Verses 1-12
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Marriage is about two becoming one. If two become one, how could we ever see separation as acceptable? How can someone separate one thing?
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Therefore, divorce is unacceptable. Divorce is adultery. Period.
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There are exceptions, however. See teaching on 1 Peter 3, 1 Corinthians 7, and Matthew 19 for more details.
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Verses 13-16
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See Matthew 18 for more details.
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Do not be perturbed by the presence of children. Rather, receive children as warmly as you would want God to receive you into heaven. Why?
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Those who enter eternal life must be like a child. Therefore, if you do not value children, you do not value eternal life.
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Verses 17-22
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This young man had done much good, but his heart was not with God. Money was his god.
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He did not keep the first and most important commandment, which is that we would love God with all of our being (Matthew 22:37). He loved his money instead.
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Understand that no amount of good works, even those consistent with Scripture, are good enough if your heart is not exclusive to Christ.
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You cannot love God fully and be unwilling to give up something for His sake.
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If the thought of losing something on earth saddens you more than the thought of losing eternal life, you're in a dangerous spot! Repent, and give your whole life to Jesus! Whatever you're not willing to give up is what you've made your god. So, give up what you don't want to!
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See teaching on Matthew 19 for more details.
Verses 23-31
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Interestingly enough, the rich young ruler walked away before he could hear Jesus finish His teaching about money! It concludes with great encouragement!
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Yes, it is hard for wealthy people to believe in Jesus because the love of money is a powerful force for evil (1 Timothy 6:10). But with the power of God, anyone can be moved to believe and receive eternal life. How so?
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We must understand that when we give up anything for Christ, we always receive back something better.
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We will have an eternal treasure in heaven, yes, but in this life also we'll receive better! In Christ, although there will be persecution from unbelievers, we receive joys and experiences through a relationship with Christ that are far greater than anything the world could give us.
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The church becomes a new and better family for us—brothers and sisters in Christ—and we gain value from the church that allows us to thrive and live better than we ever could have before!
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If you want to help a rich person desire eternal life, talk about how the value of eternal life, even here on earth, is far greater than any earthly value apart from Christ.
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Verses 32-40
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Verses 32-35. Interestingly enough, as soon as Jesus gets done telling His disciples how much He is going to suffer, the first thing that James and John do, void of any compassion for Christ's impending suffering, is ask Him to do whatever they want!
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Notice Jesus' gentleness. He knows that they do not know what they're about to ask for. We also, often, don't know what we ask for. God is patient with the dumb things that we say, since we often don't know better.
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You also be patient and gentle with the remarks of people that need understanding.
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If we ask to be as close to the Son as we can be, both here and in the kingdom, suffering is included (Romans 8:17, 2 Timothy 2:12). Jesus' suffered, and if we are close with Him we will have to suffer also.
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Jesus' cup and His baptisms is a reference to His suffering.
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And yet, God is the One to decide what our place in His kingdom will be.
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Regardless, be careful what you ask for!
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Verses 41-45
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The disciples were displeased with James and John likely because they thought of their request as proud or pretentious.
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If we are prideful, we will have a competitive spirit about us. Do not think competitively when it comes to greatness in the kingdom of heaven. You are not trying to one-up anyone.
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Do not chase after prominence, fame, or greatness on earth or in heaven.
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We shouldn't want to be noticed or seen as great by people, whether in this life or the life to come (Matthew 6:1).
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Instead, we should want only to glorify the Father and to be a servant to others—seeing them, even, as greater than ourselves (Philippians 2:3).
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We are acting like the proud rulers of this earth if we have ambitions for greatness, just so that we ourselves can be rulers or leaders that are seen by men.
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Give up ambition, and choose instead to be a humble, childlike servant that wants only to please God and love others.
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See teaching on Matthew 6, Matthew 18, and Matthew 20 for more details.
Verses 46-52
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Verses 46-50. We are invited to Christ because we cry out for His mercy (Titus 3:5). Remember that, to receive anything from God, we depend on His mercy on grace. Always remind yourself of and pray for God's mercy.
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This blind man knew this, and so, continuing to cry out, Christ called him and acknowledged his faith.
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See teaching on Matthew 20 for more details.
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Verse 52. Notice also that, upon healing him, Jesus told him to go his own way. Jesus let him decide what he was going to do, and where he was going to go, after he was healed.
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In response, the man chose to follow Jesus—He made Jesus' way His way. He made the right choice! The best way is Jesus' way.
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Choose Jesus' way yourself, and let others make their own choice to follow Jesus with you or not.
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Don't help people expecting or demanding that they come to your church or become a Christian right away. Just help people! Your love and gentleness will draw them in.
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