The Rich Young Man

True or False: The rich young man -- when Jesus asked him to give away all his money, that was a test. If the rich young man had agreed to give away that money, Jesus would've actually been like, "no, I just wanted to see where your heart is. Keep the money, now follow me." --HS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everything finds true meaning in light of its context, especially when it comes to understanding a portion of the Word -- the "ultimate context". So, I will start out by examining the True or False question in relation to the illustration of Matthew 19.

From the beginning (v. 16), the rich young man keeps asking Jesus questions about how he can obtain eternal life, but constantly fails to see what Jesus tries to get across to him. His questions only reveal his wrong understanding of essential truths, and sadly, he never gets it in the story, that eternal life comes from the one speaking to him. Thus, it would be an unfitting and awkward ending to have him suddenly lay down all of his possessions for the poor when Jesus asks for it (unless God does something miraculous in his heart at that moment). In other words, it would stir up confusion among people had the rich man willingly given up his money, because that would conflict with the facts remaining in the text.

Actually, the only way the plot twist could work would be if the young man had given away his money in a mud of unbelief and confusion. Then, maybe it would have been Jesus who walked away! But either way, the young man's act would've meant nothing to Jesus. It would've only underlined the same point: the rich man failed to see his need for Jesus; he just didn't get it. Jesus' main interest was not in taking away the man's money, but in showing the man the idol he had made of it.

Therefore, the True or False question considered in the original context is false in every way. In fact, Jesus asking him to give away all his money seems to be a final wakeup warning, rather than a test. Jesus knew where his heart belonged.

Having said that, I think it would be interesting to assume a slightly different context for the story in order to take the discussion a bit further. Let's say this rich young man understood Jesus' teaching. He was blessed with prosperity, but understood that all of it belonged to God and that He gives and takes away. Perhaps a man like Job.

So, let's say, when Jesus asked him to give away all of his possessions, he suffered for a minute longing to know why, but trusting in His goodness and perfect will, gave away all that he had wholeheartedly, with thanksgiving and praise. With this kind of man, would Jesus give him his money back? I would say, sure, if He wills. Didn't God spare Isaac's life after asking Abraham to sacrifice him? But I realize that it is dangerous to say so, because the decision is totally up to God. If a man gives up his money knowing that he would get it back, God would know. But for a man who trusts in the Lord, it wouldn't matter what God decided to do with the money, because his heart would be satisfied in Him alone.

So, is it really possible for a man to accumulate wealth and love the Lord with all his heart, mind, and soul at the same time? Honestly, I cannot answer "yes" or "no" to that question. All I am capable of knowing is that prosperity is incredibly dangerous, but not sinful. As Jesus said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (v. 26).

To end this post, I will quote the words of Jill Carattini, writer/editor of A Slice of Infinity at RZIM.

"The virtue extolled by Christ to "go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven" is one we have come to think of in negative terms. It is far more costly in our minds for the millionaire to give up his millions than the child to give up his dollar because a million is far more "costly" than a dollar. But here, we are considering the sacrifice strictly in sacrificial terms; the virtue of generosity is seen not as virtue in the true sense of the word, but as sacrifice, self-denial, or "giving up" something good and desirable."