"He was sad, because he was very rich."
An important man asked Jesus,
"Good Teacher, what must I do to have eternal life?" Jesus said, "Why do you call me good? Only God is
good. You know the commandments: 'Be faithful in marriage. Do not
murder. Do not steal. Do not tell lies about others.
Respect your father and mother.'"
He told Jesus, "I have obeyed all these commandments since
I was a young man."
When Jesus heard this, he said, "There is one thing you
still need to do. Go and sell everything you own! Give the money
to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come and be my
follower." When the man heard this, he was sad, because he was
very rich. Jesus saw how sad the man was. So he said, "It's
terribly hard for rich people to get into God's kingdom! In fact, it's
easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person
to get into God's kingdom."
When the crowd heard this, they asked, "How can anyone ever
be saved?" Jesus replied, "There are some things that people cannot
do, but God can do anything."
Peter said, "Remember, we left everything to be your
followers!" Jesus answered, "You can be sure that anyone who gives up
home or wife or brothers or family or children because of God's kingdom will
be given much more in this life. And in the future world they will have
eternal life." Luke 18:18-30 Contemporary English Version The Holy Bible (New York , NY: American Bible Society 1995) |