Read Mark 10:17-22
“Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, ‘One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.’”—Mark 10:21
When the young ruler asked what he could do to inherit eternal life, Jesus gave a simple answer: Obey the commandments. The ruler responded he’d kept the commandments since his youth. So, Jesus addressed the real heart of the matter—Give up all you have, take up the cross and follow Me. The ruler went away sorrowful because he was rich.
The ruler had been obedient to the letter but not the spirit of the law. He didn’t own his possessions; his possessions owned him. Just as a little leaven impacts the whole loaf, that one thing influenced his ability to be an effective disciple.
Before we judge the ruler’s unwillingness to give up his riches, what has God told us to give up we still hold onto? Regardless how many commandments we’ve obeyed, we have “one thing” we all lack. “One thing” is different for each of us, but it exists for all of us. Often, “one thing” is something not conquered easily; usually, it’s the single entity we struggle with most. We can try to compensate on “one thing” by being obedient on other things, but our “one thing” still needs to be addressed.
Like the ruler, we can be comfortable with ourselves because we do so much good. Regardless of our acts of charity, service, and even obedience on the things we find easier to do, Jesus reminds us discipleship is more than the “do’s and don’ts” of obeying the commandments. Jesus was inviting the ruler into a relationship with Him, free from the bondage to his “one thing.” Even today Christ invites us into a relationship by the power of His blood and resurrection, which free us from the power of our “one thing.” And once Christ frees us, we are truly free (John 8:36).
Give God your “one thing” today and see what He does with it!
Question to Ponder: What is the “one thing” that stands between who you are and whom God would have you to be?
“A little leaven leavens the whole lump.”—Galatians 5:9
