The Gospel According to Mark
– 2018.10.14
Do
Good and Walk Justly
Listen!
Remember
this, with God all things are possible.
The
kingdom of heaven is not a kingdom in the earthly sense, rather it is the
garden where we walk God, where we talk with God in friendship.
Listen
to the wisdom of Jesus, no-one is good but God alone, we would all do well to
emulate his humility.
Remember
this, the wealthy young man does not refuse Jesus, he merely goes away sad
because he has been asked to do something hard, and he knows it will be hard.
The
gospel reading speaks of rewards in heaven for good deeds done in the here and
now.
The
truth is this; the good things we do in the here and now bring the eternal blessing
into the present.
The
garden is not beyond time and out of reach, the garden is present in the good
things we do on behalf of each other, on behalf of the poor, the marginalized
and the needy. It is only through service to one another, and the love we share
here that we serve God and experience the divine.
Give
no thought to what will come in the afterlife, everything will happen then,
just as God wills it.
Concern
yourself with the here and now, with doing good and serving living justly, in
this way you will be a blessing to all the people.
Give Everything You Own to the Poor, and
Follow Me
Jesus was setting out on a journey when a man
ran up, knelt before him and put this question to him, ‘Good master, what must
I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No
one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You must not kill; You
must not commit adultery; You must not steal; You must not bring false witness;
You must not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’ And he said to him,
‘Master, I have kept all these from my earliest days.’ Jesus looked steadily at
him and loved him, and he said, ‘There is one thing you lack. Go and sell
everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure
in heaven; then come, follow me.’ But his face fell at these words and he went
away sad, for he was a man of great wealth.
Jesus looked round and said to his disciples,
‘How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’ The
disciples were astounded by these words, but Jesus insisted, ‘My children,’ he
said to them ‘how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a
camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the
kingdom of God.’ They were more astonished than ever. ‘In that case’ they said
to one another ‘who can be saved?’ Jesus gazed at them. ‘For men’ he said ‘it
is impossible, but not for God: because everything is possible for God.’
Peter took this up. ‘What about us?’ he asked
him. ‘We have left everything and followed you.’ Jesus said, ‘I tell you
solemnly, there is no one who has left house, brothers, sisters, father,
children or land for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not be
repaid a hundred times over, houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and
land – not without persecutions – now in this present time and, in the world to
come, eternal life.’
28th Sunday in
Ordinary Time
