The Rich Young Ruler's Sad Choice
Month 9: The Road to Jerusalem · Heart Matters
Today's Scripture
Read together: Mark 10:17–22
17 As Jesus started on His way, a man ran up and knelt before Him. “Good Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 “Why do you call Me good?” Jesus replied. “No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not cheat others, honor your father and mother.’” 20 “Teacher,” he replied, “all these I have kept from my youth.” 21 Jesus looked at him, loved him, and said to him, “There is one thing you lack: Go, sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.” 22 But the man was saddened by these words and went away in sorrow, because he had great wealth.
Memory Verse
“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.””— Mark 10:45 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Ezekiel 36–39
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Around Day 258 of 365 — God promises a new heart and a new spirit: the very thing the rich young man needed most.)The Heart of It
A young man comes running and kneels before Jesus. He is eager, respectful, sincere. "Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" He has kept the commandments since boyhood. And here is the most tender detail in the whole story. "Jesus, looking at him, loved him." Out of that love, Jesus puts His finger on the one thing standing between this man and God. "One thing you lack: go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor… and come, take up the cross, and follow Me." The man's face falls. He goes away sorrowful, "for he had great possessions." He wanted eternal life. But he wanted his stuff even more.
This is a heart matter for every single one of us, rich or not. Jesus wasn't against money. He was after the man's heart. Something had quietly become his real treasure and his real king. And you can only have one. Notice that Jesus loved him enough to tell him the truth. And notice that He let him walk away. Jesus never grabs people or forces them. He invites, and He lets us choose. The saddest two words in this story are "went away." But it didn't have to end that way. And our story doesn't either. Whatever we're clutching too tightly, Jesus offers something infinitely better. He offers us Himself. The question He asks the young man, He asks us: Will you let go and follow Me?
Around the Table
A man loved his stuff so much he wouldn't follow Jesus, and he walked away sad. Jesus wants to be number one in our hearts — even more than our favorite toy.
Let's do it: Hold your favorite toy, then open your hands and say, "Jesus, You are number one!"
The man had kept lots of rules, but his money had become more important to him than God. Jesus loved him and told him the truth.
Let's talk: What's something you'd find really hard to give up if Jesus asked? Why do you think Jesus let the man walk away?
Jesus exposes the man's true god, which was his wealth. Then He calls for surrender: "take up the cross, and follow Me." Salvation is by grace through faith. But real faith holds nothing back from Christ. And notice that Jesus respects the man's freedom to refuse.
Let's go deeper: What "good things" can quietly take Jesus' place in your heart? How do you keep money, screens, or status from becoming your treasure?
💬 Conversation Starter
If Jesus said, "Give away the one thing you love most to follow Me," what would be hardest to hand over? Why?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Some claim Jesus demands that everyone sell everything to be saved. But Scripture shows wealthy followers who kept their means and served God with them. Joseph of Arimathea is one. Jesus diagnosed this man's heart-idol. He calls each of us to make Him Lord of whatever we treasure most ().
For Dad · Go Deeper
The phrase "Jesus, looking at him, loved him" should stop us in our tracks. The hard call to surrender came out of love, not against it. As fathers, we sometimes soften the truth to keep the peace. But real love tells children what is actually keeping them from God. And there's a sober note here for our Wesleyan understanding of grace. The man received a genuine invitation from Christ Himself, and he resisted it. Grace can be refused. That's not a flaw in the gospel. It's the dignity of being made able to love or to walk away. Examine your own grip tonight before you teach. What in your life would make your face fall if Jesus named it? Lead by loosening your own hands first.
Draws on: Tim Keller, Counterfeit Gods; James Edwards, The Gospel According to Mark (PNTC).
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You that Jesus loves us enough to tell us the truth. Show us anything we're holding too tightly. Help us open our hands. Help us follow You. Be the King of our hearts. In Jesus' name, amen."
Nothing I hold onto is worth more than the Jesus I would be holding back from.