"What Must I do?"

The question of the rich man in today's Gospel narrative from Mark is our question as well. We would phrase it differently, I suspect. We might ask: What must I do to be saved? Or what must I do to get to heaven?

These are the terms of our recent past in Christianity, but they are misleading. The young man used the phrase, "eternal life," but this does not automatically mean life beyond the grave, as we might interpret it. In the Jewish frame of reference it more aptly meant what we would say today: "the fullness of life."

It was part of Jewish culture that God would reward faithfulness with long life, many children, and good crops— the things of this world! Only gradually in terms of what we would call Old Testament theology did the concept of life beyond the grave become part of that thinking. Remember from the New Testament that the Sadducees did not believe in resurrection (Mk 12:18).

Jesus responds to the man's question by citing some of the Ten Commandments (The Words: see Exodus 20:1-17; also Deut 5:6-21) from the Teaching of Moses (Torah); and the man answers that he has done all that since his youth.

Seeing his wealth, Jesus presents him with a major challenge: "Sell what you own and give to the poor..." We're told "he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions" (Mk 10:22).

Today is our Stewardship Sunday, and I could not have chosen a better Gospel text (It was determined by the Lectionary— see BCP p. 910). But again this is a very challenging teaching which Mark gives us from the words and deeds of Jesus.

"How hard it is (for those who trust in riches) to enter the Kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle that for someone who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God" (Mk 10:24-25).

I don't know about you, but I am certainly rich in comparison to the majority of the people of the earth! I have food, shelter, water, tools and toys, and all in abundance. I am rich! But like others in our culture, I frequently look at those who have more instead of those who have less, and so don't consider myself rich.

"Then who can be saved?" the disciples ask! Entering into the Kingdom of God means letting God rule over our lives, setting our priorities in terms of the words and deeds of Jesus who brings us the vision of God for all humanity. The Lord doesn't just want 10% of our income (the traditional Biblical tithe). The Lord wants all of what we have and what we do to be under the rule/guidance of the words and deeds of Jesus.

I'll say it again: In North America we are possessed by our possessions, and the tithe is the Lord's way of setting us free of that possession! It is God's basic gift to open our hearts to see how truly blessed we really are and how much we can count on the Lord to provide for us.

To put it another way, the "fullness of life" does not depend on riches, as the disciples implied in their response. We all know we don't see a U-Haul trailer behind a hearse! We are born with nothing and we die with nothing. All that we have is temporarily in our keeping to use as stewards of the Lord. We are to use them as the Master directs.

Yes, we have basic needs and commitments in the Parish Budget which we need to meet, and if we don't have sufficient funds, we will have to make major changes. That is assumed.

Pledging is about so much more than meeting the budget. It is about focusing on the first and most important priorities in our lives: the fullness of life which the Lord promises to us who set our sights of living in the Kingdom of God.

I talked with a man in the Lakeview Continuing Care Center (nursing home) in Lawton this week. He told how he no longer has a house, a car, or any of the things he used to have, but he said he had the most important thing of all: family and friends who loved him!

I urge you to consider your pledge back to the good Lord in and through St. Mark's as a very important spiritual decision. If you tithe (10%) joyfully, I guarantee it will change your life for the better. I know because I do it.

Joseph+