“…someone who is rich…” (19:23)

In Matthew 19, we read that Jesus and His disciples were in the region of Judea.

While there, a wealthy young man brought an opportunity for Jesus to teach His disciples (and us) some valuable lessons on riches and sacrifice.

Jesus says to his disciples, “…it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.” (19:23)

The obvious question is why is it so hard?

Wealth often provides comfort.

The greater the wealth, the greater the comfort someone can establish for themselves. And typically comfort and sacrifice don’t go hand in hand. For the wealthy, external needs become non-existent.

As Hollywood and much of pop-culture has shown us, external wants soon get described as needs, which is the epitome of the term, First World Problems.

These comforts won’t satisfy.

These external comforts don’t satisfy the deep internal needs of humanity. When we have unlimited time and resources, it’s so easy for us to get drawn toward something that looks good or feels good; constantly wandering to the next best thing.

Then, at the moment that comfort begins to fade, we replace it with something else because we have the wealth to do so.

With comfort, temptation follows.

A life built on maximum comfort and minimal sacrifice often leads to increased areas of temptation.

Soon enough, we find ourselves surrounded by these temptations, and without a strong foundation in Christ, our lives become marked with struggle and sin, as we chase each new source of fleeting comfort.

In a nutshell, this is why it’s hard for the rich to enter the kingdom.

But how hard is it really?

In verse 24 Jesus gives the disciples a small analogy to let them know just how hard it is. According to Jesus, getting a rich man into the kingdom of heaven is like squeezing a camel through “…the eye of a needle…” (19:24)

To pause for a moment, this is another one of those statements that gets a lot of scholarly controversy.

As I studied this, I found out that some theologians will argue that Jesus is speaking literally about a small gate in Jerusalem called the Needle Gate, to which camels can actually pass through if all the blankets, saddles, baggage, etc. are removed from the animal before entering.

But is this true?

Research seems to indicate that a problem arises with this theory. Archeologists are in constant debate as to the actual location of the Needle Gate. There seems to be a few Needle Gates and the time frame to which these gates received these names seems a bit shady.

The big question is, “Did these gates receive there names after Jesus made this statement?”

Most likely, a hyperbole.

And so, for today, we’ll fall back on what the majority of theologians believe: That Jesus was using a hyperbole in this statement, to make a greater impression on His disciples. Moreover, if we consider the cultural trends of that day, we can see that Jesus choice of a camel is very strategic.

Camels were the largest domesticated animals in that region, at the time. Camels were typically owned by rich people and used to carry rich people, or carry rich people’s stuff.

Common folk would count themselves greatly blessed to have a donkey, never mind a camel. The poor would use their own two feet.

“Who can be saved?” (19:25)

In verse 25, we see that Jesus’ statement definitely hits home with the disciples. Scripture tells us that the disciples “…were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?” (19:25)

After hearing this camel statement, the disciples react in amazement. “Are you kidding me Jesus? A camel through the eye of a needle?”

The disciples’ astonishment comes from Jesus’ choice of reference.

Let’s think like a disciple.

If the camel is supposed to resemble the rich man’s ride, a donkey might be smaller but it still can’t fit through the eye of a needle. In reality, no pack animal or human being can fit through the eye of a needle.

So the disciples are left wondering, “Who then can be saved?” If the eye of a needle is the metaphoric standard, who is ever going to make it into the kingdom?

They’re left scratching their heads.

As is always the case, just when the disciples are in total bewilderment, we see Jesus’ effective ability to teach, widening their perspective.

Tomorrow, we’ll unpack Jesus response to the disciples beginning with “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (19:26)

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Is being rich a sin? Can wealthy people still experience sacrifice? Can riches and sacrifice coexist?