13 People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” 16 And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.
17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”
20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.
23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”
24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again,“Children, how hard it is[b] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”
28 Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”
29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
From the discussion of divorce, Jesus is placed again in a familial setting as he is asked by parents to place his hands on their children. The theme over all of these recent passages seems to be those who are dependent on others (divorced women, children). Jesus shows a special compassion for the least of these, but his disciples see them as just another waste of Jesus time. They want to be about the big flashy work (miracles and crowds) and see these pestering parents as road blocks to doing great things for God.
There is that word again--rebuke. It is the word used throughout Mark to describe the driving out of demons. So when the disciples rebuke the people bringing the children to Jesus it is a strong response. The important point to remember is that the last time a disciple tried to rebuke someone, it was Simon Peter trying to get Jesus to renounce his impending death. In that case, Peter was the one who needed to be rebuked just as the disciples will need correction here.
Jesus again reiterates to the disciples that the kingdom of God is the possession of the child-like (not the childish). Children have the graces of wonder and dependence. These are the qualities that one must have to truly accept the gospel. Jesus takes the children in his arms and blesses them.
This action of blessing will serve as a dramatic counterpoint to the next person who comes to Jesus and will refuse to be embraced but instead will leave.
An unidentified man comes running to Jesus and falls on his knees before him. It brings to mind all the other people who have fallen at Jesus feet when they meet him. On every occasion, they leave with Jesus having met their needs.
Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?, he asks. When Jesus asks him why he calls him "good," it may be to see if this man is ready to recognize that Jesus is the son of God and thus "good" in a way that God alone can be. We are not told that the man asks this to test Jesus, but this is the way that Pharisees and others approach Jesus with a question rather than a plea. The question itself seems a bit of a trap as inheritances are given not something that one earns.
Jesus affirms that the man already knows the answer of what "to do," which is to keep the commandments. Jesus then lists only those that describe how a person treats others. It is almost as if Jesus is telling the man, if you just live right all the time and never break any commandments, you don't really need God at all. That is what you "must do" to gain eternal life.
In what is a surprising claim to the ears of those who believe in universal sinfulness and the impossibility of keeping all of the commandments, the man avers that he has done all these things since birth.
It is then that Jesus looks at the man, perhaps remembering the children who have so recently been before them, he sees in him the braggadocio and lack of personal reflection that is a part of being young. Whatever the case, Jesus looks at him and loves him. And this is an important point. This word has only been used twice before in the gospel of Mark and both times to describe how God feels about God's son Jesus. So it would be wise to pay attention to it here--this is the first time that Jesus is said to have loved anybody particularly.
But it is not the warm gooey love of modern affection that Jesus offers. Jesus loves him and so he demands something more. Go sell everything and give it to the poor is not one of the ten commandments, it is moving beyond thou shalt not to thou shalt. In a way Jesus loves the man so much that he asks him beyond a religion of prohibition to a life of love.
This is the first time that Jesus' command to follow has been prefaced by a condition. The man must acknowledge that he is dependent not on his own scrupulous law keeping, but on God to provide when he has nothing left to rely upon. Sadly, this is too much for him and he turns and walks away. Jesus loved the man enough to ask him to change, but the man didn't love Jesus enough to change. The man's face falls because he has great wealth. Which shows the failure of the man to understand. He can't give everything away because he has so much? Wouldn't any person have the same problem. If you give away everything and you are rich, you have nothing. If you give everything away and you are poor, you have nothing. The amount you have to give is not what makes the action of giving more difficult, it is instead your attitude about what you have that presents the challenge.
How hard it is for the rich, Jesus comments. Certainly this is not all the rich, but an attitude that is most commonly found in those with wealth. Having resources, they mistake them for security. They come to believe that money solves all of life's problems not just money problems. Jesus says it is as hard as a camel going through the eye of a needle. Leaving aside discussions that compare this to a gate in Jerusalem, Jesus almost surely seems to be again using hyperbole and humor to make a point.
Stopped by the ridiculous image, the disciples ask who then can be saved. This is a rather interesting question as the disciples take what Jesus has said about the rich and applied it to all of humanity. Jesus goes on to say that God is in the business of working the impossible. This means that some camels will find a way through the needle, but one can surmise it is done only when they have been stripped of all their unnecessary baggage.
Peter, who like the rest of the disciples seems continually to be jockeying for position, exclaims that he and the others have left everything to follow. And for a change, Jesus agrees with him. Giving up everything they have gained everything. Jesus does include a couple of uncomfortable cautions in his praise. First, he suggests that the everything they will gain for following includes persecution. Then, Jesus concludes by telling the disciples that the first will be last, which may mean the order of this world will change but it may also caution Peter and the others that just because they have been first to answer the call to follow it does not give them the special importance they seem to want so desperately.
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