What to let go of and take hold of
As human beings, we are a complex mix of motivations and choices. Some choices we might call good, while others we might want to say are not so good, even at times ‘wrong.’
The stories in the gospels often set forth people as characters in society who are asked to make choices, to follow the Way of Christ and the values of God’s kingdom, or to choose to live a life that involves less cost, is more familiar and often called ‘worldly’.
As the readers of these gospel stories, we consider what might be the choices in our lives?
Today’s story echoes the story of the rich young ruler in Matthew’s gospel. It has a man coming up to Jesus as he is travelling on a journey presumably going elsewhere. So, this man’s request comes as an interruption to Jesus travel plans. The man says, “Good teacher what must I do to inherit eternal life?” We are not sure of the intent of this question; is it philosophical (certainly the ancient Greek philosophers spoke a lot about what it meant to live the good life), practical, or spiritual, or all the above?
Jesus in the story seems a bit taken back, addressed as ‘good’ and refers to how only God is good. Is this a bit of banter of the writers? For the readers of this gospel have come to realise that indeed Jesus is the son of God and bears God’s nature. Yet the story goes on with Jesus speaking about some of the ten commandments, the decalogue, as rules to live by. The man stands corrected and now calls Jesus Teacher or ‘Rabbi’ without the designation ‘good’ and says,
“I have kept these [commandments] since my youth”.
Now it comes to what I think is the hub of this reading, “Jesus looked at him and loved him”. What might this gaze be like? We get the hint that this gaze sees more of this man’s potential, of who he might become with such a devoted heart.
Other Scripture passages such as I Sam 16:7, Jeremiah 17:10, Romans 8:7 speak of how God does not merely judge by outward appearances but looks on the heart, and what guides the person’s choices and will. The Hebrew’s reading [from Chapter 4] today also speaks metaphorically of how God’s living Word can pierce beyond the surface to the core of who we are.
And then the telling question and challenge comes back to the man in the story, “You lack one thing, go and sell what you own and give the money to the poor and you will have treasures in heaven, then come follow me”. The challenge is too much for this man, for he has many riches, and we might infer that he is attached to them. This gospel story sets forth the cost of following Jesus which was real for the early disciples who did leave their lives to follow Jesus. Yet also highlights for the followers of Jesus in all ages that our attachments might conflict with what are the values of God’s kingdom. The next section of this reading underscores the cost of discipleship and how hard it is to let go of our riches.
Yet we might also know the truism that in the end we can’t take the things we own with us. Likewise, to follow Christ is to have a generous heart and life. For life is not just about the things we own and accumulating wealth for ourselves but also to serve and benefit others and be wise stewards of our resources. To share our gifts and our money is part of our worship. Here at St John’s, we have been generous over many years, giving and contributing to many causes and people through the church op-shop in the past and supporting refugees and asylum seekers as a tangible expression of our faith.
As we watch the tragedies and upheavals and losses people face in the world, we can care in small, and large ways, to demonstrate ‘loving our neighbour’. May this continue!
The journey of our lives involves times of letting go of things, people, places… and taking hold in those times of the bedrock of our faith, to trust, to surrender, and follow the example of Christ who emptied himself and became a servant to others. This seems core to today’s gospel reading. For though it seems hard for the man in the story to give away some of his possessions and follow Christ, there is another way, to trust in God and become humbler.
To do this might mean letting go of our attachment to things. There is a story that there is a gate called the eye of the needle where a camel could only get through if it bent on its knees [attributed to Anselm of Canterbury (1033–1109): There was a certain gate in Jerusalem, … the eye of a needle, it was said, through which a camel, unless on bended knees having laid aside a burden, could not pass.]
Today’s reading which includes this ‘camel and eye of the needle’ analogy calls for humility. To let go of what might limit us going forward, our attachments to money, tradition, family loyalty, and to listen to what we need to take hold of. We are on this journey as we seek to explore the future of St John’s seeking to listen to what we might let go of and what we might take hold of as disciples of Christ. To take hold of courage, faith, generosity, care for our neighbour in the deeper knowledge that God is faithful to us. Then we might discover that we are friends of Christ and know that God sees us at a heart level and can meet us there.
God still calls us to give of ourselves and to give to others in sacrificial ways. In faith we can let the needs of others touch us and influence us in caring ways.
Let us as those who seek to follow Christ let go of what we need to and take hold of what we need to do with grateful hearts. And so let God’s word live in us and bear much fruit to the glory of God. Amen.