spot…actually a very awful spot! To grow in our relationship with Christ we need to always be moving forward. And truth be told, there is no standing still…there is no treading water. Either we are moving forward (as we should be) or we are losing ground.
Lord Jesus, open our eyes that we may see where we are in relationship with You. If we are losing ground may we wake up and strive to move ahead. Maybe our first step would be to examine our “wealth” and adjust our mindsets and learn to give in all the many areas of life where we are so very blessed. Amen.
Oct 22nd, 2020, Thurs, 7:18 pm
