Sermon Mark 10:17-31 Go, Sell, Give, Come, Follow


Sermon 10-14-18  Mark 10:17-31 

You’d think, after that divorce text that was hard to hear last week, Jesus would give us an easy one this week.  “Go, sell all that you own, give the money to the poor, and come, follow me.” So much for easy.

There are lots of ways to think about these words from Jesus.
Do we take them literally?
If so, this is probably the most disobeyed commandment of them all. 
Do we let a few people, like Mother Theresa and Shane Claiborne,
follow them literally on behalf of all of us?
Do we understand Jesus to mean that we give up whatever is in the way of following him, whether it’s money, or our job, our family, an addiction, some obsession we have?
Some of these might make sense in the moment,but they don’t make Jesus’ instruction any easier.

The man asks Jesus about “inheriting the kingdom”.
Now, this is a very faithful person, who knows and has kept the commandments all his life.
He’s doing all the right things!
Jesus even says he only lacks one thing.
I mean, that’s a solid A, 99%.
But… as for the kingdom of heaven, the eternal life question, that one thing will be essential.
Jesus reminds us that the kingdom of heaven isn’t something you inherit after you die;
it’s about Jesus, the reign of God right here, right now.
           
In the story, Jesus gives 5 instructions: go, sell, give, come, follow. This, to me, is the rhythm of a life of active faith.


Go, out into the world.
Use what you have to improve life for someone who is poor, hurting, lonely, suffering.
Come close to Jesus, and follow him.
And you know where he’s going—out into the world, to ease the suffering, to bless the poor, to feed the hungry. Maybe it isn’t so much about going out and coming back but about keeping up with Jesus. 

So how do we live our lives to keep up with Jesus?
How do we live so that the kingdom is visible, so that people see Jesus here among us?
How does our life here and now look like God’s dream and intention for creation?
That’s where the money comes in—having enough of what you need to eat, maintain health,
     enjoy life-giving relationships, and be who God made you to be —
that’s what the kingdom of heaven looks like.
People are not starving, malnourished, dying of preventable disease, homeless, abandoned, or addicted in the kingdom of heaven. 
Our money, invested in the right places, can bring about the healing, feeding, and gathering that is needed, and which looks like the kingdom of heaven.
And our time, energy, ideas, networking, compassion, and love.
Go, sell, give, come, follow.

Yesterday at confirmation we talked about vocation: where your deep passion meets the needs of the world.
So, I invite you to reflect: how are these words of Jesus speaking to you today?
Go, sell, give, come, follow.
Which are you ready to do? In what ways?
Are you being called to give more time, energy, or money for the good of the kingdom?
What does following Jesus look like in your life?
Former president Jimmy Carter said,
“My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference.”
I believe you are already doing this, and I want you to recognize that. 
The way we live our lives from day to day is, or can be, following Jesus.
It doesn’t have to be a separate thing, which is the problem in the story; the man didn’t see that the thing he so longed for, the kingdom of God, was standing right in front of him, in Jesus.

Today Lutherans across the city will go, sell, give, come, and follow. 
Hopefully when people see hundreds of goldenrod Lutheran T-shirts around the city, they will see the kingdom of God.
The work, God’s work, which we do with our hands, is one way of following Jesus, a way of caring for the poor, of sharing assets to improve life for our neighbors.
Being Christian isn’t about “doing nice things”—it’s about following Jesus, which is hard to do sometimes, and sometimes results in nice things for others.
Go, sell, give, come, follow is an invitation to life—
good life, for all creation, because of God’s unfailing love.
Amen.


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