Unload the extra baggage. October 10, 2021. The Rev. Kathleen M. Sturges

 

Mark 10:17-31

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. Yikes! A camel through the eye of a needle? No way. And the disciples clearly agree. Astounded, they ask, “Then who can be saved?” Which actually astounds me because if the disciples - the ones who gave up everything to follow Jesus - if they feel pressed by this declaration, if they are identifying as being “someone who is rich,” then we are all in trouble!

And that’s pretty scary - which is why it should come as no surprise that for hundreds of years, starting as far back as the 9th century, efforts have been made to explain this saying of Jesus away. Perhaps you’ve heard it in a sermon or two...the explanation that when Jesus is talking about “the eye of the needle” he’s not really referring to a literal needle but to a particular gate that was used to enter into the walled city of Jerusalem. A passageway that was called “The Eye of the Needle'' was because it was particularly small. So small, in fact, that in order for a camel to go through, it had to be stooped and removed of all of its baggage. So with that image in mind we could hear Jesus’ words as offering us a challenging, but still do-able solution to the camel-needle problem. That is, if we seek to enter the kingdom of God what we must do, like the camel, is to take on a humble posture and unload the extra baggage in our lives. So it seems that a camel can go through the eye of a needle and we “rich” can enter the kingdom of God!

Good news, yes? Actually, no. Because there are two glaring problems with this explanation. The first being that the story of the gate is made up! There is no credible evidence that anything like it ever existed. But, as we all know, fake news dies hard. Especially when it serves us in some way. And this Eye of the Needle Gate story certainly does because it provides us with a tidy explanation to a hard saying. A simple formula - just be humble and unload life’s excess. we are provided with a way to ensure that the power lies with us to make the eternal life/kingdom of God cut. Giving us a sense of control. Because whenever we feel out of control, well that is frightening.

But the second problem with believing this Eye of the Needle Gate story is even more troubling because it causes us to miss the very point Jesus is trying to teach here. The gospel story begins with this unnamed man going to Jesus - actually he doesn’t just go to Jesus, we are told that he runs to Jesus. There’s an urgency to his question. "Good Teacher,” he asks, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?" As the encounter unfolds we learn that this man is a really, really good guy. He follows all the rules. He has worldly success. He treats others kindly. What more can you ask? And yet there is still something missing. Something that he feels he lacks. He’s done everything he is supposed to do and yet it doesn’t seem to be enough. So running to Jesus he asks: what else must I do?

Jesus responds by telling the man to do something that he seemingly can’t do. Now it's not that no one could sell everything and give it to the poor. Some saints in the church, as well as in other faith traditions, have done just that throughout history. But apparently this man can’t. He has many possessions, or maybe it’s more accurate to say that he is possessed by many things. Regardless, he is unable to let his possessions go so instead it is he who goes - goes away grieving.

Now this would be a pretty dark story if it were not for one essential detail. Before Jesus offers this seemingly impossible challenge we are told that Jesus looked at the man and loved him. Hopefully we are all used to hearing that Jesus loves us - at least I pray that is the case. But because that is so, it might be tempting to take it for granted. Yet in the gospel of Mark it’s a big deal. This man is the only person singled out as being specifically loved by Jesus. So if Jesus loved him, why did he give this man such an impossible task? Why did Jesus set him up for failure? It seems so unreasonable. So un-loving.

Un-loving, that is, until we realize that love doesn’t want any of us to stay trapped in the lie that we can do anything to earn our way into God’s good graces. Jesus calls this man to do something that he can’t do, not to condemn him, but to free him by revealing that the eternal, abundant, kingdom of God life doesn't depend on anything we do or don’t do. Because frankly it’s not about us. It’s all about God - and what God does because of who God is: Love.

Anytime you think that your value, your worthiness, your acceptance is based on something you do - that’s fake news. What’s real news, or more precisely, Good News, is just the opposite. You are valued, you are loved, you are accepted not because of anything you do. You are valued, you are loved, you are accepted because you are, just because you exist. God values and loves and accepts you because that is the nature of God. And God loves without conditions or rules or expectations. God doesn’t love you because of what you do: God just loves you.

So what must we do to inherit eternal life? Jesus’ answer to that question is ultimately “Nothing.” He makes that absolutely clear when he says that for mortals it is impossible. Just as impossible as it is for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. But we need not fear because for God all things are possible. And that is why Jesus came, to make the impossible possible for us all. There is nothing for us to do except to let go. For the way of Christ is always about letting go - whether that be letting go of material possessions, false ideas, deep seated fears, hurts, shame, bitterness - really letting go of anything to which we are attached. Because as we let go of such things we are then able to receive what has already been given, what has already been made possible, what is already ours: Life. Eternal, abundant, kingdom of God LIFE.