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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