Gospel MT 19:16-22
A young man approached Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?”
He answered him, “Why do you ask me about the good?
There is only One who is good.
If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
He asked him, “Which ones?”
And Jesus replied, “You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
honor your father and your mother;
and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
The young man said to him,
“All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?”
Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go,
sell what you have and give to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me.”
When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad,
for he had many possessions.
Reflection:
This young man had many possessions and was obeying all the commandments. Yet, he approached Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?”
Obviously, even though he was obeying all the religious laws, he must have felt he needed something other than compliance with the law in order for him to attain Heaven.
The young man was on the right track because he asked the correct question, “What good must I do?”
Perhaps his heart had been stirred by seeing Jesus helping the poor, the blind, the deaf, and the crippled, or cleansing a leper from his disease.
In any event, something triggered his mind to understand that being in union with God is not simply about obeying rules, but is instead about what a person is doing to help others.
Jesus pointed him in the right direction by telling him to sell his “things” and “give to the poor” and “then come follow me.”
I’m reminded of the scriptural passage: “No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Luke 16:13
This passage does not mean to imply that a person cannot have wealth. It does, however, mean that if the time comes to choose between God and money, then love and service to God and others must prevail over love of money and possessions.
Jesus saw that the young man was trying to justify his attachment to his wealth by obeying all the religious rules.
Our Lord called him on it: “If you wish to be perfect, go,sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.Then come, follow me.”
What did Jesus mean by the words, “If you wish to be perfect?” To be perfect means to be like God, having a compassionate and giving heart, to be “poor in Spirit,” having no concern for material wealth.
But, the idea of giving up his “possessions” was too much for the young man. “He went away “sad” not following God, but holding onto his “possessions” and perhaps hoping to gain Heaven by simply obeying all the rules.
I would rather have it said, ‘He lived usefully,’ than, ‘He died rich.’ Benjamin Franklin