“What’s Your Elephant?”

What’s with Jesus? Can’t he accept a compliment? After all, he was a “good” (in fact, sinless) person. And his teaching was both engaging and substantial. So from every angle, he merited being called “good”. Yet he seems offended.

It turns out that this rich guy (let’s be creative and name him Rich) also sees himself as good. Jesus runs him through a list of what makes a person a model citizen, and Rich is “good”.

Did you notice anything in particular about Jesus’ list of commandments? (If model citizen Rich noticed, he wasn’t going to mention it!) Jesus skips the four opening commandments that deal with one’s relationship with God (Exodus 20) and drops the last one about coveting. (I’m guessing that Jesus either wants to affirm what is good in Rich or he doesn’t want to set Rich up for his first lie.)

Sometimes we say that “there’s an elephant in the room” when one is oblivious to what is obvious to everyone else. Today, I’d say that there’s a camel!

Enter the “camel”. Someone has said that if we deal with the 10th commandment’s call to humility and contentment first, we are well-positioned to live out the rest. We don’t even feel the need to compete with God about who will be “God.”

Rich, on the other hand, loved status, and so to not covet would give him cramps. To go inside, dethrone himself, and allow a self-giving, generous God to be the centre might set off convulsions. No wonder he was sad. Jesus had no medallion to add to his ego-propping collection. No wonder he walked.

No wonder Jesus wasn’t flattered by being called Rich’s kind of good. No wonder he smiled at what Peter had to say. He got it.

Respond in Prayer

Almighty God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid, cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. (T. Cranmer, Book of Common Prayer)

Keith Elford

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®).