Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
“Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
“Which ones?” he inquired.
Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”
“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.
—Matthew 19:16-22
On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
—Luke 10:25-37
Here are two guys coming to Jesus with the same question: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” The first response Jesus gives is the same in both instances worded a little differently: “Follow the commands of God.” Then both guys press on, wanting to know more and this is where the answers become customized. To the first guy Jesus says, “Divest yourself, give it to the poor, and follow me.” To the second guy, Jesus explains how to love your neighbor.
I think this is still true today. We want to follow God, so we come to Jesus and say, “What have I got to do?” The first answer is always the same: “Follow the commands of God.” A little simpler way of saying this is, “Learn how to love—love God, love everyone he brings into your life.” The second answer is where the customization comes in and this is where it gets really tricky when we allow outside influences like the church or family or friends or mentors or even this book to affect our thinking. Jesus knows our individual hearts better than we could ever know ourselves. He knows what the second answer is. He knows what we have to do to be right with God.
For me, in this season, he’s telling me to pour myself out for the poor. And this chronicle I’m writing is only intended to tell you what happened along the way. In no way do I intend to tell you what the answer is to your own very unique, very personal question with God, so don’t put that kind of pressure on me and don’t put that pressure on you. If you’re ready to ask God what you must do to justify your own existence, I would recommend that you ask him. Then brace yourself for the answer. It’s going to be personal. It very likely could hurt. And if you’re willing to embrace what he has to say to you, I’m willing to bet it will be the most rewarding experience you’ll ever have in this life.
