The passage
      v17. Jesus is approached by a man with an important question. This man of "great wealth" is someone with genuine respect for Jesus, even addressing Jesus as "good", a description normally reserved for God. He asks Jesus a classic religious question ("what must I do to enter life"), a question usually answered in the terms of Ezekiel 33:15. For Jesus, salvation is not a matter of doing, but rather receiving, and those who receive are the helpless, not the righteous.
      v18. Jesus' unwillingness to accept the description "good" is not a denial of his sinlessness, nor is it a claim to deity, but rather is a reminder that "none are righteous, no not one."
      v19. Jesus quotes the law (Decalogue. "Defraud" = 8 and 9) as it relates to a neighbor. Do this and you will live, Deut.30:15f.
      v20. The man genuinely believes he has obeyed the law since becoming an adult (12 years of age), although his question to Jesus implies a lack of assurance. Has he truly kept the law?
      v21. In the ethic of Judaism, it was not proper to become destitute through sacrificial generosity to the poor. Yet, Jesus goes to the heart of true neighborliness by illustrating how this rich man can love his neighbor as himself. If he gives everything to the poor he will earn merit ("treasure in heaven"), but of course, Jesus knows that no person is capable of perfection.
      v22. Clearly Jesus has made his point, for the rich man now knows he is a sinner. He joins the helpless, and it is the helpless Jesus has come to save.
      v23-25. Jesus goes on to claim that it is hard for a person, who possesses this world's things, to enter the kingdom of heaven. The disciples are astonished because, in the ethic of Judaism, wealth is a sign of God's blessing and its wise use a means of merit. Jesus then redefines his claim to include everyone, and the hard to enter now becomes impossible.
      v26-27. If entering the kingdom ("saved", "inherit eternal life") is next to impossible, what hope does anyone have? On the basis of human merit it is impossible, but there is another way; God can save out of kindness.
      v28. Peter's self-justifying merit indicates a failure to understand all that Jesus has just said to the disciples.
      v29-30. Just as a disregard for the law brings judgement in the here and now, so too does a regard for the law (in this case cross-bearing discipleship) bring blessing in the here and now. Goodness has its own reward, although eternal life (by grace through faith) far outshines any earthly blessing.
      v31. Yet beware! Those who think they are in the kingdom (on the basis of merit - even the merit of a discipleship of total radical sacrifice) will find themselves out. Those who think they are out because they are helpless and broken, will find themselves in (if they ask Jesus).

The God of the impossible
      "All things are possible with God."
      We have all been reminded of this verse at some time or other. It often comes our way when we have expressed doubt about some venture proposed by a keen believer. There is nothing worse in a church council meeting, questioning the wisdom of some proposed programme, and then to have quoted to us the "all things are possible" line. It implies we have little faith, little faith in God's power that is, rather than little faith in the wisdom of the hair-brain scheme. There is this long-held belief that impossible dreams are made possible by the God of the impossible.
      There is no doubt that all things are possible for God, Yet, we are bound to qualify this claim. First, God does not act against his own will, person or character; he does not act against his own being. Second, he has never promised to act on our intentions, impossible or otherwise, rather, he acts on his own intentions. Where he has promised to act on our behalf is where he will act. For example, he has promised to save the repentant sinner. God has promised to overcome the impossible possibility of a sinner entering the kingdom of heaven.
      In our passage for study we see a rich man humiliated and helpless and disciples confident and self-assured. We are reminded that the God of the impossible is willing and able to eternally save the broken and unworthy.