Too Great A Cost (Devotional)

"When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." (Matt. 19:22)

A rich young man had come to Jesus and asked what he had to do to gain eternal life. Jesus had sized up the issues in the man's heart and replied "Go sell what you possess, and give to the poor." For this young man, the wealth of the world was the most important matter in his life. Jesus knew that. And He knows our heart in the same way.

Jesus told the disciples that it was very difficult for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. In fact, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. When someone is rich, they tend to trust in the materialism of their lives. They don't need God, or so they think. By the world's standards, most Americans are extremely rich.

So how difficult is it? We tend to want a little bit of God. A god we can control and keep in a box. A Santa Claus of a Gennie type god. When we realize that He wants us to surrender all, we often are like this rich young man who went away disappointed.

Let me ask you something. How much did God surrender for you in order to bring forgiveness of your sins and the oppotunity of eternal life? He gave it all. Is it really too great a cost for Him to ask us to surrender all to Him?