Becoming Love: If We Start at Finish, Where Do We End? (Part 3)નમૂનો

Day Twelve: The Rich Young Ruler

How will I know if I’m good enough?

In today’s portion, we find a peculiar story. A rich young man asks Jesus a question that has echoed throughout the centuries: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”

In other words, have I been giving time and effort to the right things? Am I good enough? Am I on the right track?

This young man addresses Jesus as “Good Teacher.” Now, in that culture, the word “good” was reserved for God alone. Perhaps he thought he was flattering Jesus, but it really revealed his superficial view of Jesus. Jesus was not just a godly teacher; He was, and is, God Himself.

The young man wanted Jesus to teach him how to gain eternal life. But Jesus wanted him to see that eternal life is not primarily about what you do– it’s about what (or who) you love most. And in his case, what he loved most was money.

Then we read something deeply moving: “Jesus looked at him and loved him.”

Jesus didn’t just tell him about love – He embodied love in that very moment.

The most loving thing Jesus could do was to invite him to exchange his love for wealth with a greater love: love for God. He called him to surrender his pride, let go of what held his heart captive, and follow Him.

Jesus was offering Himself as the only way to eternal life. To be love for this rich man meant to offer him something infinitely greater than the love of money – the love of God.

Two truths are worth mentioning:

We were made for a deep, meaningful relationship with God. Nothing else can satisfy this longing except God Himself.

Secondly, Jesus always meets us where we are, but He never leaves us there! He draws us closer, inviting us into deeper fellowship with Him.

The tragedy is that the young man walked away sad, not because Jesus had made the way hard, but because his heart clung too tightly to his wealth.

Do you see that you, too, are called and are perfectly positioned- to imitate Jesus?

You see, to embody love is to invite people into a greater love – regardless of how they respond.

Will you ask the Holy Spirit to show you today – who can you look at through the eyes of Jesus and overwhelm with the love of the Father?