I was a semi-early adopter of digital step trackers, the wristbands that record your steps when they appeared on the market years ago. The technology has advanced a lot since then, and those primitive devices have morphed into feature-packed smartwatches. I’ve gone through several models over the years, not because I’m such a geek, but because none lasted longer than 18 months, just beyond their warranty. Buying a new smartwatch always put a dent in my budget since I have a modest income. When my last one stopped working not so long ago, I replaced it with a dumb watch that only shows the time. It cost me the grand price of £20. After wearing it for two weeks, I couldn’t stand its original strap, so I bought a different strap, doubling the total value of my watch. I doubt it would attract the attention of the notorious watch snatchers. Nor would my everyday shabby clothes draw anyone’s attention to me when I’m out and about, perhaps except for security guards looking out for shoplifters. There are advantages to looking poor, such as remaining fairly anonymous in a small town like Inverurie.
At first glance, today’s gospel seems to offer a straightforward message about personal wealth: “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” On hearing that, most of us can identify with Jesus’ disciples, who “were astounded by these words.” Instead of calming their bewilderment, he doubled down: “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” To avoid any misinterpretation of this metaphor, he added: “For men, it is impossible.” The alternative wasn’t attractive either: “Sell everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.” Will those of you who are better off now follow in the man’s footsteps in today’s gospel: “his face fell at these words, and he went away sad?” If you are tempted to do the same, please wait a moment…
Sometimes, we come across the thinking that the rich are bad and the poor are good; wealth spoils people while poverty ennobles them. Moreover, it’s not difficult to provide examples to prove such thinking. Admittedly, I find it hard to accept the extraordinary disproportion between the rich and their poorly paid employees. I could rant about it now and probably even feel self-righteous. But I doubt rich people will listen to or read my sermon, so it would only be a pointless rant. It’s better to ask how this gospel applies to the lives of those present here, mine and yours. So, let’s have a closer look at today’s passage.
From the broader context of the gospels, we can safely assume that Jesus wasn’t against personal wealth as such. In the course of his ministry, he accepted invitations from those who could afford to throw a wee party for him and his companions. He was supported by some wealthy women, as reported by St Luke: “Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.” (8:3) After his crucifixion “a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus […] took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock.” (Matthew 27:57-60) In today’s gospel there wasn’t any enmity between Jesus and the man from the off; quite the opposite. In the course of their conversation, “Jesus looked steadily at him and loved him.” The man’s wealth wasn’t mentioned, so it must have been evident from his demeanour and outfit that he was rich. So, why the fallout and the seemingly bitter comment made by Jesus on the inability of the rich to be saved?
The clue is in their conversation. The man approached Jesus seeking the answer to the question that had troubled him: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” In his response, Jesus opened a bracket that would close later: “No one is good but God alone.” We will come back to it shortly. Then Jesus quickly listed several of the Ten Commandments, which, interestingly, were all related to interactions with others while omitting those related to God. The man’s answer was bold; I myself would never ever dare say so: “I have kept all these from my earliest days.” Here, we have a man who is rich in goods and good deeds. Jesus’ response was a clever pun: “There is one thing you lack.” But to get it, he would have to lose everything: “Go and sell everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.” Here, we must stop before we read on and put emphasis on the word “then come, follow me.” The man’s problem was his focus on himself; everything in his life was about him, even his avoidance of sin, done in order to “inherit eternal life,” the ultimate tick on his list of possessions. Self-centred and self-absorbed, his life was meaningless because it served no one.
In his conversation with the disciples after the rich man’s departure, Jesus closed the bracket I mentioned earlier. Baffled by Jesus’ camel metaphor, they asked him: “Who can be saved?” The original Greek version hints at the self-earned reward, in line with the rich man’s initial question: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus’ answer was straightforward: “For men it is impossible, but not for God: because everything is possible for God.” In other words, salvation is a gift; no one can claim it as deserved because “no one is good but God alone.”
From such a perspective, personal wealth isn’t that important. Far more crucial is finding out what purpose it serves: why do I want to get rich(er), or what do I do with my relative fortune? To boost my ego or to self-indulge? Or to provide for my family, secure their future or help those in need? The rich man from today’s gospel lacked only one thing: freedom to love at his own expense. He wanted “to inherit eternal life.” He could have because Jesus promised in the Beatitudes: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3)
