There's something I've always wondered about in the story of the rich young ruler in Luke chapter 18, beginning in verse 18.
This is about the man who all his life had strived to do right. Then one day he comes to Jesus, and asks him what he must do to inherit eternal life. And Jesus answers, telling him to relinquish his riches and come follow him. And the rich young ruler walked away from Jesus "grieved, for he had great possessions."
The part that stands out to me is the fact that Jesus didn't run after him.
If it had been one of us ministering to that rich young man, when he turned to walk away we would have run after him pleading, "wait a minute, you don't understand ....you don't get it! What do you think of the Lord anyway, that he's a hard and cruel task master? Oh no, no, no, that's so wrong. You must understand that there is no losing when you walk with Jesus. Anything you lose for his sake is returned to you a hundredfold, and eternal life to boot! Don't be foolish! Relinquish to him whatever he asks of you. The way to receiving is through relinquishing. Please think again, please reconsider."
But Jesus did NOT run after him. He did NOT say those words to him. He just let him turn and walk away.
What I glean from this is that we cannot trifle with God. What he asks, we must be ready to relinquish, KNOWING that there is no losing in him, and that whatever we relinquish at his beckoning will be only for our GAIN. The walk with Jesus is a walk of obediance in faith, in a perpetual attitude of relinquishment, but relinquishment in trust.
"Then Peter said, 'See, we have left all and followed You.' So He said to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, "who shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come everlasting life.'''
The promise is, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you" (Matt 6:33). This is a promise from almighty God to anyone who is willing to walk by faith. Having walked this way now for 31 years, I can attest to the absolute faithfulness of God to his Word. And, I can add, it's a life of joy and excitement, plus a rejoicing in the promises of the world to come.
As the apostle Paul said, "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. But indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ..."
-Phillipians 3:7-8
