July 29, 2024 • 9 mins
Title - "The Rich Young Ruler: Discovering Your One Thing"
Podcast Title: Walking in His Word
Series: One Thing
Host: Jason Gohl
Episode Summary: In this episode of Walking in His Word, we kick off a new devotional series titled "One Thing". We explore passages where Jesus emphasizes a single focus that can transform our lives. This week, we delve into "One Thing You Lack," based on the story of the rich young ruler from Mark 10:17-31.
Key Points:
- Introduction: The series "One Thing" aims to challenge and inspire listeners to identify the single focus that may be holding them back in their spiritual journey.
- Rich Young Ruler: The story centers on a young man who appears righteous but lacks one crucial thing. Despite his obedience to the commandments, his love for wealth hinders his full devotion to Jesus.
- Jesus' Challenge: Jesus instructs the young man to sell all his possessions and follow Him, highlighting the man's attachment to his wealth as the obstacle to eternal life.
- Idolatry and Devotion: Anything loved more than the Lord can be an idol. Jesus seeks complete devotion, not partial commitment.
- Broader Application: The episode encourages listeners to reflect on their own lives and ask God what their "one thing" might be, urging them to surrender it fully to deepen their relationship with Him.
Reflection Questions:
- What is your "one thing" that you might be holding back from God?
- How can you surrender this area of your life to fully follow Jesus?
Call to Action:
- Reflect on and identify the one thing that may be hindering your full devotion to God.
- Share this episode with friends and family to encourage them in their spiritual walk.
Follow Us:
- Website: Walking in His Word
- Social Media: @WalkingInHisWord
Next Episode: Join us next week as we continue the "One Thing" series and explore another passage that challenges us to grow closer to God.
Closing Blessing: May God's peace and blessings be with you always, and keep walking in His Word.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Greetings, friends.
(00:00):
Welcome to Walking in His Word,where we dive into the Word of God
to find wisdom, encouragement,and inspiration.
I'm Jason Gohl, your host, and I'm excited
to bring to you a brand new devotionalsseries called One Thing.
Join us as we explorevarious passages of Scripture where Jesus
speaks about one thing, a single focusthat challenges and transforms us
from the story of the rich young rulerto Jesus's visit to Mary and Martha.
(00:23):
Each episode will guide you to reflect onyour life and ask, what is my one thing?
So stay tuned and be preparedto be inspired and uplifted.
Don't forget to follow usat WW walking in his word.com.
This week
we look at our first topic in the series,one thing, which is one thing you lack.
In this study,we will see how a young man was living
a seemingly righteous life, but still heldone thing back from the Lord.
(00:46):
So let's learn about that one thing
together and examineour hearts for our one thing as well.
We find this phrase in Jesus's encounterwith the rich young ruler.
In Mark ten verses17 through 31, the encounter
starts with a seemingly genuine question,where the young man approaches
Jesus and asks, good teacher,what must I do to inherit eternal life?
(01:09):
Jesus's initial reply was as follows.
Why do you call me good?
No one is good except God alone.
You know the commandments do not murder,do not commit adultery.
Do not steal.
Do not bear false witness.
Do not defraud and honoryour father and your mother.
Jesus lists off the Ten Commandments,which are the initial building
blocks of obedience towards Godand our relationship with others.
(01:31):
These commandments are non-negotiable.
Even some of the great saints in history
have had their troubleskeeping these commandments.
But this young man replied to Jesusand said, teacher,
all these I have kept from my youth.
Now that's quite a remarkable statement,to say
that you've keptall your commandments from your youth,
and he should be commendedfor being a real righteous person.
So let's take a minute and explorewhat Scripture says about this man,
(01:53):
because on the surface,he looks like he's doing everything right.
There are two other accountsin the gospels of Jesus's interaction
with this man.
Matthew 19 verse 20and 22 says that he was young.
And Luke 18, verse 18 says thathe was a ruler or he was a leader.
Finally, all three accounts agreethat he was also a very wealthy.
So from a worldly perspective,this young man was doing well.
(02:16):
He was young and successfuland even a leader in some capacity.
Also, from a heavenly perspective,we read that he was earnest.
Mark 1017 said that he was.
He came running to Jesusto seek his direction for his life.
He also came with humility on his knees.
He came with reverence and respect,
and he recognized the Lordship of Jesus,even calling him good master.
(02:36):
Also.
He was living an honorable life,having kept all of the commandments,
and we can see the blessingsthat were on his life
from keeping those commandments.
He was blessed with a positionas a ruler and even with natural wealth,
got it rewarded him for honorable living.
But there was still one thing,something that he had lacked.
And Jesus knew exactlywhat that one thing was in this man's life
(02:57):
and many of his interactions with peopleon this earth, Jesus would go right
to the root cause, right to the rootof the issue in his interactions
with the scribes and the Pharisees,he would often point out the hypocrisy.
Many offer sacrifices to the Lord or gloat
on their faithfulness in serving him,but still hold back from the Lord.
And Jesus always pointed outthat one thing they held back.
(03:19):
So what was this man's one thing?
Jesus replied to the young man.
With what that one thing was what he said.
You lack one thing.
Sell all that you have
and give it to the poor,and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come and follow me.
Jesus addressedthe real issue in this man's life.
This man may have keptall of the commandments, which is great.
(03:40):
It's excellent.
But there was still one thingthat was hindering him from fully
being devoted to the Lord Jesus,and that was his love of riches.
Now, sadly, we read thathe was disheartened by the saying
he went away sorrowful forhe had great possessions.
So this man was doing well, bothfrom a worldly perspective and certain
(04:00):
to a certain extenta heavenly perspective as well.
But he was still missing something.
Although he was earnest,humble, honorable,
he was still holding something back,and that was his love of money.
So while he may have been very richwith earthly wealth,
he was not rich towards God.
The King JamesVersion says that his countenance fell at
(04:21):
Jesus is saying because he knewthat he could not give up that one thing.
If we take a deeper
dive into this man, we'll seethat his approach was actually all wrong.
He was approaching Jesus with the attitudeof what good thing can I do
to inherit eternal life, when in realityeternity is not based on works?
He wanted to earn salvation by doing good,but as we see here,
(04:43):
he loved his moneymore than he loved the Lord.
First, John 521 tells us,keep yourselves from idols.
This man may not have worshipeda golden image or a graven image
like the pagans, but he had an idolin his life, and that idol was money.
By telling himto give up all his possessions,
Jesus was highlighting the one thing thatwas hindering his goal of eternal life.
(05:04):
It is important to point outthat Jesus didn't want this man's money.
What he wanted was his complete devotion.
He wanted his whole heart.
I've heard many people say that
money is the root of all evil,but that's actually not true.
First Timothy 610 says, for the love ofmoney is the root of all kinds of evil.
It is through this craving that
some have wandered away from the faithand pierced themselves with many pains.
(05:27):
The man's money was not the issuein his life.
Mark 1023 through 26 says, how difficult
will it be for those who have wealthto enter the kingdom of God?
The disciples were amazed at his words,but Jesus said to them, children,
how difficult is it to enterthe kingdom of God?
It is easier for a camelto go through the eye of a needle
than for a rich personto enter the kingdom of God.
(05:48):
One of my spiritual mentorsalways had a saying when it came to money,
and he said that we were to have Tefloncoated hands.
Any wealth that we have comesfrom the Lord, and as he gives it to us,
the main goal is to use that moneyto further the Kingdom of heaven.
This man was not willing to part
with his wealth, and that wasthe one thing that he kept from the Lord.
He tried to possesstreasure in both worlds,
(06:11):
and he went away from Jesusin great sorrow.
So what is your one thing now?
You may be listening to this and saying,I'm not rich, so I'm good.
However, the love of money is not the onlything that can keep us from the kingdom.
It is one thing for some people.
But the question here iswhat is one thing that you lack?
That question is between you and the Lord.
In reality, anything that we hold on toand love more than the Lord is an idol.
(06:36):
So we have to ask the Lord. Lord,what is my one thing?
In Luke 957 through 62we read a few encounters with Jesus where
one thing was identifiedin the lives of some individuals
that wanted to follow Jesus.
So let's read those verses.
Luke 957 through 62.
As they were going along the road,
someone said to him,I will follow you wherever you go.
(06:56):
And Jesus said, foxes have holesand birds have their nests.
But the son of Man has nowhere to layhis head to another he said, follow me.
But he said, Lord,let me first go and bury my father.
And Jesus said to him,let the dead bury their own dead.
But as for you, go and proclaimthe kingdom.
Yet another said, I will follow you, Lord.
But let me first say farewellto all those at my home.
(07:16):
And Jesus said to him,
no one who puts his hand to the plowand looks back is fit for the kingdom.
The first man is enthusiastic and pledgesto follow Jesus anywhere.
But Jesus respondsby underlining the cost of following him.
Even animals have a place to sleep, butJesus at times experienced homelessness
and rejection.
Jesus invitesthe second man to follow him.
In verse 59, this man respondswith the reasonable request
(07:39):
that he wants to go homeand various father first.
In Judaism, burial of deadrelatives was a duty.
It was even considered more importantthan studying the law.
Therefore,Jesus answer is quite startling.
He overturns social conventions,insisting that the kingdom of God
has priority over family loyalties.
When Jesus says to let the dead burytheir own dead, he means to leave the task
(08:00):
of burying the physically deadto those who are spiritually dead.
Last, a man promises to followJesus after saying farewell to his family.
Again, this is a reasonable request.
Elijah, let Elijah
go see farewell to his familybefore they begin to walk together.
And you can find that in First Kingschapter 19.
Nevertheless,Jesus's call is more radical.
(08:21):
No one can plow effectivelyif he or she looks back, for
the road will be crookedand the wooden plow tip might even break.
Likewise,no one can follow Jesus without making him
the absoluteand exclusive center of their life.
So the point of this verse, one thing isthat morality alone is not sufficient
in God's sight.
The rich young ruler was sincereand doing a lot of morally right things
(08:45):
on those that, on the surface madehim look like he was doing quite well,
but he still held backone piece of his heart from the Lord.
So as you're listening,I trust that you were challenged to ask
God, what is my one thing that I lack?
And then give that one thing to him?
May God bless you, and may you give allyour heart to him and hold back nothing.
Thank you for joining usfor today's episode
(09:06):
of the Walking in His Word podcast.
We hope you found today's devotionalon one thing
both challenging and encouraging.
Remember discovering
that one thing can change your lifeand deepen your relationship with God.
These episodes have inspired you.
Please be sure to subscribeand share our podcast with your friends,
and also join us next weekas we continue this powerful series.
For more updates and inspiration, followus on social media at Walking in His Word
(09:30):
and visit our website at
Walking in His word.com.
Till then, be God's peace and blessings,be with you always and keep walking
in His Word.
Greetings, friends.
(00:00):
Welcome to Walking in His Word,where we dive into the Word of God
to find wisdom, encouragement,and inspiration.
I'm Jason Gohl, your host, and I'm excited
to bring to you a brand new devotionalsseries called One Thing.
Join us as we explorevarious passages of Scripture where Jesus
speaks about one thing, a single focusthat challenges and transforms us
from the story of the rich young rulerto Jesus's visit to Mary and Martha.
(00:23):
Each episode will guide you to reflect onyour life and ask, what is my one thing?
So stay tuned and be preparedto be inspired and uplifted.
Don't forget to follow usat WW walking in his word.com.
This week
we look at our first topic in the series,one thing, which is one thing you lack.
In this study,we will see how a young man was living
a seemingly righteous life, but still heldone thing back from the Lord.
(00:46):
So let's learn about that one thing
together and examineour hearts for our one thing as well.
We find this phrase in Jesus's encounterwith the rich young ruler.
In Mark ten verses17 through 31, the encounter
starts with a seemingly genuine question,where the young man approaches
Jesus and asks, good teacher,what must I do to inherit eternal life?
(01:09):
Jesus's initial reply was as follows.
Why do you call me good?
No one is good except God alone.
You know the commandments do not murder,do not commit adultery.
Do not steal.
Do not bear false witness.
Do not defraud and honoryour father and your mother.
Jesus lists off the Ten Commandments,which are the initial building
blocks of obedience towards Godand our relationship with others.
(01:31):
These commandments are non-negotiable.
Even some of the great saints in history
have had their troubleskeeping these commandments.
But this young man replied to Jesusand said, teacher,
all these I have kept from my youth.
Now that's quite a remarkable statement,to say
that you've keptall your commandments from your youth,
and he should be commendedfor being a real righteous person.
So let's take a minute and explorewhat Scripture says about this man,
(01:53):
because on the surface,he looks like he's doing everything right.
There are two other accountsin the gospels of Jesus's interaction
with this man.
Matthew 19 verse 20and 22 says that he was young.
And Luke 18, verse 18 says thathe was a ruler or he was a leader.
Finally, all three accounts agreethat he was also a very wealthy.
So from a worldly perspective,this young man was doing well.
(02:16):
He was young and successfuland even a leader in some capacity.
Also, from a heavenly perspective,we read that he was earnest.
Mark 1017 said that he was.
He came running to Jesusto seek his direction for his life.
He also came with humility on his knees.
He came with reverence and respect,
and he recognized the Lordship of Jesus,even calling him good master.
(02:36):
Also.
He was living an honorable life,having kept all of the commandments,
and we can see the blessingsthat were on his life
from keeping those commandments.
He was blessed with a positionas a ruler and even with natural wealth,
got it rewarded him for honorable living.
But there was still one thing,something that he had lacked.
And Jesus knew exactlywhat that one thing was in this man's life
(02:57):
and many of his interactions with peopleon this earth, Jesus would go right
to the root cause, right to the rootof the issue in his interactions
with the scribes and the Pharisees,he would often point out the hypocrisy.
Many offer sacrifices to the Lord or gloat
on their faithfulness in serving him,but still hold back from the Lord.
And Jesus always pointed outthat one thing they held back.
(03:19):
So what was this man's one thing?
Jesus replied to the young man.
With what that one thing was what he said.
You lack one thing.
Sell all that you have
and give it to the poor,and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come and follow me.
Jesus addressedthe real issue in this man's life.
This man may have keptall of the commandments, which is great.
(03:40):
It's excellent.
But there was still one thingthat was hindering him from fully
being devoted to the Lord Jesus,and that was his love of riches.
Now, sadly, we read thathe was disheartened by the saying
he went away sorrowful forhe had great possessions.
So this man was doing well, bothfrom a worldly perspective and certain
(04:00):
to a certain extenta heavenly perspective as well.
But he was still missing something.
Although he was earnest,humble, honorable,
he was still holding something back,and that was his love of money.
So while he may have been very richwith earthly wealth,
he was not rich towards God.
The King JamesVersion says that his countenance fell at
(04:21):
Jesus is saying because he knewthat he could not give up that one thing.
If we take a deeper
dive into this man, we'll seethat his approach was actually all wrong.
He was approaching Jesus with the attitudeof what good thing can I do
to inherit eternal life, when in realityeternity is not based on works?
He wanted to earn salvation by doing good,but as we see here,
(04:43):
he loved his moneymore than he loved the Lord.
First, John 521 tells us,keep yourselves from idols.
This man may not have worshipeda golden image or a graven image
like the pagans, but he had an idolin his life, and that idol was money.
By telling himto give up all his possessions,
Jesus was highlighting the one thing thatwas hindering his goal of eternal life.
(05:04):
It is important to point outthat Jesus didn't want this man's money.
What he wanted was his complete devotion.
He wanted his whole heart.
I've heard many people say that
money is the root of all evil,but that's actually not true.
First Timothy 610 says, for the love ofmoney is the root of all kinds of evil.
It is through this craving that
some have wandered away from the faithand pierced themselves with many pains.
(05:27):
The man's money was not the issuein his life.
Mark 1023 through 26 says, how difficult
will it be for those who have wealthto enter the kingdom of God?
The disciples were amazed at his words,but Jesus said to them, children,
how difficult is it to enterthe kingdom of God?
It is easier for a camelto go through the eye of a needle
than for a rich personto enter the kingdom of God.
(05:48):
One of my spiritual mentorsalways had a saying when it came to money,
and he said that we were to have Tefloncoated hands.
Any wealth that we have comesfrom the Lord, and as he gives it to us,
the main goal is to use that moneyto further the Kingdom of heaven.
This man was not willing to part
with his wealth, and that wasthe one thing that he kept from the Lord.
He tried to possesstreasure in both worlds,
(06:11):
and he went away from Jesusin great sorrow.
So what is your one thing now?
You may be listening to this and saying,I'm not rich, so I'm good.
However, the love of money is not the onlything that can keep us from the kingdom.
It is one thing for some people.
But the question here iswhat is one thing that you lack?
That question is between you and the Lord.
In reality, anything that we hold on toand love more than the Lord is an idol.
(06:36):
So we have to ask the Lord. Lord,what is my one thing?
In Luke 957 through 62we read a few encounters with Jesus where
one thing was identifiedin the lives of some individuals
that wanted to follow Jesus.
So let's read those verses.
Luke 957 through 62.
As they were going along the road,
someone said to him,I will follow you wherever you go.
(06:56):
And Jesus said, foxes have holesand birds have their nests.
But the son of Man has nowhere to layhis head to another he said, follow me.
But he said, Lord,let me first go and bury my father.
And Jesus said to him,let the dead bury their own dead.
But as for you, go and proclaimthe kingdom.
Yet another said, I will follow you, Lord.
But let me first say farewellto all those at my home.
(07:16):
And Jesus said to him,
no one who puts his hand to the plowand looks back is fit for the kingdom.
The first man is enthusiastic and pledgesto follow Jesus anywhere.
But Jesus respondsby underlining the cost of following him.
Even animals have a place to sleep, butJesus at times experienced homelessness
and rejection.
Jesus invitesthe second man to follow him.
In verse 59, this man respondswith the reasonable request
(07:39):
that he wants to go homeand various father first.
In Judaism, burial of deadrelatives was a duty.
It was even considered more importantthan studying the law.
Therefore,Jesus answer is quite startling.
He overturns social conventions,insisting that the kingdom of God
has priority over family loyalties.
When Jesus says to let the dead burytheir own dead, he means to leave the task
(08:00):
of burying the physically deadto those who are spiritually dead.
Last, a man promises to followJesus after saying farewell to his family.
Again, this is a reasonable request.
Elijah, let Elijah
go see farewell to his familybefore they begin to walk together.
And you can find that in First Kingschapter 19.
Nevertheless,Jesus's call is more radical.
(08:21):
No one can plow effectivelyif he or she looks back, for
the road will be crookedand the wooden plow tip might even break.
Likewise,no one can follow Jesus without making him
the absoluteand exclusive center of their life.
So the point of this verse, one thing isthat morality alone is not sufficient
in God's sight.
The rich young ruler was sincereand doing a lot of morally right things
(08:45):
on those that, on the surface madehim look like he was doing quite well,
but he still held backone piece of his heart from the Lord.
So as you're listening,I trust that you were challenged to ask
God, what is my one thing that I lack?
And then give that one thing to him?
May God bless you, and may you give allyour heart to him and hold back nothing.
Thank you for joining usfor today's episode
(09:06):
of the Walking in His Word podcast.
We hope you found today's devotionalon one thing
both challenging and encouraging.
Remember discovering
that one thing can change your lifeand deepen your relationship with God.
These episodes have inspired you.
Please be sure to subscribeand share our podcast with your friends,
and also join us next weekas we continue this powerful series.
For more updates and inspiration, followus on social media at Walking in His Word
(09:30):
and visit our website at
Walking in His word.com.
Till then, be God's peace and blessings,be with you always and keep walking
in His Word.
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