from Pleasant Grove Baptist Church https://ift.tt/2UUN3Jn
via IFTTT Jesus felt a love for him. Wow. The unnamed man moved the heart of God! He touched heaven with his desire and authenticity! He had run to Jesus, and sought to know all God had for him. He must have sensed something was missing, that God was calling him further into grace and glory. His desire was there. Jesus revealed God's ultimate path for the man... To follow Jesus as a disciple. What an honor! He was invited to join Jesus, walk with Him, see the great miracles, hear unfathomable teaching. He was called into ultimate service! Such an honor only a handful received. Yet, here is a sad ending. The man rejected the invitation. How can this be? Who would do such a thing? Who? Any of us with many ties to this world. This man was wealthy. God had blessed him, likely due to his good heart. But that blessing became a curse when the man choose the material blessings over following Jesus, the riches of this life over heaven. Jesus acted out of love, to invite him into ultimate service, but that invite came with a condition. He had to sacrifice all the blessings he had received, to see a new world of blessing. As the seed must be planted and die in order to grow, so he had to start over. This reminds us of Abraham. After receiving the miracle blessing of a son in his old age, Abraham was called to sacrifice that son. He was called to give up that blessing to gain more. Abraham obeyed and passed the test. This man failed. He chose to keep what he already had instead of going further. Our lives are like this. We are often called to start over, to give up what God has given us in order to achieve the next level. It is a test of faith! If we choose to keep what we have, if that is good enough, we stay status quo, sadly. If we sacrifice all that we have, a new world is promised, a new life, life closer to Jesus! Heed the warning of this scripture. Do not hold on to the blessings of yesterday when God calls you forward. Give it all to Jesus! Trust the the next day will be greater then the last. Have faith in His invitation. Holding on to the past is a sure way to hinder the future.
