In the 10th chapter of Mark,
from verse 17, we read this following account. And when Christ was
gone forth into the way, there came one running and kneeled
to him and asked him, good master, what shall I do that I may inherit
eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, why
callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that
is God. Thou knowest the commandments.
Do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear
false witness, defraud not, honour thy father and mother. And he
answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from
my youth. Then Jesus beholding him, loved
him, and said unto him, one thing thou lackest go thy way sell
whatsoever thou hast and give to the poor and thou shalt have
treasure in heaven and come take up the cross and follow me and
he was sad at that saying and went away grieved for he had
great possessions And Jesus looked round about and saith unto his
disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the
kingdom of God. And the disciples were astonished
at his words. But Jesus answered again and
saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust
in riches to enter into the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter
into the kingdom of God. And they were astonished out
of measure, saying among themselves, who then can be saved? And Jesus
looking upon them, saith, with men it is impossible, but not
with God. For with God all things are possible. Then Peter began to say unto
him, Lo, we have left all and have followed thee. And Jesus
answered and said, Verily I say unto you, there is no man that
hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother,
or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake and the gospel's. but he shall receive an hundredfold
now in this time houses and brethren and sisters and mothers and children
and lands with persecutions and in the world to come eternal
life. But many that are first shall
be last and the last first. And they were in the way going
up to Jerusalem, and Jesus went before them, and they were amazed. And as they followed, they were
afraid. And He took again the twelve
and began to tell them what things should happen under Him, saying,
Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man shall be delivered
unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn
Him to death. and shall deliver him to the
Gentiles. And they shall mock him, and
shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill
him. And the third day he shall rise
again. Verse 25, it is easier for a
camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man
to enter into the kingdom of God. And they were astonished
out of measure. saying among themselves, who
then can be saved? Who then can be saved? Have you ever asked, do you ever
ask along with this rich man, this young man, in verse 17,
have you asked, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? Do you ask that? Do you wonder
what must I do? What shall I do that I may inherit
eternal life? What shall I do? What shall I
do? Is that how you approach eternal life? With a what shall
I do? and having asked the question,
are you perhaps dismayed at the impossibility of doing that which
is required? As Christ answered this man,
sell all and take up your cross and follow me. one thing thou lackest go thy
way sell whatsoever thou hast and give to the poor and thou
shalt have treasure in heaven and come take up the cross and
follow me you ask the question what shall i do and when you
get the answer give up everything sell all your riches Give up
all that that you've sought to attain to in this world. Give
up everything that you clutch to. Give it all up and take up the
cross and follow me. When you hear that answer and
when you comprehend what is really required by that answer, does
it crush you? Are you filled with despair?
As this man was. He was sad at that saying and
went away grieved, for he had great possessions. A reaction to which Christ answered
and said unto his disciples, children, how hard is it for
them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God?
It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than
for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. And the disciples
were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, who
then can be saved? Who then can be saved? This salvation this laying hold
of eternal life if it requires the giving up of all and the
taking up of the cross and the following of Christ is beyond
any. Can you truly give up all? Can you truly take the cross? Can you truly follow him? But we're not simply talking
here of your earthly riches. If the message merely regarded
your outward circumstances, giving up your house, giving up your
riches, giving up your well-paid job, giving up earthly riches,
and following Christ. If it was merely the outward,
then there are many who have done such things. There are many
full of zeal in religion who have turned their back on this
world's ways, turned their back on the riches of this world,
who have taken a hard life, who have given up much to follow
their religion. who if that was all that was
required then they would be able to look upon themselves and say
we I have succeeded I have followed I've given up all but the riches here and the giving
up here and the taking up of the cross here goes far beyond
the outward riches far beyond your house and your car and your
job These are all those riches, all
those things you've gained and worked for. This is to give up everything.
To give up your works. To give up your will. To give
up your glory. To become nothing that you might
attain to eternal life. As Paul had to discover, as he
recounts in Philippians, all that he was in religion he counted
it as done. That he might have Christ, as done. says in Philippians 3 we are
the circumcision which worship God in the spirit and rejoice
in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh though I might also
have confidence in the flesh he was rich you see he was rich
in religion Paul Saul was rich He was a Pharisee of the Pharisees,
though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man
thinketh that he have, whereof he might trust in the flesh,
I more circumcise the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of
the tribe of Benjamin, and Hebrew of the Hebrews, as touching the
law of Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church. touching
the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. O Saul had
riches, he had many things, he was of the right stock, the right
birth, he was full of zeal, he set himself to religion and to
the letter and he achieved and he rose up above his peers, he
was there. concerning zeal he was full of
it, touching the righteousness of the law outwardly he was blameless. But all these riches, all these
works, all his will, all those things which were gained to me,
he says, I counted loss for Christ. yea doubtless and I count all
things but lost for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do
count them but done that I may win Christ. and be found in him,
not having mine own righteousness which is of the law, but that
which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which
is of God by faith, that I may know him, and the power of his
resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made
conformable unto his death. if by any means I might attain
unto the resurrection of the dead. Paul gave it all up, all
his riches he discovered were useless, they were keeping him
out of the kingdom of God, they were keeping him out of eternal
life. Those things he thought were
gain to him he counted loss for Christ. They weren't gain. His
ability to keep the law of God outwardly, his righteousness
of the law, actually condemned him. It was self-righteousness,
it was filthy rags in God's sight, it looked wonderful to man. But
it kept Paul away. He was full of pride. full of conceit, full of glorying
in himself. And though they were gained to
him personally before men, he counted them lost for Christ.
He knew that if he trusted in that and rested in that, he would
never attain unto the resurrection from the dead. That which he
longed after, that which he sought after, to be one with Christ,
to rise again with Christ from the dead. He counted all these
things for loss. That's the riches that God taught
Paul must be given up and which God stripped of Paul. Master
all these have I observed from my youth this young man says.
Who knows perhaps this young man was Saul or one like Saul
or a friend of Saul's. For Jesus, beholding him, loved
him. At that day, at that point, he
went away sad and grieved, for he was full of riches, full of
trusting in the flesh. But Saul, one day, Though grieved
by the message of Christ, though grieved by the gospel, though
turning to persecute the church, though Saul persecuted and put
Stephen to death, he one day would hear the voice of Christ
and one day be saved. And perhaps this young man here,
like Saul, who trusted in the flesh and trusted in his own
riches and trusted in his own works, one day perhaps he too
would hear the gospel and be stripped of all and be made by
the grace of God to take up the cross and follow Christ. Not this day. Not this day when
he came to Christ full of his own glory, full of confidence,
full of the flesh, full of riches. But Jesus beholding him, loved
him. And if Jesus looked upon him
with love, then surely one day he'd have been stripped of all,
taught the gospel, and caused to follow Christ. Do you ask, what shall I do that
I may inherit eternal life? Does the answer, take up your
cross, take up the cross and follow me, grieve you that you
should give up all? All your religion, all your righteousness,
all your will, all your works, give it all up. Go on. Can you? Do you think you can? Take up
the cross and follow me, you think you can, go on then. Give
it all up and follow him. Can you? Can you? No? When the disciples saw this
man and heard what Christ said to him and heard Christ's assessment,
that how hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom
of God, how hardly shall they that trust in the flesh enter
into the kingdom of God, how hardly shall the self-righteous
enter into the kingdom of God, how hardly shall the religious,
the Jews, those that know. How hardly shall those who are
versed in the Bible, how shall those who are brought up in church,
shall those who constantly are brought to sit under the gospel,
how hardly shall those who embrace all these things with the mind
and in the intellect and with their own strength, how hardly
shall the rich in religion enter into the kingdom of God. Are you religious? Do you read
your Bible? Are you full of prayer? Do you
attend all the meetings? Have you got riches in religion? Then how hardy I say unto you,
shall those that have riches like you, enter into the kingdom
of God. And if that message fills you
with despair, it filled the disciples, they were astonished out of measure. Who then can be saved? We look
upon the Gentiles, the Gentile dogs, those who know not God,
those who never come to worship, those who despise God, those
who never pick up the scriptures. We know that. How could they
be saved? they've no care for God but you're
telling us that even these even these that know the scriptures
even these that follow the commandments even these who can say master
all these commandments i have i observed from my youth even
these you're telling us can hardly be saved well who can be Jesus looking upon them saith,
with men it is impossible, but not with God. For with God all
things are possible. It's not that the commandments
are wrong. It's not that it's wrong that
you should follow God, that you should observe these commandments. But if you trust in your riches,
if you trust in your observance, if you trust in your righteousness,
then that very observance is keeping you outside the Kingdom
of God. If there's any trust in any pride
taken in what you do in religion, then your very religion, however
true and right it might appear, your very religious observance
is keeping you out. And it's impossible to set yourself,
humanly speaking, to religion, to the truth, to God's word,
and to keeping it without Take in pride in what you do. It's impossible. When you hear
of what's required of you under the law, when you hear of what
you should be before God, when you hear of how righteous you
should be, and when you try to turn from your sin and try to
live right, all you're doing is keeping yourself outside of
the kingdom of God. All your efforts are efforts
in which you take pride and in which you trust. They are riches. And it is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter
into the kingdom of God. Who then can be saved? Who? The rich? The great? The mighty? The strong? the knowledgeable,
the rich in religion, the great in religion, the mighty in religion,
those who have a name for themselves in the churches, those who know
the most scripture, those who pray with the most sincerity,
those who preach with the most zeal. It is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle and for a rich man to enter into
the kingdom of God. But you may answer, but you say,
we must take up our cross and follow Christ. We must. That's what Christ tells
us. He tells us to do this. And I'm
trying to take up my cross. I've given up so much. Have you? Have you taken up your cross?
Have you taken up the cross? Have you given up all? Oh, you may keep the law to the
letter. You don't commit adultery. You
don't kill. You don't steal. You don't bear
false witness. You defraud not. You honor thy
father and thy mother. Oh, you're very careful with
the scriptures. You're at every meeting. You pray zealously,
but one thing you lack. Sell all that thou hast and give
to the poor. Because there's those things
that you still hold onto with a tight grip. That attainment
in the scriptures, that knowledge of truth, which you have and
others don't, that discernment in which you take pride, that
zeal which you have that others lack, that separation from evil,
from sin, from the world, from false religion, which you have
and others lack. Oh you've come away from it all,
you've come out from among them, you're separate. And others haven't. Have you given up all? Have you
said my separation is nothing? Have you said all that I have
done is nothing? I am a wretched blind fool. Lord have mercy upon me. Have
you taken up your cross? Do you think you have? Do you
take a little pride in your self-denial, in your dedication, in your devotion? Then you've not given it all
up, have you? With men it is impossible. As long as you put any effort
or zeal into your religion, as long as you rest in it in any
way, trust in it in any way, you'll still hold it on. You've
still got a little riches in your pocket, with which you seek
to pay your way into glory. You still think you're going
to put that coin on the table to inherit eternal life. There's
still that trust in himself. with men, it is impossible. Who then can be saved? Who then will follow? Peter goes on and says, lo, we've
left all and followed thee. We've left all. And Christ reminds
him that when you leave all, it comes with persecution. and your inheritance is in the
world to come. He reminds them that to follow
him is to follow him to the cross. In verse 32 he begins to speak
of the death which he will die, how he will be delivered up.
how they shall mock him and scourge him and spit upon him and kill
him and the third day he shall rise again now to follow him
is to follow him there and to experience what he experienced
and to know the experience of the world and the religious world
mocking you and scourging you and spitting upon you and killing
you To follow Me, to take up the cross is to go that way. To follow where He went. Now
you can't suffer as He suffered, but you will know something of
it. Where He went was to a place
where all men rejected Him. And to take up the cross and
follow Him is to go to a place where you're made to be nothing
in the eyes of religion. where the world despises you
and the religious world despises you and where you know that all
your works all your will all your righteousnesses are as filthy
rags to go to where he went to go to the cross is to see your
righteousnesses your filthy rags your sin laid upon Christ and
consumed in the fires of God's wrath, is to see yourself crucified
with Christ. I am crucified with Christ, Paul
said. That same Saul, a Pharisee of
the Pharisees, of the stock of Israel, the tribe of Benjamin,
With all that to glory and He saw it all slain. He saw all
that He was slain, I'm crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live,
yet not I, but the life which I now live in the flesh, I live
by the faith of the Son of God. He saw Himself slain, that was
taken the cross. Being crucified to all that you
are, that you might be one with Christ and live again. Take up the cross and follow
me. How can you? Humanly speaking,
it's impossible. Salvation's impossible. Oh, the impossibility of salvation. How might you attain unto eternal
life? How might we get to God? When God seems so inaccessible,
He's at such a distance, where is He? We cannot see Him. Naturally speaking, we cannot
hear Him. This world which lies in darkness,
this violent world, this world full of people at war one with
another, Nations rising up, nations casting down, full of hatred,
full of anguish, people gaining at the expense of others. This
world and its ways at times feels like God has removed himself
and left everyone to themselves to murder each other, to destroy
one another. Get on with it. It's like he's removed. And if
we're brought to seek him, if we're brought to see that this
world is not all there is but life is brief and soon we will
die as our parents die, as our grandparents died, as all former
generations have died. Soon our life will be over, soon
we will die if we're brought to see the reality of that and
to fear it and to know it's coming. and to cry out for something
beyond the grave. If we're brought to see that
we must have eternal life otherwise we're lost forevermore. If we're
brought to cry out for it then the first problem we discover
is how might we attain unto eternal life when we know it must come
from God our maker and we don't know where to find him. Where
is he? It's like he's left us all to
it, it's like he's left the churches to it. Which church has the truth? Which message will lead me to
God? How can I tell? They say they're
right and they say they're right and the other one says they're
right and they're all completely opposed one to another. There's
such confusion in the churches. Even in the true, even in those
churches which claim to follow Christ, which claim to be true,
which claim to follow the scriptures, they're so different. Which is
true. We feel to be at a great gulf
from God. We can't see him, we can't hear
him, we can't reach him. He seems so far off, so aloof,
so distant. He's left us all to it to destroy
one another. He's left the religious to it
to destroy one another. Then we feel at a gulf because
of our sins. Even if there was a church we
could go to where the truth is declared, even if we knew where
we could go to get unto God, we don't feel like we can go. We feel like if we go in the
midst that our sins have separated us from God. We feel even if
we knew the way to God that we'd never get to Him because our
sins have brought in so much guilt, past, present and future. How can God forgive me? I've done so much. Salvation feels impossible. and
not only our sins but what we are our sin. Even if we try to
change our ways, even if we try to keep the commandment, even
if we try to live right, even if we feel we have not committed
such great sins as many others have, we know our heart when
God shows it unto us. When we begin this journey seeking
to take the cross, seeking to follow Christ, we discover as
the Spirit shows us our heart and we know that there's sin
within. And all our thoughts and all our affections and all
our ways are tainted and stained by sin. Then how can we possibly
be saved when we're sinned through and through? From head to foot. Salvation is impossible. Our
inability to improve shows us the impossibility of
salvation. If we can't improve ourselves,
if we can't change, how can we possibly be saved? How can we
possibly climb up out of the pit we're in? We begin to strive
in religion and we fall and we stumble. And when God shows us, we discover
that our outward conduct is of nothing worth. Because inwardly,
we're black and corrupt and filthy, and we can't do anything to cleanse
it. We're captive to sin. We're captive to a fallen will. We're in bondage. We are slaves
to sin. Our captivity makes salvation
impossible. And our love of this world and
its riches and its ways and its glory and our love of the religion
of this world and its riches and its ways and its glory keeps
us at a great gulf from God. With men it is impossible, impossible. Have you tried? Has God taught
you your need of salvation, your need of eternal life? Have you
turned? Have you tried? Have you striven? You will know It is impossible. Who then can be saved? Who can follow? With God, all things are possible. With men it is impossible but
not with God for with God all things are possible. There are
those who are saved, there are those who inherit eternal life,
there are those like Peter who are brought to follow, brought
to give it all up, brought to turn aside from their religion
and their riches. and their wealth in religion,
their pride, their glory, their self-righteousness, they're brought
to follow. They're brought to take up the
cross and follow. And it's not they that do it. They have found it impossible.
they found that they were striving and got nowhere but there came
a day when the gospel came their way and when God turned and God
did that which was impossible and made it possible he brought
them to the cross he brought them to see Christ mocked and
scourged and spat upon and killed for them. And he brought them to see by
faith on the third day Christ rising again. How is this salvation
possible? By the cross. By the cross. by that one the son of man who
came not to be ministered unto but to minister and to give his
life a ransom for many. They may not be able to give
it all up, naturally speaking. They may not be able to turn.
But Christ came to the helpless. Christ came to those in despair. Christ came to those who have
tried and failed. And he came to take them to the
cross and to say, all your efforts, all your sin, all your failure
I have taken away. And when I was mocked, and when
I was scourged and when I was spat upon, when I was slain,
I delivered you from your sin and I made you to be the righteousness
of God in me and I have set you free. When God makes known this salvation
to a sinner, perhaps to you, Then and only then does that
sinner give up all, take up the cross and follow Him. Because God by grace has made
it to happen. He's made that which is impossible
with man possible. What made these disciples like
Peter and John give up all and follow Christ? What made them?
God did. Christ came to them as fishermen. Christ came to them where they
were and he called them by grace. Those men he chose. Ye have not
chosen me but I have chosen you. He found them in their sin and
he called them and because he called them by the power of his
gospel they followed. It wasn't what they did it's
what he did. What he did. He led them. And he led them
to the cross. And he showed them what happened.
Not just to him. But to them. At the cross. Has he done this for you? Has
he called you? Chosen you? Led you forth? Has he? This chapter concludes
with some further accounts, all of which are connected to this
message. Following Christ's words about
the death that he should die, we have this account of James
and John asking to sit at his right hand and to his left. And
his response unto them, that they know not what they're asking. He asked them, can you drink
of the cup that I drink of and be baptized with the baptism
that I will be baptized with? And they say, we can. They say,
yes, we can go to the cross. We can take up the cross like
you. We can suffer it. But of themselves, they couldn't.
Humanly speaking, it's impossible. If you think that you can go
and humble yourself, In such a manner, you can't, because
as soon as you think you can, you've hung on to some riches. But Christ answers and says,
ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and
with the baptism that I am baptised with all. You will, but not by
your strength. I will take you. and you will
be crucified with me upon the cross. You will be slain. And being slain, you will rise
again. And if you're slain like that,
you won't ask to sit in the highest seat. You will be happy to sit
in the lowest. You will be happy to minister
unto others. You will be happy to take up
the cross and to wash the feet of others and to take the lowliest
place. You'll be happy to be the least
in the kingdom of God. Because you followed the same
way that the master went. The son of man who came not to
be ministered unto but to minister and to give his life a ransom
for many. having answered these disciples, they went to Jericho. And blind Bartimaeus sat at the
wayside and cried out unto Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy
on me, have mercy on me. And Jesus called him and said, what
wilt thou that I should do unto thee? And he said, Lord that
I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy
way, thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received
his sight and followed Jesus in the way. He followed This
blind wretch of a man who didn't speak of what he'd done, didn't
speak of what shall I do but just cried out for mercy. Now what is your cry unto God? Is it what shall I do that I
may inherit eternal life? Or is it the cry of that one
at the end here who ends up following Jesus in the way, who called
out, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. Have mercy on me. Who then shall be saved? Who
then can be saved? Who? those who cry out, as those
who have nothing, as those who are dead in trespasses and sins,
as those who are blind, as those who know they have no strength,
those who cry out, Lord have mercy on me, a sinner. Who then can be saved? who, any, any whom God chooses
to save, any whom God washes in the blood of Christ, any whom
God turns from sin, any whom God shows grace unto, all whom
God saves will be saved. Are you too far gone, too blind,
too deaf, Two dead in trespasses and sins, are you too far off? Are you? Do you know it? Do you feel it? Do you feel like
you're beyond hope, sat on the wayside, blind? Well perhaps
Jesus of Nazareth will pass your way and you will know it's Him
and in desperation you will cry out unto the Saviour of sinners. Jesus, thou son of David, have
mercy upon me. And if he has mercy upon you, then
you, like Bartimaeus, will receive your sight, and you will take
up your cross, and you will follow him. He has taken up his cross,
the cross, for you, then why would you not
take up that cross for him? Why would you not give up all
that you might see? Why would you not give up all
that you might have eternal life? If you've been brought to see
the foolishness of trusting in riches, Who then can be saved? Thou shalt call his name Jesus,
for he shall save his people from their sins. Jesus said unto
him, Go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately
he received his sight and followed Jesus in the way.