Matthew 19:23-30 Then said Jesus to his disciples, Truly I say to you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.… Behold, one came to Jesus (see ver. 16). Multitudes of poor persons had followed him from the beginning; at length "one" rich man came, and, sad to say, this one retired sorrowful and unsaved. So, turning to his disciples, the Lord said, "Verily I say unto you," etc. Learn - I. THAT THE SALVATION OF A RICH MAN IS A SPECIAL MIRACLE OF MERCY. 5. That it is outside the ravage of ordinary probability is evinced in the case of the ruler. (1) His circumstances were exceptionably favourable. Observe: (a) The seriousness of his inquiry after eternal life. (b) The respectfulness of his approach to Christ. (c) The excellence of his moral character. (d) The affection with which our Lord regarded him. (e) The sorrowful struggle of spirit with which he departed. (2) Yet for all this he was overcome by the influence of his "great possessions." (3) The silence respecting him afterwards renders it probable that, in gaining the world, he lost his soul. 2. That it is outside the ravage of ordinary probability is declared by Christ. (1) "It is hard," etc. (ver. 23). And this is emphasized by a "verily." (2) The assertion is strengthened by what follows (ver. 24). "I incline to the opinion that at the time the Redeemer spake this parable, he was with his disciples in one of the public khans, there being no other resting place for them; and there, seeing the people mending their camel saddles, for which purpose they use a long needle like a straight packing needle, he pointed to them and said as it were, 'These camels can as soon pass through the eye of those needles as a rich man can enter into the kingdom of God'" (Gadsby). Note: The way to heaven is fitly compared to a needle's eye, which it is hard to hit; and a rich man to a camel - a beast of burden. For he has his riches from others, spends them for others, leaves them to others, and is himself the carrier. (3) What our Lord adds does not soften his earlier words (see ver. 26); for it makes the salvation of the rich an utmost effort of omnipotence. 3. The salvation of the rich is imperilled by the deceitfulness of riches. (1) It is not riches themselves, but the sordid love of them, that our Lord condemns (cf. Mark 10:24). So, in the bad sense, a man is rich in proportion to his attachment to worldly possessions. A rich man, according to this definition, cannot be saved. (2) But those who have riches naturally love them and trust them (cf. Matthew 6:21; Colossians 3:5). They tend to increase pride, covetousness, and self-indulgence. They purchase flattery and exclude faithful reprovers. They prejudice the mind against the humbling truths and self-denying precepts of Christ. They increase the number and force of the obstacles which must be broken through (cf. Psalm 49:6, 7; Psalm 52:7; 1 Timothy 6:17). (3) Yet how few see that to be rich is a misfortune! Even when Christ intimated this, his own disciples were "astonished exceedingly" (ver. 25); and he had to "look upon them," penetrating their feeling of astonishment and perplexity, to convince them that such feelings as theirs were the peril of the rich; for they were deceived into the notion that riches gave singular advantages towards salvation. 4. Still with God the salvation of the rich is possible. (1) It needs more than human power to wean the heart of man from worldly things. No perfection of science can enable him to discern spiritual things; these are above the natural man. God alone can destroy the love of the world in us. (2) Omnipotence is displayed in grace as well as in nature. God can effectually plead the cause of the rich in the presence of the poor, by pleading the cause of the poor in the presence of the rich (see ver. 21). (3) The possibility is evinced in the examples of Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathaea, Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and many more. Man fails when he begins with himself; succeeds, when he begins with God. II. THAT FOR WHATEVER WE SACRIFICE IN THE SERVICE OF CHRIST WE SHALL BE WONDERFULLY REWARDED. 1. In this present life. (1) Peter said, "Lo, we have left all, and followed thee." The disciples had but little; yet it was their all (cf. Mark 12:43, 44). (2) Peter speaks of their giving up all (ver. 27); Jesus speaks of their following him (ver. 28). "To obey is better than to sacrifice." Obedience includes sacrifice. "The philosopher forsakes all without following Christ; most Christians follow Christ without forsaking all; to do both is apostolic perfection" (Bengel). (3) Christ did not estimate the attachment of his disciples to him by the quantity of things they relinquished, but from the mind and intention with which they relinquished them. "And every one that hath left houses," etc., viz. either by giving them up when they could not retain them with a clear conscience, or by refraining from acquiring them, "for my Name's sake (ver. 29; see 2 Corinthians 8:12). (4) The compensation then is a hundredfold," viz. not in kind, but in spiritual blessings. Here is cent percent multiplied a hundred times. Such, even in this life (see Mark 10:30), is the advantage of the spiritual value gained in this blessed exchange! 2. In the life to come. (2) "The regeneration" commences in the millennium. That will be the great day of judgment, or reigning. It will be a theocracy, as in the times of the ancient judges (cf. Isaiah 1:26). Irenaeus says that the reward of the hundredfold is to happen in the millennium (cf. Isaiah 32:1; Daniel 7:18, 27; Matthew 26:29; Acts 3:20, 21; Revelation 20.). (2) The Lord's glorification is the pattern of human regeneration here; for those who follow him are morally risen with him and resemble him. Hereafter also, for we shall in our regeneration from the power of the grave be in the likeness of his resurrection. So the "redemption of the body" will be the "manifestation of the sons of God" (cf. Luke 20:36; Romans 8:23; 1 John 3:2). (3) The "regeneration" which commences in the millennium will culminate in the "new heaven and earth" in which the "new creation," under the headship of the second Adam, will be finished. The reward of that glorious state is "life everlasting." - J.A.M. Parallel Verses KJV: Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. |
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