Matthew: The Danger of Riches (19:13-30)

This sermon was preached to Grace Church Guildford on 18 February 2024. The audio recording of the sermon can be found below along with the transcript.

Do you believe in life after death? That was one of the questions asked in a survey last year studying the religious beliefs of our nation. And do you know what it found? It found that half of our population say yes, believe in some kind of life after death. I certainly found that surprising. As the UK becomes increasingly secular, we sometimes assume that such beliefs would only be held by a small minority. And yet, statistics show that half of the people living on your street, 1 in 2 of those sitting beside you in class or at work, believe in life after death. In fact, what was amazing about the survey, is that this belief is strongest among the youngest parts of our population. Those below 60 are far more likely to believe in life after death than those above 60. Indeed, the generation that has the most believers is the one that I belong to, those who are in their 30s.

Now, I admit the survey had other findings that are less encouraging. For example, it found that in the last 40 years, belief in God has fallen by 25%. And yet, the percentage of people believing in life after death hasn’t changed at all in the last 40 years ago. Isn’t that remarkable? While the British public has erased God from their minds, it seems that they just can’t stop believing in heaven.

I wonder what you think here this evening. Do you believe in life after death? Maybe you aren’t sure what you believe about God or the Bible, but you like to think that there is something bigger, something better waiting for us after we die. If so, then there is an obvious question you need to ask, a question that we’ve seen that half of our colleagues and classmates, friends and neighbours, will be considering at least at some level. For if there is life after death, how can we get it? If there is a heaven, how do we go there?

That is the great question that Matthew asks and answers in our passage this evening. Back in Matthew 16, Jesus was declared to be the Christ, the King, and since then, Matthew has told us all about his kingdom, this community of people that follow Jesus as king, this heavenly country that he will reign and rule over forever. And tonight, at the end of chapter 19, he tells us how to get there, how we can enter the kingdom of heaven, have life after death.

As we read through the passage earlier, did you notice this is the great theme that Matthew talks about again and again? We see it at the centre of that story about the children in 19:14, for Jesus states that the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. And it is clearly put to us in the man’s question in 19:16, when he asks what he must do to get eternal life? That question is basically this man asking Jesus for directions to heaven. And Jesus gives these directions to him, to us, in the rest of the story, talking about how to enter life in 19:17, enter the kingdom of heaven in 19:23, enter the kingdom of God in 19:24, inherit eternal life in 19:29. Friends, if the Bible was a satnav, and you asked it for directions to heaven, it would point you to this passage. How can we get to heaven? Have eternal life? There are two answers in our text: (1) Come to Jesus (19:13-15); (2) Leave everything behind (19:16-30).

1.     COME TO JESUS (19:13-15)

Few scenes in the life of Jesus are as picturesque as this one. Growing up, this was the story that was illustrated on the front cover of our big children’s Bible at home. It had a peaceful looking Jesus, standing in a flowery field, surrounded by lots of little children. It’s a famous scene, but it would have been relatively common at the time. For it was traditional for rabbis to lay hands and pray for little children, as Jesus is asked to do here. As a result, it is unclear why the disciples tried to prevent it. Perhaps they felt Jesus was too busy, his journey to Jerusalem too urgent for him to stop and spend time like this. Or maybe they saw Jesus as too important. Yes, other rabbis could do this, but Jesus was no mere rabbi. He was the Messiah, and so far too important to spend his time with little children. It’s noticeable that they don’t stop the rich man approaching Jesus in 19:16, however they try to turn these little ones away. And yet, in 19:14, we see that they wrong to do so, for Jesus says: [READ].

Many have seen this verse as central to the Bible’s teaching about children. For example, Christian traditions that baptise babies, sometimes refer to it in support of that practice. And yet, we need to be careful that we don’t turn these verses into something more than they actually are. Yes, it is true that at a secondary level, they do teach us how to treat children, as we thought about at our prayer meeting on Thursday night. However, Matthew’s primary point here is not to highlight Jesus’ attitude towards these children, but the attitude of these children towards Jesus.

If you remember back at the beginning of Matthew 18, Jesus says something very similar. When asked who the greatest in his kingdom is, Jesus placed a child among the disciples and declared in 18:2: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.’ And I think Jesus makes the same point here in 19:14, holding a little child in his arms, he says that ‘the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’ That is, to people who act like these little ones. Far from little children being overlooked in his kingdom, they are the perfect example of those who are part of it. For Jesus says that if we want enteral life, want to enter heaven, we must become like these little ones, come to him, in all our weakness, to receive his blessing.

We can see just how weak and needy these little ones are, by the fact they aren’t able to come to Jesus themselves. They must be brought to Jesus in 19:13, which strikes a clear contrast to the man we meet later in the chapter. In 19:16, he comes up to Jesus all by himself, nobody needs to carry him. And what’s more, he plans to make his own way to heaven, enter eternal life through his own efforts. And yet here, in these little children, we see no such self-reliance, no show of strength or claim to perfection. All we have here is simple trust, childlike faith, an infant toddling up to Jesus, a little baby gazing into his eyes. They bring nothing to the table, but simply rely on Jesus to care for them, bless them and bring them into his kingdom.

If you are here this evening, and you don’t know much about Christianity, then you need to realise that the central message of the Bible is very simple to understand. Indeed, it is so simple to understand, that even a toddler can wrap their little mind around it. Very simply, the Bible teaches us that we have all sinned against God, done bad things, and we deserve his punishment as a result. And yet, in love, Jesus came and died on the cross, taking the punishment for all who put their trust in him. And so all who come to him, say sorry for their sins, and place their lives in his hands, are forgiven for what they have done in this life and will go to be with him forever in heaven.

To put it as simply as I can: if you want to enter the kingdom, you need to come to the king! If you want to get into heaven, you need to go to Jesus. That is the message at the heart of Christianity, and it is simple enough for even the youngest child to grasp. Which is why here at Grace Church, we teach these simple truths to our little ones. For we know they can not only understand them, but even believe them, and come to Jesus at an early age. The Gospel is even simple enough to explain in a few moments, with that colleague over coffee, or family member on the phone, who may be thinking about life after death. It’s even simple enough for you to understand, and believe in tonight, even if you have heard it for the first time. If a little child can come to Jesus, then surely you can too.

2.     LEAVE EVERYTHING BEHIND (19:16-30)

We’ve heard that the Christian faith is a childlike faith. And yet, we must not take that to mean that it is childish. There is an important difference between childlike, and childish. If you are here tonight, and grew up in church, learnt about Jesus as a young child at HBC/SS, then you know this message is simple enough for a child to believe. You’ve heard it many times. And yet, you need to realise that it is also complex enough for an adult to spend their whole life learning it in deeper and deeper ways. Friends, the claims of Christianity are so weighty, that after 2000 years, philosophers are still discussing their implications. The writings of the Bible are so profound and insightful, that this book continues to stretch the brightest minds and can answer life’s biggest questions. Oh yes, Christianity is childlike, but it is not childish. And that is true for Jesus as well. Teenagers, that same Jesus who you were introduced to as a child, is as relevant for your life now, as you battle anxiety about school or friends, as he was relevant when you were scared of monsters in the dark. As we get older, Jesus only gets greater. He isn’t like the cuddly toys that we leave behind in childhood. Believing in Jesus isn’t like believing in the tooth fairy, eventually you just get too old for it. No, you never outgrow Jesus.

Yes, as little children we can come to him in simple childlike faith. However, in your teens, as the world tries to offer you all its pleasures, you can still come to Jesus, this time to find eternal joy. As Satan assaults you with intellectual challenges during university, you can still come to Jesus and find intellectual satisfaction and answers that confound even the wisest in this world. As we pass through our adult years, dealing with all the worries and concerns of work and finances, health and family, we can still come to Jesus and find what we need: perfect peace and real comfort. Jesus even remains relevant, right to the end of life, for when we are all alone and our loved ones have died, or forgotten about us, Jesus will be right there to the end, the best companion and closest friend we could ever have. Brothers and sisters, Jesus is for all age groups, from the littlest among us to the oldest, from the simplest to the smartest. Christianity is like the best kind of story: simple enough for a little child to follow, and yet profound enough for an adult to enjoy. As the Gregory the Great put it 1500 years ago: Scripture is like a river, broad and deep, shallow enough here for the lamb to go wading, but deep enough there for the elephant to swim.

And this is what we see in our passage this evening. Yes, in 19:13-15, Jesus calls little children to come to him. However, in 19:16-30, we read about him doing the same to a young man. Just as Jesus told children to come in the middle of the first story, Jesus says the same at the centre of this second story. At the end of 19:21, he tells this young man: “come, follow me.” It is the same central truth as we saw in the last story. How do you come into the kingdom? You must come to the king. If you want to become a Christian, you must believe in Christ. And yet, we also see something else. Forwhen you come to Jesus, you must also leave everything behind.

This man is commonly called the rich young ruler. However, the first thing Matthew tells us about him is not that he is young (though he would have been in his 20s), nor that he is rich (i.e. 19:22), but rather that he is religious. He’s concerned about life after death, for he asks Jesus about it in 19:16. And he seems to lead a morally exemplary life, for he can credibly claim to have kept the whole law in 19:20. It seems he is a bit like Paul in Philippians 3, who says that before he became a Christian, he was ‘faultless’ based on the law, that is the moral standards of the time. And yet, although this man is morally upright, very young and extremely wealthy, he still feels that something is missing, that he hasn’t done enough, for he goes on in 19:20 to ask Jesus: ‘What do I still lack?’ He knows that something is missing, but he can’t quite put his finger on it. And so, Jesus, in his mercy, opens his eyes, allows him to see his secret sin, the idol he has in his heart, which is holding him back from heaven. For in 19:21, he says: [READ]

Isn’t it amazing that Jesus can put his finger right where this man is failing to keep the law? Failing to love God and neighbour? To everyone else, he seems like an upright and successful young man. If anyone was on the path to heaven, surely it was this guy. And yet, as Jesus explained in 19:17, only one is good. The only perfect person in heaven is Jesus himself. While this man may seem to be on the right path, Jesus knows his heart. Indeed, he knows all our hearts. And so, just as he could say to the Samaritan woman in John 4, go get your husband, for that was where her sin lay, he can say to this young man, go sell all you have, for that is where his sin is hiding. In the end, we see this man did not possess wealth; but rather his wealth possessed him. And he would not even exchange it for eternal life.

How should we apply this story to ourselves? Does this mean we are to go and empty our bank accounts tonight and give all to the poor? How should we take the specific instructions Jesus gives this particular individual and put them into practice? Well, I think the rest of our passage is really Matthew showing us how to do exactly that. Did you notice that the rest of our passage revolves around two ‘truly I tell you’ sayings. In both 19:23 and 19:28, Jesus says ‘Truly I tell you’, to draw our attention to two declarations that he makes. What does Jesus the disciples to learn from this encounter? What does Matthew want his readers to grasp? [...]

A.    LET GO OF EARTH (19:23-26)

In 19:23 we read: [READ]. Many have speculated about the meaning of Jesus’ metaphor there in 19:24. However, it really is quite simple. Jesus picks the largest animal in Israel, a camel, and sends it through the smallest hole, the eye of a needle. Everyone knows it would take a miracle for a camel to fit through a needle! And that is Jesus’ point. It would take a miracle for a rich man to be saved! The pull of his possessions is so great, that he will not leave them behind. As the old English proverb puts it: ‘It is hard to have a great estate and not fall in love with it.’ That is why the Bible repeatedly warns us against wealth, for like fire, it can be useful, but it can also very destructive.

And yet, this young man’s ultimate problem is not his possessions, but his passions. He wouldn’t let go of earth because of his love of money, and yet we can make the same mistake through our love of other things as well. It could be riches (like this man here, are you in love with your possessions, your stuff, without even realising it?), or it could be a romantic relationship (like the Samaritan woman in John 4), it could be pleasures (whether innocent or less so) or it could be popularity, a desire to look a certain way, or your fixed views on certain topics. What is it for you? If you are here tonight, and are not yet following Jesus, what part of the world do you not want to leave behind? What will you not give up for Jesus? What are you refusing to hand over, even if it costs you eternal life?

Friends, here we see that if you want to go to heaven, you must let go of earth. You cannot hold both in your hand. Oh teenagers, young people, those of you who like this young man are feeling the pull of the world right now. Of wealth and status, of possessions and pleasures, of power and popularity. Don’t be a fool this evening, make a wise choice. If there really is life after death, if there really is a heaven and a hell, what use will earthly things be to you in the long run? What use will possessions or people be at the end of your life, when your time on earth is done and you are passing through the door of death? We will all have to let go of earth one day. If we do so now, we can take hold of heaven. But if we try to hold onto earth, if we refuse to let go of these things now, it will only damn us to hell. Like this young man, if you hold onto the world, you will not only know great sorrow in this life, but you will know unimaginable suffering in the next.

B.     TAKE HOLD OF HEAVEN (19:27-30)

You know, this is the only occasion in the Gospels where Jesus call for someone to come and follow him is refused. And yet the story finishes not by focusing on the young man who walked away in sorrow, but those who said yes to Jesus, who leave everything to come and follow him. And here we see that though we must let go of earth to come to Jesus, we are by no means left empty handed. Yes, the story starts with the bold question of the RYR asking what must I do, but it ends with a potentially even older question from the disciples, who ask what will we get? For in 19:27 we read, [READ].

If you have been with us as we have walked through Matthew over the last two years, you’ll be well used to Peter asking seemingly stupid silly questions by now. We saw the same this morning in John 13, didn’t we? And yet here, on this occasion, we see Jesus does not rebuke or correct him. Instead, he gives him a straight answer, is happy to explain all that these disciples can expect. Jesus is not embarrassed or ashamed to speak about the rewards that his disciples will receive. Rather, he tells them in order to encourage them, in order to spur them on to make the sacrifices they need to make and pass through the sufferings that they will face.

Did you notice that is what he offered the RYR in 19:21. Oh yes, Jesus called him to make a huge sacrifice, to seek all he had, and yet what did he promise him as a result? He promised him ‘treasure in heaven.’ That young man’s divestment would really be investment. If he was to embrace earthly poverty, he would receive heavenly riches, And he makes the same promise to his disciples, for in response to Peter’s question, in 19:28 we read: [READ].

Brothers and sisters, see here that no follower of Jesus will lose in the long run. If we share in his suffering, we will also share in his glory. If he join him in his humiliation, we shall also share in his exultation. If we join him in his death, we shall also share in his life.

If you are here this evening, and you are holding back from following Jesus, holding onto the world, see here what you are missing out on! Oh yes you may have a few possessions and some close friends and family on earth, but Jesus promises you far more in heaven. Oh yes, you may have 70 or 80 years of life now in this broken world, but you can have life forever, life eternal, if you would only come to him.

"They who lose all for Christ, will find all in Christ, and receive all with Christ." Spurgeon

Maybe you are here this evening, and have been following Jesus for many years, but recently the cost of doing so seems unbearable, you are struggling to keep sacrificing, to keep giving your time and energy, your relationships and resources to him. Brother or sister, take time to meditate on Peter’s question and Jesus response to it this week. Fix your eyes on the heavenly reward, and press on. Remember, in the words of C S Lewis, that there are far far better things ahead than any that we leave behind.