"We are beggars. It is true." -Martin Luther

March 19, 2017  3rd Sunday in Lent              Matthew 19-20

Once again we find Matthew’s gospel challenging us and maybe even offending us.  Let’s start with what is perhaps the most offensive of all in these two chapters, the young man.  Although perhaps if you grew up going to church you know him as the “rich young ruler.”   If you do I want to challenge you to set that image aside.  This scene appears in three of our gospels.  Mark calls him rich.  Matthew adds young.  Luke calls him a ruler.  Thus, “the rich young ruler.” 

Now you could argue that we have three reasonably reliable historical sources here and we are wise to combine them to give a richer and more complete picture of the situation.  Indeed Christianity has done that many times over the centuries.  The problem is that we get this image of a rich and powerful young leader and we easily caricaturize him into a self-righteous elitist snob.  And that is something none of the gospels want us to do.  As we read Matthew’s gospel we always want to keep in mind that we are in the story world Matthew creates around Jesus.  It is the world he uses to teach us about Jesus and ourselves.  We are best to leave Mark and Luke out; not supplement with them.

So, how should we picture this well-off young man?  In today’s imagery think of him as the guy you want to have as your next door neighbor.  He’s the kind of guy you want to have as your dad.  He’s a good guy: honest, fair, dependable, hard-working and the ideal role model.  He’s the neighbor you put on your kids emergency contact list at school.  He has the three-bedroom suburban house with a deck, back yard and man cave in the basement.  He’s not perfect however.  He has just enough flaws to be likable.  There are mud puddles under each of the swings on the swing set in his back yard.  The flowerbeds around his house are well kept but there are a few weeds.  And his minivan has a ding in the back he’s never bothered fixing after a neighborhood kid ran into it with his bike.

So, when this man who has and really deserves a mug that says, “World’s Greatest Dad.” comes to Jesus and asks, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” we expect Jesus to say, “Great job man!  You’re in!  Will you be the poster child for my ad campaign?  I’ve already got a photographer lined up.”

By the standards of that day, and by the standards of our day, this is the perfect man.  “…go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”

The disciples say, “Then who can be saved?”  Jesus replies, and this is one of those verses that you want to carve deeply and eternally into your brain, “For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”

If you can grasp that verse then the rest of these chapters will make perfect sense.  For mortals it is impossible.  For God all things are possible.

You live in an impossible situation.  I don’t care how perfect you are by any and every worldly measure, you are a hopeless lost cause.  You have one and only one way into eternal life, and that is by a power you have no control over and have no capacity to influence.

There’s no point trying to impress God.  There’s nothing you can offer God that God doesn’t already have.  You’ve heard me say before Martin Luther’s last written words before he died, “We are beggars.  It is true.”

Keep all that in mind as we look at the other scenes in Matthew 19 and 20:

The parable of the laborers in the vineyard; again, by all worldly standards this is highly unfair – equal pay for unequal work.  But if God’s grace were logical or could be calculated it wouldn’t be grace.

The request of the mother of James and John to be seated in the seats of power at Jesus left and right, in light of God’s grace this request is utterly absurd.

The two blind men healed at the end of Chapter 20, they had nothing to offer Jesus at all but he heals them.

In a similar light, Jesus blessing the little children, they also had nothing to offer Jesus.

And perhaps the most directly cutting of all of Jesus teachings we read today; Jesus teachings on sexual ethics at the beginning of Chapter 19.  Christians have always squirmed with that teaching and always tried to come up with exceptions, escape clauses and more wiggle room.  But Jesus doesn’t mince words.  He means what he says.  He roots sexuality to God’s creative actions and intentions.

Maybe your life fits those intentions, maybe not.  If no, then call a spade a spade.  Adultery is adultery.  It is a sin.  It always has been.  It always will be.  You’re a sinner in need of God’s redeeming.  If yes, your life fits God’s intentions, then great for you… remember what Jesus told “the world’s greatest dad.”  You’re still a sinner in need of God’s redeeming.  We’re in the same vein of thought that we’ve had since reading the Sermon on the Mount.  If one thing doesn’t catch you then something else will.

Matthew portrays Jesus as impossibly demanding, and ultimately impossible to impress.  This is not to portray God as cruel, but in order for every person who ever reads his gospel to recognize they are caught in the net of sin, and thus in need of God’s grace.

The ultimate message, “For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”  Trust in that.  Rejoice in that.  Because God does the work therefore you can reflect God’s work in your life.