Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, 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 than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:23-25, New King James Version) This is sometimes misconstrued to suggest that prosperity in this world prevents one from gaining the world to come. But if that’s wrong, then what exactly did Jesus mean? Several things clarify it: First, understand that the problem with HAVING riches occurs when we TRUST in them instead of God. (By the way, wealth is not the only thing people trust rather than God.) Secondly, “entering the kingdom of God” is not exactly equivalent to “being saved and going to heaven,” although it could mean that in some sense. Jesus said His kingdom is WITHIN us (Luke 17:21), which the Amplified Bible describes as meaning “in our hearts” and “surrounding us.” In other words, God’s kingdom is found in a RELATIONSHIP with Him in the here-and-now, not just in the “sweet by-and-by.” Then there is that peculiar metaphor of a camel going through the eye of a needle. WHAT!??? Well, consider that the Bible was not originally in English; and the dialect Jesus spoke with His disciples was Aramaic, not classical Hebrew or Greek. The Aramaic manuscripts of the New Testament are as old and authoritative as the Greek ones, having the additional advantage that Aramaic is still spoken in the Middle East, unlike the classical versions of Greek and Hebrew. Aramaic is like Hebrew with some differences—not unlike comparing British English with Texas English. One difference is that the word translated “camel” in Mark 10:25 can mean “rope” as well as “camel” in Aramaic. AHA! For something to go through the eye of a needle, it must be broken down to its most basic element. Just as a rope consists of many strands of fiber woven together, our lives also consist of many events, plans, thoughts, feelings and decisions woven into what we call our Selves. Self must be reduced to its most essential element for us to experience a relationship with God. Even if we imagine our Self as a camel rather than a rope, the process is still the same: Come to God in complete simplicity and absolute dependence on the grace and mercy of Jesus our Savior. The beauty of it is, He knows us through and through and still loves us!
Posted on: Sat, 09 Nov 2013 16:55:10 +0000
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