 Let's open our Bibles together to Luke's gospel chapter 18. We're gonna be looking this evening at verses 15 through 27. We'll take verses 15 through 17 together. Then we'll move into verse 18 and take verses 18 through 27 together. We'll be looking at the subject of true riches because you can see that in both of these portions of Luke. And so let's begin reading together here in Luke chapter 18 at verse 15. I'll read to verse 17 and we'll get into our study. Luke chapter 18, beginning at verse 15, Luke writes, then they also brought infants to him that he might touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him and said, let the little children come to me and do not forbid them, for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as little children will by no means enter in. And so as we begin this first portion here, notice with me in verses 15 through 17, it's a portion that deals with Jesus, blessing small children. We need to remember as we develop this that the nation of Israel had a tremendous value that they put on their children. They did during the time of Christ and they still do. They recognize children as being a blessing from the Lord. If you keep notes in Psalm 127 verse three, the Psalmist said, behold, children are in heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is his reward. And so the people during the time of Christ viewed children as being blessings from the Lord. And during this time, Jewish parents desired their children to be blessed and they wanted them to be blessed by a great rabbi. So it had become common for them to bring their infants to be blessed by the rabbi on their first birthday. And so these children were being brought to Jesus that he might bless them as well as pray for them. Matthew recording the same event in chapter 19 verse 13 says little children were brought to him that he might put his hands on them and pray. And so they were bringing children to Jesus Christ in order that he might touch them, in order that he might bless them, in order that he might pray for them. So that gives us instantly an application that reveals something very important to us. These people were blessed by the Lord and they wanted their babies to be blessed by him also. And so as parents, we bring our children to Jesus Christ to be blessed by him because these children could not bring themselves to him. Somebody had to do that. And even so, we as parents, those of us who have influence over the lives of the young, are to bring our children that God may bless them to. And so how can I do that? Well, I tried to bring my children to a faith in Christ very early by teaching them the ways of the Lord, by reading the Bible to them, by praying with them. I tried to, as well as Marie, my wife, tried to teach them about the love of God. We invested our time in them and we gave to them affection and attention, especially in the things that related to Jesus Christ and did so because we knew that the time that we had with them would actually go by very quickly. It doesn't seem to go by very quickly when time is going by. As a matter of fact, sometimes it seems to be crawling. But man, I'm telling you, once the time has passed by, you begin to look back and you start saying to yourself, when did this happen? How quickly time has flown by? You really don't have that much time to invest in your children because eventually they do grow up and they're on their own and the time that you had to invest in them, that you had so much opportunity to, sometimes it can pass by. And so the first thing I would think of even as I look at this passage is the importance of investment. Investing my time, investing my resources in the things of the Lord in the life of my children because I wanted them to know the things of God. And so that's what's taking place here. These parents are bringing their children to the Lord that he might touch them. But notice in verse 16 what happens. You see the disciples saw what was taking place and they rebuked them. They basically were trying to protect Jesus, I think, from the inconvenience. They were looked at as being intrusive in all, and so they're trying to protect Jesus from being bothered. And it gives to me some insight that the disciples don't always understand the heart of the master because instead of bringing them to the Lord so that Jesus might minister to them, they're actually trying to get in between Jesus and the parents and the children and all, but Jesus calls them to him and he says, let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for of such is the kingdom of God. Surely I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter in. And so instead of being bothered by these babies, the Lord Jesus Christ actually rebukes his own disciples because his disciples are trying to keep these kids from him. Now, Jesus actually grows indignant over this. Mark tells us in chapter 10 verse 14 that when Jesus saw it, he was greatly displeased over this. He became angry. He became angry because he loved the children and he loved those who were bringing their babies to him and he makes it clear in verse 16 of such is the kingdom of God. God's kingdom is populated by those who have the innocent quality of children. And as I was thinking about this, I started thinking, what kind of qualities do small children have that Jesus might be referring to? And there are so many things that we could think about when we think of children and their qualities and all, but I thought of a few. For example, small children are extremely dependent and extremely helpless. Small children cannot care for themselves. Small children have to be cared for in every way. They have to be carried everywhere. They have to be protected. They need to be held, fed, nurtured. They don't have the ability to care for themselves. They have to depend on somebody else to do that. You know, I've so many times as I've seen as my children were growing up and now as I'm watching my grandson and my granddaughter, I see in them such vulnerability, such innocent weakness. They are really very, very defenseless. They're unable to care for themselves at all. And I find myself like a hawk. I mean, I'm constantly watching. I'm watching Josiah, especially constantly. I don't like him to get close to the curb. I don't want him walking out without me. I just, I carry him around constantly. I'm always near him. I just don't like the idea of him being taken by anybody or hurt by somebody. He doesn't know how to protect himself. I mean, you guys know that if you ever try and play catch with a kid, pick up the ball and throw it to them. Do they, you know, backhand and throw it back? No, they just kind of stand like this and they get hit in the head with the ball and stuff. I mean, it can be funny, but it's not nice, you know. But actually it isn't. I mean, the kids are just incapable of caring for themselves. They need to be cared for in every way. And so do we. We need to be carried by the Lord of you. We need to be nurtured by the Lord. We need to be fed by the Lord. We need to be protected by the Lord. The Psalmist in Psalm 63 verse one says, oh God, you are my God. Early will I seek you. My soul thirsts for you. My flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where there's no water. I depend on you in every way, shape and form. So one of the things that the Lord may be alluding to about children is that they're helpless and dependent. A second thing about them is they're extremely trusting. They believe what you have to say to them and you can tease them and they won't even know that you're teasing with them. Years ago, there was a little boy who lived across the street from Marie and me and he was six years old and this was probably about 12 years ago or so. And they had moved in and we had gotten to know them a little bit, the mom and the dad and all. And this little boy's name was Philip and he was across the street and I happened to like kids and he was six years old and so I walked outside and I was talking to him and I said, hi, how are you? And he said, fine, I said, what's your name? And he looks at me and he says, my name is Philip. And I said, Philip, that's my name. And he looks at me and he goes, you're Philip too? And I said, yes. How old are you, Philip? He says, I'm six years old. I said, I'm six years old too. And he looks at me like, you're kind of big, not too big but kind of big for a six year old. And so I was just, you know, I'm Philip, I'm six years old and his mom knowing that I'm a pastor and knowing I'm the pastor of this church, smiling at me as I'm lying to her kid, you know. Later on comes over and she has Philip in tow and she says, Pastor David, Philip thinks your name is Philip and that you're six years old. Can you tell him, and I looked at him and I said, yeah, I said, of course, I looked at him and I said, my name is Philip and I'm six years old, you know. And for the longest time we believe that because little kids will believe basically anything you say. They trust you, they trust you. And of course we take advantage of that, we can. Sometimes people can be extremely cruel and violate the trust of a child in ways that are criminal. But they do trust you and they listen to you and they believe everything that you say. The Psalmist in Psalm 31 verse one says, in you, oh Lord, I put my trust. And a second thing then about a child is they are trusting and receive what you have to say. That's why I need to trust in the Lord but also that's why I can use the influence that I have to bring a child to faith in Christ. A third thing that I know about children is they respond to love. They love being held, they love being kissed, they love being loved if you will and they hold fast to you, they cling to you, they just enjoy being with you. And again, I'm enjoying that so much with my grandchildren. I enjoyed that with my own babies, the way that they would hold on to me wherever I take them they were always clinging to me. And it reminds me of what the Lord has to say as we are to be with him. In Deuteronomy 13 verse four, you shall walk after the Lord your God, fear him, keep his commandments, obey his voice, you shall serve him and cling to him. And small children do that. Now a fourth thing about small children is they believe that their father can do anything. They believe their father is anything he says to them that he is. And I've shared this many times with you. I was that way as a little boy. I believed that my father could do anything. My father wanted to prove to me that he could. I mean, he told me he was Superman when I was a little boy and I believed it with all of my heart for many years, for years until I was 45, 50. I believed that my dad was Superman as I grew up because daddy told me he was. He had a uniform and a whole nine yards. I mean, my father was Superman. As far as I knew, I can still remember one time I went into the backyard. I was about eight years old and my dad was in the garage doing some work and I went into the backyard to ask my dad something and then I turned and I walked slowly out to the front yard and when I got to the front yard there, my dad was leaning against the tree. And I looked at him and I said, how'd you get here so fast? And he said, I jumped over the house, you know? And I said, wow, I really believed my dad jumped over the house. I thought he could do anything because Superman could leap over tall buildings with a single bound and most definitely my dad must have done that. Now, my mom years later told me, she said, you should have seen your dad. You should have seen how tired he was and how winded he was when he ran through the backyard and jumped over that fence and ran to the front just to beat you there, just so you would think he was Superman. But that's true and my dad, and I believed that my dad could do anything. I thought my father could do anything in the world, you know, and that's just the way it is. And we believe that our heavenly father can do anything because indeed he can. Jeremiah 32, 17 says, Lord God, behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you. And so a child believes that their father can do anything and we as believers in God obviously do too. He can do anything. There's nothing too hard for him. Something I find interesting about small children, a fifth thing is they're very quick to receive a gift. Very quick. You know, you grow to be an adult and you may be close to receive gifts because you don't trust the person who wants to give you the gift, but not so with small children. A gift from anyone to a small child is just fine. And so we receive gifts too. We receive the gift from the Lord of eternal life. Even as a small child is willing to receive what is given to them as a gift, even so when God says that I love you so much, that I gave my son for you, that you might have eternal life as a gift, even so we are to receive a small children. And finally, children imitate their parents because they learn to live even as their parents do. What I am as a father lays a foundation for my children. What I am is a living message, a living sermon. It's not just the things that I tell them. It's the way that I am with them. I can lecture my sons all day long to love the girlfriends and one day love their wives. I can lecture them and tell them what love is. I can define it. I can get into the Bible and show them passages that relate to it. I can express it in a thousand and different ones ways through scripture. But if I don't love their mother, the only thing they know about love is how I treated that woman. That's all they really know about love. I can lecture them all day long. I can say how you should be sacrificial. How you should be long suffering. How you should be concerned in a variety of things. I can tell them all about that. You know how you should read the Bible to them and pray and bring them to church. But if my kids see me disrespecting their mom and not treating her the way that she should be treated, they assume that that's what love is. They learn by my actions more than the way that I define it with my language. And so we lay the foundation in the lives of our children and they imitate us and even so as a believer, I am to look at Jesus Christ and to imitate him. One of the things that is very practical for me out of this passage is that it speaks concerning the fact that they brought infants to him that he might touch them. And as I cross reference and see different episodes of this kind of ministry in the life of Jesus, I see that he takes them into his hands. He holds them and he blesses them. And for me, when I first got saved as I've shared with you before, coming from the background that I did, the idea of me as a man holding children and treating them tenderly, it wasn't that I was opposed to that. Of course I never was. I always thought that was great. It just wasn't me. It just isn't the way I was as a man. I admired those who had the ability to do that but I didn't know very many men at all who actually did do that. When I grew up, it just was a different time entirely. The men didn't hold babies. Men didn't spend time with children like that. That was what women did. Men didn't do that. Men would go to work. Men would bring the food home if you will, put it on the table, make sure there was money to have clothing, make the payments for the house and take care of the car and mow the lawn and did all of those things. But in terms of ever spending time and talk with the kid, no. In terms of never putting your arm around the shoulder and just holding them in your arms and saying, you know, I love you? No, that didn't happen. That just wasn't the way I was raised. My dad was a great man, loved me to pieces and I knew that. But dad was not an expressive man. That's just the way it was. He wasn't a talkative man. That's just the way it was. My dad just didn't talk. We could sit in the room and watch TV together. During the commercial, he might say something like, how you doing? Then I'd say, I'm doing fine, but the minute that commercial was over, he'd go back to watching the TV. I never had a problem with that. I never did. I didn't think, oh, I'm neglected. My daddy doesn't let me. Never thought anything like that at all. That's just the way it was. I didn't have any friends who had any fathers, any of my friends' fathers. Not one of them ever did. Anything like that. I never saw that in my life where a man would actually bend down, pick up a kid, walk with him and hold him and kiss him and say, I never saw that in my life. Never did. Never thought it was good. Never thought it was bad. I just never saw it. I just never did. And I think I probably speak to a lot of people who may echo that. You probably, many of you went through the same thing. It just didn't happen. Now I get saved. I'd never held a kid in my life. I mean, except for my nephews, when I was 18 and then turned 20, I for a moment would hold them and they made me uncomfortable. I was the guy that you ladies know that when you had brought a baby to him, I was the guy when you were trying to hand the baby to that guy and you know how he kind of would just put his hands behind his back and take a step back and smile? That's me. I'd smile and say, yeah. Isn't he cute? He's bald, got no teeth. Smells. No. He's just a kid. I didn't have those sent, I honest to goodness didn't, it wasn't that was cruel, I teased, but I just, no, I just put my hands behind my back and I'd take a step back and I'd look at it and I'd nod and I'd say, I'll see you later and I'd walk away and let the girls hold the baby. So when my sister-in-law had my nephews, I didn't even hold them. I mean, I'd look at them and I'd rub their head kind of like a puppy, you know, it's nice, you know, and that's about it, never thought about it at all. I get saved and I'm reading this passage and I'm reading Mark's account in Matthew's because I went right through the New Testament and I started noticing things that Jesus Christ actually held kids and it blew me away, it really did. For me, it was like two things in scripture that I can tell you, when I first got saved, stood up. Two things, one is that Jesus could weep and didn't feel ashamed. That spoke to me like you wouldn't believe it, that he actually could shed a tear and wasn't embarrassed, that he cried over Lazarus and the scripture says, Jesus wept when he died and I looked at that or he wept over Jerusalem and cried over it with great sobs and I read that and I thought Jesus is a man, Jesus is a man's man. And he could weep and he wasn't ashamed. Along with that, I'm reading the Gospel of John and there's this guy laying next to Jesus, putting his head on Jesus' chest and I'm thinking, whoa. And anything you can get me to do, you can put no guy next to me like that. I can't even hold hands with the man in prayer without squeezing real hard and let him know there's nothing funny about me. I can't do that. I am serious, I'm not kidding. I mean, when guys would come and I first got saved and they'd hug me, what's that all about, man? You know, come on. I just go away and then I'm serious and I was reading the Bible and it said that Jesus wept. It said that his beloved apostle was so comfortable with him that he leaned back against him and would speak to him that close and then that Jesus held babies in his hands, changed my whole life. That's the truth, changed my whole life because I had been taught that I'm being conformed into the image of Jesus Christ because that's what the work of the Holy Spirit is and that's what fellowship is supposed to do and I love family, always did. And then when I discovered I'm part of God's family, Jesus Christ is a man's man. He shows affection and he shows emotion and he's willing to hold children in his hands and bless them. You know, kids are, small kids, my baby Sophie does this all the time. They feed and then they burp up all over you, all over you. She did it to me today, she does it all the time. She just lets go and there it is. Oh, and you just clean it up and hand her back to moms, take care of this, you know, but Jesus would be holding these babies and they would reach up and grab his beard, they would probably spit up on him and I started seeing this guys and I started seeing how real he is and how real being a Christian is, that it's okay. So that's why, you know, sometimes if something hits me when I'm teaching and I tear up, I'm never really ashamed of crying. You know why I get kind of uptight? It's not cause I'm crying, I have no problem with that at all. I know that some are getting uncomfortable because I am crying. That's why I apologize. I'm not apologizing for my own emotions. I feel very comfortable with them. I'm more apologizing to you who have a problem with someone having emotions. That's what I'm doing, I'm apologizing to you. I'm sorry, you're uncomfortable with me, but I'm not because I've learned through the Lord that's just being a man. You know, you don't have to always be Mr. Hard and Mr. Direct and Mr. Mean and in charge. There are times where you just, frankly, you just say, you know what? I feel this, it's real, I'm sorry if it embarrasses you but this is true for me and I'm just gonna, this is who I am. And I learned that through Jesus Christ, I really did, that Jesus would pick up a baby and hold him, that Jesus would bless those babies, that Jesus could weep over the loss of a friend even though he knew he was gonna raise him but he's really weeping over what death does to people and why he came to release him from that bondage and all and this all comes through just reading the Bible and looking at Jesus. And see, you can make a decision who you want to be like. You can make a choice as to who you're gonna model yourself after and there's some wonderful people that you can choose who have great qualities, the best one to ever model yourself after is the Lord Jesus Christ. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. And so that's how I began to change as a very young man to the point that I am at my age now and so Jesus was just making it very, very clear. Little children were to come to him and the disciples were not to forbid them but actually to bring them and when he says in verse 17, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter in, you need to be born again. Even as we're looking at that in John chapter three just recently on our Sunday services, you need to be born again. You enter into the kingdom of God as a little child is another way of saying you need to be regenerated, you need to experience the new birth, you need to have a relationship with God by the Holy Spirit and unless you become like a little child unless you're born again, you will by no means enter in to the kingdom of God. Now moving on into verse 18, now a certain ruler asked him saying good teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? So Jesus said to him, why do you call me good? No one is good but one that is God. You know the commandments, do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and your mother and he said all these things I've kept from my youth. So when Jesus heard these things he said to him, you still lack one thing, sell all that you have and distribute to the poor and you'll have treasure in heaven and come follow me. But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful for he was very rich. And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful he said, how hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God for it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God and those who heard it said, who then can be saved? But he said, the things which are impossible with men are possible with God. And so what we see here is a new section and this portion is intended to illustrate man's unwillingness to trust the Lord. And that can actually be true even when initially they appear to show great interest in spiritual things because seeming interest is not a synonym for saving faith. Just because he seems to be interested doesn't mean that he's gonna put his trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now as we look at Luke's account we need to remember that Matthew and Mark, two other gospels actually recorded the same event and by combining some of the things that Matthew and Mark say with what Luke says we can gain insight into this young man. One in verse 18 here we know that he's a religious man because he's a ruler in a local synagogue. He's a ruler. Secondly, in Matthew 19 verse 20 we are told that he's a young man. Third, we know that he's a respectful man because according to Mark chapter 10 verse 17 Mark records a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. A fourth thing we can see is that he's spiritually unsatisfied which seems to propel him to Jesus Christ because in Matthew 19 verse 20 he asks the question what yet do I still lack? So he's obviously unfulfilled. He's spiritually unsatisfied and then according to verse 23 he is very rich. And so this is a religious, respectful, searching, wealthy young man who has come to the Lord Jesus Christ and at first blush he would seem to be a welcome addition to the kingdom of God but instead of making it easy for him notice with me that Jesus makes demands that seemed to drive him away and that's what we'll be looking at. Now notice in verse 18 how it says a certain ruler asked him saying good teacher what shall I do to inherit eternal life. He's obviously aware of the fact that his life is not fulfilled. He's aware of his own emptiness and he thinks that perhaps Jesus has the answer and notice what he says as he approaches Jesus Christ. Notice how he says good teacher what shall I do? So when he speaks to Jesus and he says good teacher he's acknowledging Jesus to be a great and respected rabbi. He's acknowledging him in that capacity but that capacity alone. What he is saying is I know that you are an expert in the Old Testament, I know that you are a teacher of the truth and therefore I'm approaching you as a rabbi and I want to speak to you but notice as he approaches him and says good teacher he also says what shall I do? You are a rabbi, you're a religious leader and you are greatly respected. I am a ruler, a young man wealthy but a ruler, a religious ruler in a synagogue and that's what the word ruler is speaking about. I have religious obligations and duties that I fulfill. I'm obviously a cut above the average person because as a young man I have obtained a position of spiritual leadership and so I'm coming to you and I'm speaking to you because I am spiritually empty. I need something to fill my life and I'm approaching you because I think that you have the answer that perhaps you can direct me in the right path and this would be one of those moments that you think it's a perfect opportunity to simply just welcome the guy in. I mean he has all these things that a lot of churches would like to have. He's an intellectual, he's a religious young man, he's a young man, therefore he has a lot of ideas and energy, he's a wealthy young man, he can provide income and everything yet Jesus doesn't jump on it. Instead he seems to make it more difficult for this man to come to peace with God. Notice how he speaks in verse 19 and Jesus says why do you call me good? No one's good but one that is God. So Jesus searches out the state of his heart in order to reveal the motives of the question. What he's doing is he's prying from the man what the man thinks about Jesus himself. Why do you call me good? In other words are you applying useless flattery or do you really believe there's something about me that is good? Do you see me for who I am? You see when he says in verse 19 why do you call me good? There's no one good, no one is good but one that is God. That's really the heart of what Jesus is saying. Do you see me for who I am? God in the flesh, is that what you're saying? Have you seen me or are you just being polite to me? Are you using useless flattery? You see this young man had asked Jesus what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And what he's doing is Jesus is responding and approaching him on the basis of his own personal standards and that's why Jesus speaks to him concerning the commandments. Notice in verse 20 how he begins to even enumerate them. He says in verse 20 you know the commandments. Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and your mother. So he approaches him on the basis of his own standards. You know the commandments, keep them. Now this is a brilliant approach because as he has tried to keep them he has no peace. His religion has resulted in spiritual dryness. It has resulted in dissatisfaction with life. There are a lot of people who come to churches like this young synagogue ruler would go and do his duties in his own synagogue. There are a lot of people who will come to churches just like this and this church who could be very similar to this young man. What do I lack? I'm doing all of the things. I'm going to church. I'm serving. I read my Bible. I pray. I'm doing all of those things and yet there's still something missing in my life. I can't tell you over the years how many people I've spoken to who have the same kind of questioning. And sometimes they're members of churches. Sometimes they're people who have assumed themselves to be Christians because they go to church. Sometimes they assume themselves to be Christians because they go to this church. And I can't tell you how many times people have come to the realization over the years that they've been just doing the externals but they didn't have that heart knowledge of God. They did the outside things and they were still dry. And this man when he's walking up to the Lord says, "'Listen, there's something lacking in my life.'" Well, so Jesus begins very slowly. Why are you calling me good? Do you see something in me that's beyond simply human good? Or are you applying useless flattery because that's what you do as a religious person? Do you really believe who I am or are you simply asking me questions? Well, then let's just approach it on your basis. You know the commandments. You teach them, you'll read them in synagogue. You're aware of them. You memorize them from your youth up. You're aware of these things. Why don't you simply keep the law? You see, one of the purposes of the law of Moses that you find in the Old Testament is to awaken us to our inadequacy. One of the purposes of God's law in the Old Testament was to awaken us to our need and to bring us to Jesus Christ because the law points to Jesus. In Romans chapter 10, verse four, Paul said Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. When Paul says Christ is the end of the law, it's another way of saying the law finds its summation in him. It directs us to Jesus. So you memorize the 10 commandments and before you know it, you realize that you've broken almost every one of them. And that's the physical reality. There are, you know, as a kid when I was growing up, I had to memorize the 10 commandments and at a certain point in my life, I realized that I'd broken most every one of them. I hadn't killed anybody yet, not physically, but I'd broken many of those commandments already and I was most miserable and even gotten to the point where I was hoping that, well, maybe one out of 10 will get me into heaven if I just hold fast to not doing this one. And so the law awakened me to my inadequacy and I discovered that the law is spiritual and I'm carnal. It isn't just the actual physical action of murder. It's being angry at your brother without just cause. It's calling him useless and foolish in your own heart. It's making judgments against him. You're not loving him as you should and so you're breaking God's law. You know, adultery isn't simply the action in the sight of Christ. It's the intent of the heart. If I could do it and get away with it, what I'd do it. What would I do if I knew nobody would find out about it? And that's what Jesus intends to communicate to us. So many times they think, well, I haven't broken the letter of the law. No, but you have violated the spirit. You have violated the spirit and sometimes what we'll do is we'll say, well, it's only a white lie as if you can actually grade lies on a curve like that. Well, you know, there's the very bad lies and there's the white lies and the white lies are always the good lies. I said I wouldn't go out with them because I had to wash my hair. When in reality, if I'd have told them the really, really I wouldn't go out with them because I couldn't go out with them. Who's the last guy on earth? It would have hurt his feelings. So I gave a white lie and we justify dishonesty. We just do. That's the way we can do it. And so the fact is it's the heart and that's what the law reveals to us. And once we're awakened to our own weakness, then we can start saying to God, help me. I'm a miserable individual. God, help me, I need your help. In Galatians chapter three verses 22 through 24, Paul said the scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin so that what was promised being given through faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. So in attempting to keep the law, he would continue to realize how unsatisfied he really is. That's why Jesus said, you know the commandments. Now interestingly enough here in verse 20, notice this with me, you need to see this in order to get the gist of what Jesus is saying here. These commandments that Jesus speaks about here in verse 20, all of them relate to what is called social relationships or man's duty to man. He didn't speak concerning man's duty to God. Notice that with me. He spoke concerning man's duties to other men because when you look at the tablets of the law, the law, the 10 commandments of Moses are broken into two sections. You have man's duties to God and man's duties to men. Jesus didn't speak concerning the first four commandments. Jesus is speaking about the second tablet or man's relationship with other men. That's what you see here. See nothing about graven images. You see nothing about keeping the Lord's day holy or anything like that. This is all social commands related to man's duty to man. So you'll see why that's important in just a moment. In verse 21, he says all these things I have kept from my youth. Now Matthew, when Matthew is quoting this in chapter 19 verse 20, Matthew gives us a full account because he goes on to say, what do I yet lack? Well, what you lack, if you really think that you've kept all of these commands from the time you were a child, what you really lack is an assurance of salvation. As I said a moment ago, this is like a person raised in a Christian home with no conversion experience. Though he is sincere, he's wrong. He couldn't have kept all of the commandments because he wasn't a perfect man. Yet the law had performed its work by revealing his dissatisfaction with life. Now I have encountered people not that long ago within the last year and a half or so, I have encountered more than one young man who's gone to a particular church in the neighborhood in one of the neighboring cities who was coming on campus and trying to proselytize, trying to convert people in our church. And we finally had to put a stop to it because they would come on and they would walk up to people and begin to engage them in conversation and they would ultimately tell them that they're in a wrong church, that this church is the wrong church and the church they should be going to is the one that they themselves are going to. And part of the reason why you need to go to their church is because I don't teach you that you can be perfect because they go to a church that teaches sinless perfectionism. And what they've been doing is they've been coming, they came to this church and they went to a friend of mine, Jim Orate, out in Rancho Cucamonga and they go into the church and they'll walk up and they'll talk to people. I don't know if any of you encountered them but they were doing that for some time here and we finally had to put a stop to it and all of that and one of my friends in Rancho Cucamonga, one of the assistants, approached one of the guys and knowing who he was, the guy was out there preaching sinless perfectionism and this friend of mine approached him and said to him, may I shake your hand? And the guy says, why do you want to do that? And my friend says, because I've never had the opportunity to shake the hands of a perfect man before and I'd like to shake your hand. And these guys actually were teaching that you could be sinlessly perfect. There's no such thing. You cannot be perfect, you will not be perfect until you see Jesus face to face. At that point you're brought into fullness. At this point we're in a process of sanctification. We're moving from one place to the next. We're being sanctified, set apart more and more. We're growing into things of the Lord but you're not gonna be perfect. So when this young man here says, all of these things I've kept since I was a child, that may be sincere but he's sincerely wrong. And so as he's saying that, Jesus begins to speak and he says in verse 22, he says, you lack one thing. Now when he says that I can imagine this young man's ears perking up. There's only one thing, what is that? Then Jesus says, sell all that you have. Distribute to the poor, you'll have treasure in heaven. Come follow me. Wow. That man doesn't want to do that, does he? You're lacking one thing. You say you've kept all the commandments but the command that sums up human relationships is found in Leviticus 19, 18 which simply says, love your neighbor as yourself. And if you truly love your neighbor as yourself, then sell all that you have and give what you have to them because true faith is always concerned with the welfare of somebody else. But his reaction as he hears that, notice verse 23, is he went away sorrowful, why? He was very rich. His love of wealth and all that he could have through it was just too powerful for him to give up. You see money can be used for good and it can be used for that which is ridiculous. Wealth in and of itself is not spoken of in scripture as being by itself evil but those who have wealth sometimes become more and more greedy as they desire more and more. And some people can use their wealth for the most unbelievable things. I was, Marie and I were watching TV a week or so ago, a couple of weeks ago. Some of you may have already seen this. I'd never seen it was on one of those shows about rich people in their weddings and for some reason I was in purgatory and Marie and I were watching this together and they did this thing, this on erases and the amount of money that their fathers are gonna leave them, these are young gals and I still can't believe it but this is true and I actually got this off the internet today just to use as an example. On June 26th, 2004, a man who owns a chain of hotels by the name of Vikram Chotwal gave a wedding for his 23 year old daughter, Vinisha and she married a young man 25 years old and Mital paid $60 million for the six day blowout, flying in 1500 guests to a party at some of France's most lavish locales and hiring pop star Kylie. I don't know how to say her name, Minogue. Is that right, anybody know that Minogue? How do you know that? Minogue, as the wedding singer. He built a makeshift castle at a park in St. Cloud outside Paris, rented Louis XIV's palace at Versailles and gardens. The wedding took place at a lush 17th century chateau. Guests attended an opera and were taken to a particular gallery before a formal banquet. The free-spending steel baron hired a batch of Bollywood stars to perform song and dance tribute at the extravaganza. But that's not the first time he's made headlines reaching into his pocket. He recently bought the world's most expensive house. He paid $128 million for a 12 bedroom mansion. And as I read this, I'm thinking a $60 million wedding. Think about that for a minute and some of you girls are going, oh, that'd be great. No, a $60 million wedding. The most expensive birthday party on record was the 50th birthday for the Sultan of Brunei. In 1996, he spent $27.2 million on his wedding, on his 50th wedding. And $16 million of that went to Michael Jackson so he could sing at his party, at his birthday party. And I read these things and I say to myself, this is so beyond me, you know? And I guess all of us, I think I can speak in here. I don't think there's anybody here who spent $60 million on the wedding. Perhaps you did. Talk to me later, Ron. But think about that guys for just a moment. See, we are in the 21st century, we are so calloused to numbers that we can't fathom what that really means anymore. I was watching an auto auction the other day where somebody bought a 1934 Duesenberg for $2.4 million so that they can put it in a room and never drive it. I mean, it's not even something you'd ever drive. Can you imagine that? You ever get upset when someone swings their door open and hits your car? What do you think? You'd feel like if you had a $2.4 million Duesenberg in the parking lot of Safeways. Would you even go to Safeways? Maybe you own Safeways, I don't know. But think about that for a minute. Think about that. The way that we can just spend money, the way that we can just take money and money, not only do we take money and use it, but eventually what happens is money can take us. And that's what happened with this man because all Jesus was doing was challenging him. You see, you say that you've kept all the commandments. I'm not even talking to you about you're a heart towards God. Let's talk to you about your heart towards other people. Honor your father and your mother and do all the rest of those commandments. Can you do those? Oh, I've done that since I was a child and I'm still empty. Oh, then one thing you need to do, the guys listen, okay, then what is that? Take everything that you have and sell it. Give to the poor. Well, that's gonna demonstrate Leviticus 1918. You love your neighbor as yourself. You're concerned for them. Listen, you'll have treasures in heaven. You really want heaven? Now this is from Jesus to this young man. You really want heaven? Then get rid of the thing that's holding you down. Get rid of it because young man, you're in love with your money. That's your problem. And you have to release that which has a hold of you. And that's how you're gonna do it. You have to die to that, come to me. But what happens? The young man walks away. The young man walks away. Why? Verse 23, he's very rich. The thought of yielding up, it was just too much to him. And so as this young man's walking away, verse 24, when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, he said how hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God. It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. And those who heard it said, well, who then can be saved? But he said the things which are impossible with men are possible with God. So as this young man is walking away, Jesus turns and speaks to his men and he says it's difficult for those who have riches to enter into the kingdom of heaven. Now, there's something else that goes beyond that because Mark gives us more insight in Mark chapter 10, verse 24. Because as Jesus is speaking, Mark 1024 says the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God. Riches by themselves did not keep this man from entering the kingdom of God. We need to understand that. By themselves they did not. It's not a sin to have wealth. I mean, look at the Old Testament. You see men like Abraham. You see men like King David and King Solomon. In the New Testament, you see Zacchaeus and Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea. These men had wealth, but their wealth was really in the hands of God and they knew that. When you trust in your wealth, when you have all the benefits of your wealth, it can take the place of your trust in God. And that's what Jesus is simply saying here. You can depend on your riches and forget about your God. In Proverbs 23.5, cast but a glance at riches, they're gone. They will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. Or 1 Timothy 6.17, command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant, nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain. But put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Trust in the Lord with all of your heart. Now that's a message that is lost on this generation. Absolutely, there's no doubt about that. That is a message that people cannot hear today. Because people have a tendency of thinking like, I was just illustrating that people who are wealthy are people like this man who has a $60 million wedding. But as I've tried over and over again to remind us of as a congregation, we today seated in this room, no matter what our financial situation, are much better off than the overwhelming majority of the world is tonight. Overwhelming majority, we are much better off than the overwhelming majority of the world tonight. You may not think you're wealthy, but there are many, many people who do. And they know that you are. And they know that you are. And God has been kind to me to allow me to go to many places where people will approach you and say, can you help me? Because as an American, I was able to travel to their land. And they, in their lifetime, may not even get out of their village, let alone climb on a plane and fly across an ocean and land some place and stay in a hotel. We are, compared to the entire world, absolutely ridiculously rich. And a lot of people may not have that $60 million for that wedding, or they may not have $128 million for a house, but they've got plenty of pocket cash and they trust in that. And they do trust in that more than they trust in the Lord. So Jesus is basically simply saying, listen, it's impossible to enter into the kingdom of heaven if you're loaded down with the cares concerned of this world. It's impossible. You see, when he says in verse 25, it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. It is impossible for a camel to do that. And so unless God does the work in us to change us and cause us to be able to enter into the kingdom of God, we never will enter in. Salvation is a work of God and not a work of man. You know, riches have fabulous advantages, but you cannot purchase eternal life. What you do is you receive it. And so this young man was challenged and walked away unchanged. So for me, what is it that the Lord may be speaking to me? Well, the bottom line is, is he would be speaking to me, don't let anything get in the way of my relationship with him, regardless of what it may be. Regardless of what it may be. Don't let it get in the way. God and his kingdom should be in my life coming first. Now, how does that happen? It happens through daily decisions. It happens when I wake up in the morning and I begin to pray and I begin to say things like, Lord, this is the day that you have made and I'm gonna serve you in it. Give me the strength. There's gonna be a lot of things coming my way today that will be distractions. In Jesus' name, I actually keep my eyes on you today. God helped me to follow you today. And you do that every day. You discipline yourself to the basic thing and pursuing him on a daily basis. And so whatever is gonna come your way, you're gonna be able to turn that over to the Lord. This young man walks up to Jesus and he says, I'd like to know how to enter into your kingdom. And Jesus says, there's something you've gotta hang up with and that's your finances. Release that and you'll be able to enter in. He walks away. He says, there's no way I'm gonna do that. I've got too many advantages. I've got too much. And to release that and go into the kingdom, I don't think the kingdom's worth that. And so Jesus turns to his disciples. It's hard for those who are wealthy to enter into the kingdom of heaven. It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Well, in the mentality of the disciples thinking riches have their advantages. If somebody's very rich, they're obviously blessed by God. At least it seems that way. How can you say that? Listen, if you trust in riches, you can't enter into the kingdom of God because you have to choose who you're gonna trust in. Either you trust in the Lord or you trust in yourself. But you have to make the choice. And that's basically what Jesus is doing here. Giving this young man a choice and the man made it. His choice was to walk away. He gives to us a choice. We have to make it. Either we follow him or we walk away.