By Tyler Collins, February 2, 2024

As we discussed a few weeks ago, God is not silent regarding money. The Scriptures are filled with God’s heart and thoughts toward material wealth. Most of the Scriptures about wealth, particularly in the New Testament, warn about the potential danger and strongholds that wealth can have over our lives. 

Luke tells the story of a rich man’s conversation with Jesus concerning his eternal life (Luke 18:18-30). The man asked Jesus what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus recites the commandments that are commonly understood as being what is necessary. The rich man affirms that he has kept these commands since he was young. Jesus does not question the man’s sincerity but then lets him know that he still lacks something: he needs to sell everything he has, give it to the poor, and follow Jesus. The rich man becomes sad over this statement because, as the text says, he was very wealthy.  The man was unable to let go of the wealth that he had. Wealth captivated the man’s heart more than following Jesus or the promise of eternal life.

Jesus told the man and the others who heard the conversation that it was difficult for the wealthy to enter the kingdom of God. It is easier, he said, for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.  This is a warning that we often try to over-analyze. 

As Americans, we live in one of the wealthiest countries in the history of the world. Compared to the world’s standards, we are all rich! This rich man in the story is us. If the story stopped here, we would have no chance. But Jesus says, “What is impossible with people is possible with God.” 

So, how do we “combat” this difficult situation in which we find ourselves? We go to Jesus willing to surrender everything. Shortly after the story of the rich man in the book of Luke is the story of Zacchaeus.  He was also a wealthy man. The difference between the two stories is that Zacchaeus looks at Jesus and says he will give away half of his wealth and pay back those he wronged by four times the amount (Luke 19:1-10).  Zacchaeus was willing to surrender his material wealth because He recognized Jesus as his Lord. This is the “cure” for a wealthy Christian in the West… be willing to surrender everything.