Me: Working my life away.
Garrett: You better stop that.
Me: Can't...need the money.
Garrett: Sell all your possessions and follow me.
Me: You first.
Garrett: Oh man you got me.
Me: That does raise an interesting question though. What if
I did sell all my possessions and gave them to the poor. What
would that look like in our world?
I had an epiphany after this: what would happen if my wife Heather and I sold our TV, cars, Xbox, the iPad I'm writing this on, furniture, clothes, and went to follow Jesus. Sounds crazy, right?
That's what I thought too. Then, I began to think what if I did all this and then I stood before a church, and asked them to do the same thing? What if I then told the leaders of the church to sell all the church possessions, the building, the hymnals, everything? I would probably be run out of there. Why is that?
A man approached him and said, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to have eternal life?" Jesus said, "Why do you ask me about what is good? There’s only one who is good. If you want to enter eternal life, keep the commandments." The man said, "Which ones?" Then Jesus said, " Don’t commit murder. Don’t commit adultery. Don’t steal. Don’t give false testimony. Honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as you love yourself." The young man replied, "I’ve kept all these. What am I still missing?" Jesus said, "If you want to be complete, go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor. Then you will have treasure in heaven. And come follow me." But when the young man heard this, he went away saddened, because he had many possessions. Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I assure you that it will be very hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. In fact, it’s easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom." (Matthew 19:16-24 CEB)
Jesus says to sell our possessions and yet how many American Christ-followers, myself included, have a great many possessions? Going further, how many who believe in a literal reading of the Bible decide that Jesus didn't really mean for us to sell our possessions, he just meant for us to be better stewards of our money and resources.
But that's not what Jesus tells this young man. He doesn't ask him to be a better steward, or to create more jobs with all his money. He said sell your possessions and give them to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven.
The problem with the way we read this and other passages that are difficult is that we, American Christians, neuter hard prophetic things that Jesus says. We find it easy to accept Jesus into our hearts, which gives us a ticket into heaven, or we enjoy being told to pray more, or read our Bible more. But when it comes to hard prophetic sayings, we rationalize it and try to explain it away. Jesus didn't really mean for us to love and pray for our enemies or feed the poor in his name, or sell our possessions.
We like the easy things but the hard prophetic things, not so much.
We like the message of personal salvation, but the idea of a society as a part of the shalom (peace) of God is more difficult, so we pick the former.
We like the images of the warrior image of God from the Old Testament who commands armies and slaughters enemies all for the sake of God's people. But the image of God that comes fully in the incarnation of Jesus who commands us to love and pray for our enemies, who disarms his disciples when being attacked, this image is so much more difficult so we choose the one most suitable.
Or we like the idea of God's blessing on us materially, but when it comes to sacrifice of possessions we are suddenly silent. And we walk away saddened, because we own a great many possessions.
When Jesus asks the young man to sell his possessions it's because his possessions have blockaded his love for God and neighbor. I wonder if Jesus has something similar to say to us today. We live in a material world that is inundated by stuff. By possessions.
We the people of the United States probably all own a TV, a car (possibly two), furniture, cable TV, and so on. We are men and women of great wealth. Are their poor and homeless among us? Of course. But the majority of us would be considered wealthy by the rest of the world.
I wonder if we could rewrite this parable for our culture. Would the Rich Young American walk away because she/he was a person of great wealth? Does this parable occur daily?
There is a spirit to what Jesus is saying. When Jesus asks us to sell our possessions and give them to the poor he is asking for a transformation of our hearts. He is asking for us to better love God and neighbor.
When Jesus asks us to sell our possessions is he asking us to sell everything including all the clothes off our back? Does Jesus want a bunch of naked disciples?
I think to look at the passage in such legalistic fashion is to miss entirely the point. Which causes the polarization of the topic. So you read it literally and end up with naked disciples and then I read it metaphorically and become, loosely, a good steward.
The point is learning how to better love God and to love others. And so we forge the Jesus Way by uniting the literal and metaphorical.
Our possessions are spiritual because they are deeply connected with where we place the motivations of our hearts and lives. Think about what things you value most, how is it connected to your heart?
I love my Xbox. I love playing video games. I used to have a subscription to rent video games online and keep them as long as I desired. I spent a lot of time playing video games because of it.
Video games are not inherently evil. But my playing hours of video games a day takes me away from loving God better because it is time I could be spending praying, or reading, or just spending time with God.
It also keeps me from better loving my neighbor because, first, I am spending time playing video games that I might spend serving the least among us. Second, I am spending money each month tied up in my entertainment that could be used to better serve those in need.
I was reading a book recently that talked about how we preach prophetically or we talk about prophetic ministry, but rarely does anyone do something prophetic.
We need prophets: doers of the prophetic.
I'm issuing The Rich Young American Challenge.
Think about your own life. Think about all the things you have. Are their things in your life that keep you from better loving God and your neighbor? Does that new TV, keep you seated on the couch instead of up and active in the world.
Do subscriptions to magazines, or cable keep your money tied up when it could be used to give others a better life?
My goal in writing this is not to promote a sort of legalism that says you can have this but not that. My goal is for us to think critically about our possessions in a physical and spiritual sense. We want to reflect theologically on the effects of American Culture and the challenges scripture presents. To think about how we own things that keep us from better loving God and loving our neighbor.
When is enough, enough?
We can use our money to practice hospitality and love. We can use it in a way that communicates compassion to the poor and least among us.
St. Francis of Assisi was quoted as saying, "If we had any possessions we should also be forced to have arms to protect them, since possessions are a cause of disputes and strife, and in many ways we should be hindered from loving God and our neighbor. Therefore in this life we wish to have no temporal possessions." For Francis, poverty and possessing nothing was liberation. It allowed him to better love God and his neighbor.
I canceled my video game rental service and every month I donate the extra $25 dollars from that subscription to an organization called Opportunity International, which provides micro-loans to those starting businesses in the developing world.
With my time, I started to follow Jesus.
Now on Saturday mornings I spend time tutoring disadvantaged junior high and high school students so they can receive a good education and have a better future in the world.
I have given my Tuesday afternoons to helping with the work at an AIDS Ministry in the area. I am coordinating a community meal that would make sure people who visit the Food pantry at my church are also receiving a meal and being welcomed by Christ followers. I've offered my time to helping transport donations of furniture and clothing to people who have nothing, many who recently left a life of homelessness.
I want others to join with me. On this blog we want you to talk in the comments box. Tell us what you are giving up and how that is affecting you. This is not a chance for pious righteousness, but rather a place where we can encourage each other along in our mission of freeing ourselves from the burden of our possessions to better love God and our neighbors.
I ask if you take on this challenge that you don't just give money, but I ask that it's money that come from selling some of your possessions. Sacrifice your distractions and impediments.
This past week I was at my parents house helping them get ready for my sister's wedding. Around lunch time my wife and I decided to go make a run to Portillo's, an amazing restaurant that is a favorite place to eat around here. Anyway, while my wife and and I were driving I saw a man on the left hand side of the street holding up a sign listing his need for food and gas. I turned a blind-eye and let it be. After all, I needed to get my food.
When I got to Portillo's, I ordered my cheeseburger and fries...to go.
Going back to my parents house my wife took notice of this gentleman in need this time. We decided that we needed to stop. I offered him my Portillo's burger and fries. Something I was very much looking forward to eating. He took it, and I ate something else when I returned home.
When I got back to my parents house my brother heard this story and he decided that he was going to go and get food. But instead decided to stop and offer this man the extra cash that he carried.
I don't say this to brag at all. But when we begin to give up our possessions and things that cause us to not love our neighbors as ourselves, we begin to love the way Jesus wants us to. It's not giving from our leftovers and castaways, but it's giving from the good and wonderful things we have and allowing the love of God to spread like ripples in a pond.
As I venture into this, I am a little afraid. I love my comfort. I love my stuff. I love Portillo's. Yet, in order to be who Jesus has called us to be, I must begin to give up those things.
A video game is not more important than a neighbor in need.
A cheeseburger is not greater than the beggar.
I am not better than my neighbor.
I must love God and neighbor.
I hope you will join us in our challenge.
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