Open Handedნიმუში

Can you imagine being in this wealthy young man’s position? You come to Jesus, God Himself in human form, and you ask how to live to gain eternal life. You probably come to Him thinking you know what His answer will be. Why? Because you know the commandments. You follow them. You live to the letter of every law every single day. Of course Jesus is going to say, “You’re doing it! Just keep following the law, and you’re in.” So when Jesus says, “There’s just one more thing….” Well, you’d be stunned! The reality is, Jesus isn’t asking us to sell everything we own and give it all away. That’s not the point here. The point is that following the rules doesn’t pave our way into heaven. We have to allow our hearts to be changed. We have to untangle ourselves from everything in this life. We have to keep our eyes on eternity and open our hands here and now. This is what it means to follow Jesus, and we can ask Him to change our hearts as we seek to follow Him with our lives every day.

Today, go back and read the entirety of the rich young ruler’s encounter with Jesus (Luke 18:18-30). Pray as you do that God would open your heart and your hands to follow Him fully with your life.