“And a ruler asked Him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to have eternal life?’ And Jesus said, ‘You know the commandments…’ And he said, ‘All these I have kept from my youth.’ When Jesus heard this, He said to him, ‘One thing you still lack. Sell all you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.'” (Luke 18:18-22)
Wouldn’t you hate to find out that you missed out on eternal life because of “one thing”? When Jesus was talking to this young rich man about his eternal destination it came down to just that…”one thing you lack”. This was a good and moral man. He was religious and had kept all the commandments since he was younger. He was successful in life and had done well for himself. He had an interest in spiritual things and his eternal destiny. In other words, he was primed and ready for a salvation experience.
Jesus begins by answering the man’s question the way we think he should…be a good religious person. This answer, however, was not enough for the young man. In fact, he knew that it was not the whole answer. He had enough spiritual awareness that he knew there was something more than religious laws and being a good person. That was what brought him to Jesus in the first place. He had already realized that his religious practices were falling short of providing what his soul needed.
“Come on, Jesus! Give it to me straight. There has to be more than going through the motions of religion!”
Your right, there is “one thing you lack”. For this young man, it was his material wealth that stood between him and a genuine experience with Jesus. It was the “one thing” that he was unwilling to give over to Jesus. It was the “one thing” that kept him from being 100% surrendered.
Everyone of us has that “one thing”. For some, like this man, it is their material comfort. For others it is health, relationships, position, power…pride. The man in the story walked away from Jesus sad because he was still unwilling to give it all. The Scripture says that Jesus was grieved as well.
How many people come so close to Jesus…aware of who He is and what He has to offer…and, yet…”one thing” keeps them from that abundant life that God promises through a relationship with Jesus.
Today, O believer, is there anything between you and total surrrender to Jesus. Come to Him…lay it on the altar…and follow Him. You will never regret it.