PLEASE READ THIS FIRST: Matthew 19
What do you sense the Lord saying to you in this passage?
“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)
Once again the disciples are overwhelmed by what Jesus says.
Jesus’s words about marriage led them to think that not being married was easier.
Now Jesus’s words about the challenge of being rich seem impossible to them.
Why is Jesus setting the bar for following Him so high?
Because we were made for perfect love; anything less is un-God-like.
We prefer to aim lower, and feel good about our less-than God-like goodness.
Like the pride of the rich man, we think we’re doing pretty good.
I believe we need to face the impossibility of perfect love and goodness.
We need to despair of doing it ourselves, so we stop trying to do it ourselves.
We were made to live WITH, LIKE and FOR God; we cannot do this without God.
But what is impossible without God is possible with God’s help.
It will take our whole lives, but we can slowly grow towards perfect love.
Jesus is with us, assuring us of God’s gracious patience and help.
Without Jesus we can do nothing (John 15:5), but with Jesus… (Philippians 4:13)
Lord Jesus, perfect love is impossible for me by myself. But with Your grace and help, I am able to grow more and more like You – in how I love others, in how I handle my money. Help me to do life WITH, LIKE and FOR God and You.