Have
no fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly knowing that
Christ is with you, therefore no harm can befall you; all is very, very well.
Do this in complete faith and confidence. - Blessed Pope John Paul II
(Gospel
text: Mk 10:17-30)
As
Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up,
knelt
down before him, and asked him,
"Good
teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus
answered him, "Why do you call me good?
No
one is good but God alone.
You
know the commandments: You shall not
kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
you shall not defraud;
honor your father and your mother."
He
replied and said to him,
"Teacher,
all of these I have observed from my youth."
Jesus,
looking at him, loved him and said to him,
"You
are lacking in one thing.
Go,
sell what you have, and give to the poor
and
you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me."
At
that statement his face fell,
and
he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
Jesus
looked around and said to his disciples,
"How
hard it is for those who have wealth
to
enter the kingdom of God!"
The
disciples were amazed at his words.
So
Jesus again said to them in reply,
"Children,
how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!
It
is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than
for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."
They
were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves,
"Then
who can be saved?"
Jesus
looked at them and said,
"For
human beings it is impossible, but not for God.
All
things are possible for God."
Peter
began to say to him,
"We
have given up everything and followed you."
Jesus
said, "Amen, I say to you,
there
is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters
or
mother or father or children or lands
for
my sake and for the sake of the gospel
who
will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age:
houses
and brothers and sisters
and
mothers and children and lands,
with
persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come."
What
a vivid image!
God’s word is razor sharp, able to cut
through our innermost thoughts. It can expose the inner motives and desires of
our hearts. Most of us would cringe at the thought of such a weapon. So it’s
good to know that this isn’t the whole picture.
If we want a fuller picture, we need
to look at today’s Gospel reading. A wealthy man asks Jesus how he can gain
eternal life. Jesus recounts the commandments, and the man is sure he has kept
them.
What
is he still missing?
This is when Mark gives us a vital
detail: Jesus looked at him, “loved him,” and told him to give his money to the
poor and then come follow him (Mark 10:21).
It’s this look of love that cut
through the man’s confusion and exposed his real self. Jesus saw his sincerity,
but also saw the “one thing” that stood in his way: he was too attached to his
wealth (Mark 10:21). Jesus’ “look” wasn’t one of harsh scrutiny. It was an
inviting look. It was a warm and compassionate look that saw the man’s
strengths and weaknesses and offered him the grace to become the disciple he
wanted to be.
It’s
unfortunate that the rich man “went away sad” (Mark 10:22). But you don’t have
to follow his footsteps!
Every day, Jesus, the living Word of
God, looks on you with the same penetrating gaze. He sees everything in you the
good, the bad, and the ugly and he loves you intensely.
So take a moment now to let Jesus
search you. As you do, you’ll discover that he sees so much goodness in your
heart, goodness that you take for granted or didn’t even know was there. Of
course he sees areas that need to change. But he is so happy with everything
else that he is more than eager to help you make those changes.
“Do
not be afraid to put out into the deep waters and lower your nets for a
catch.” -Blessed Pope John Paul II
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