Twenty eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time: Gospel Mark 10:17 30

Summary

This sermon from Mark 10:17-30 discusses the radical demands of discipleship, focusing on detaching from power, pleasure, and possessions to follow Jesus. It emphasizes that eternal life is a free gift, received with childlike dependence on God. The story of the rich young man illustrates the difficulty of detaching from material wealth. True discipleship involves going to Jesus for everything, trusting in Him rather than worldly comforts. Ultimately, Jesus promises that those who give up worldly attachments will receive far more in return, including eternal life.

Takeaways

• 😇 Discipleship is a key theme in Mark's Gospel, particularly regarding the challenges posed by power, pleasure, and possessions.
• 👶 Jesus teaches that the kingdom of God and eternal life are freely given, like gifts received with childlike dependence.
• 💰 The young rich man seeks eternal life but is too attached to his possessions to follow Jesus' advice to sell them and help the poor.
• 🛑 Possessions themselves aren’t the issue, but the man's unwillingness to share them and his emotional attachment to wealth is the problem.
• 🚫 Disordered attachment to power, pleasure, and possessions can prevent individuals from fully following Christ and receiving eternal life.
• 🙌 Detachment from worldly things is necessary for true discipleship, requiring one to place full trust and reliance on Jesus.
• 🙏 A true disciple seeks Jesus in everything, avoiding reliance on material possessions or power for comfort or fulfillment.
• 💡 Jesus looked at the young man with love, but the man missed this divine gaze because he was preoccupied with his possessions.
• 🎯 Eternal life is a free gift from God, not something that can be earned through personal efforts or status.
• 🌟 Jesus promises that those who give up worldly attachments for Him will receive a hundredfold reward, including eternal life, though they may face persecution.

Q & A

What are the three 'P's that can be obstacles to discipleship, as discussed in the script?

The three 'P's mentioned are power, pleasure, and possessions. These are seen as obstacles to receiving the Kingdom of God and achieving eternal life if one is overly attached to them.

How does Jesus use the example of a child in teaching about the Kingdom of God?

Jesus illustrates that the Kingdom of God, or eternal life, must be received like a child. This means acknowledging one's neediness and dependence, much like how children are dependent on their parents. This childlike dependence is essential for receiving eternal life as a free gift.

What was the challenge that Jesus posed to the rich young man, and why was it difficult for him to accept?

Jesus challenged the rich young man to sell what he had and give it to the poor, then follow Him. The young man found this difficult because he had a disordered attachment to his possessions, which made it hard for him to relinquish them, even for eternal life.

What does 'detachment' mean in the context of discipleship, according to the script?

Detachment refers to the process of freeing oneself from disordered emotional dependence on power, pleasure, and possessions. It means prioritizing a relationship with Jesus over these worldly attachments.

How does the script explain the concept of 'disordered attachment'?

Disordered attachment is defined as an emotional dependence on things such as possessions, power, or pleasure. This dependence can prevent a person from fully following Jesus and receiving eternal life.

Why is it important to place all trust and security in Jesus, according to the script?

Placing all trust and security in Jesus is crucial because worldly things like possessions or power cannot fulfill us. True discipleship means seeking emotional and spiritual support from Jesus alone, allowing Him to provide ultimate peace and satisfaction.

How does the script describe Jesus' gaze toward the rich young man?

The script notes that this is the only place in the Gospel where Jesus is described as looking at someone with love. His gaze of divine love was enough to transform the young man's heart, but the man missed it because of his preoccupation with his possessions.

What reward does Jesus promise to those who give up everything to follow Him?

Jesus promises that anyone who gives up possessions, family, or land for His sake will receive back 100 times more in this life, along with eternal life. However, they will also face persecutions.

What is the difference between how the Old Testament and the New Testament view wealth in relation to God's favor?

In the Old Testament, wealth was often seen as a sign of God's favor. However, in the New Testament, Jesus teaches that wealth can be an obstacle to entering the Kingdom of God if one is emotionally attached to it. Salvation is a free gift from God and cannot be earned by human achievement or wealth.

What is the ultimate goal of discipleship, as outlined in the script?

The ultimate goal of discipleship is to strive for eternal life, which is a free gift from God. Disciples are called to detach from worldly attachments and place their full trust in Jesus to experience true fulfillment and the Kingdom of God.

Outlines

00:00

🔍 Understanding Discipleship and Detachment

The paragraph discusses Jesus’ teaching on discipleship in Mark 10:17-30, focusing on the themes of power, pleasure, and possessions. Jesus highlights that eternal life and the kingdom of God are gifts received like children, who acknowledge their dependence. A rich young man asks Jesus how to inherit eternal life, and while he follows the commandments, Jesus sees his attachment to possessions. Jesus instructs him to give up his wealth, showing that discipleship requires detachment from power, pleasure, and possessions. The key is not possessions themselves but the emotional attachment to them, which hinders spiritual growth and accepting God’s gift.

05:00

😕 Dissatisfaction with Routine Religious Practice

This paragraph reflects on how Catholics often feel dissatisfaction with their routine religious practices, similar to the rich young man’s dissatisfaction with the commandments. It explores the need for detachment from worldly desires like power, pleasure, and possessions to fully follow Jesus. The ultimate goal is to turn to Jesus as the source of emotional support, particularly in moments of difficulty, rather than relying on external comforts. Detachment from worldly things allows one to fully attach to Christ, who should be the sole focus for disciples seeking true fulfillment and eternal life.

10:01

👀 Jesus' Loving Gaze and the Missed Opportunity

This section emphasizes Jesus’ unique love for the young man, expressed through His gaze of divine love. Despite Jesus offering him a chance for new life and true freedom, the young man is too preoccupied with his possessions to embrace self-denial. The narrative highlights how Jesus’ gaze could have captivated the young man’s heart, making him realize that material wealth was not essential for happiness. The man, however, missed the opportunity for transformation, choosing his possessions over spiritual wealth. True wealth is found in attachment to Jesus, which provides peace beyond worldly riches.

15:02

🌍 Spiritual Dangers of Material Wealth

This paragraph expands on the dangers of becoming emotionally attached to material possessions and how they can lead to spiritual complacency. Jesus calls for disciples to relinquish worldly attachments in favor of following Him completely. Riches provide a false sense of comfort and security, but they ultimately leave people dissatisfied, much like the rich young man. True discipleship demands a willingness to deny oneself, take up the cross, and follow Jesus. Material prosperity often leads to a false reliance on earthly things, which can hinder one’s spiritual progress and relationship with God.

🛑 The Limits of Human Effort in Achieving Eternal Life

The paragraph asserts that no one can achieve salvation through their own efforts, wealth, or status. Jesus teaches that eternal life is not a human achievement but a free gift from God, only attainable through divine grace. People must approach God with childlike neediness, acknowledging their brokenness and dependence on Him for salvation. Wealth and earthly achievements cannot secure eternal life, and this gospel passage challenges the belief that material success is a sign of divine favor. Instead, salvation is a gift freely given to those who are humble and open to receiving it from God.

💯 The Promise of Abundant Return for Sacrifices

Peter questions what disciples like himself will receive for giving up everything to follow Jesus. Jesus promises a hundredfold return, symbolizing spiritual abundance and blessings for those who sacrifice for Him. The return includes material blessings, such as lands and family, but the most important reward is eternal life. However, Jesus also warns that persecutions will accompany these rewards, indicating that discipleship involves suffering. Nonetheless, the ultimate goal is eternal life, and those who detach from worldly desires will find themselves spiritually fulfilled and richly rewarded.

Keywords

💡Discipleship

Discipleship refers to following Jesus' teachings and embracing the radical demands that come with it. In the video, it is explained as a path that requires individuals to detach themselves from worldly attachments like power, pleasure, and possessions. The video emphasizes that discipleship involves a deep personal commitment to living out these principles in pursuit of eternal life.

💡Kingdom of God

The Kingdom of God is used interchangeably with 'eternal life' in the video. It represents the ultimate spiritual realm or state that one enters upon following the teachings of Jesus and letting go of worldly attachments. The concept is central to Christian teachings and is portrayed as something that must be received like a child, in humility and dependence on God's grace.

💡Detachment

Detachment in the video refers to the process of freeing oneself from emotional or material dependence on power, pleasure, and possessions. It is presented as a crucial aspect of discipleship, where followers must relinquish their attachments to worldly goods in order to fully embrace Jesus and receive the gift of eternal life. Detachment is described as a lifetime pursuit essential for spiritual growth.

💡Power, Pleasure, Possessions

These 'three Ps' represent the common worldly desires that disciples must detach from in order to fully follow Jesus. Power refers to the desire for control or authority, pleasure to indulgence in personal satisfaction, and possessions to material wealth. The video emphasizes that attachment to these can prevent one from fully embracing the kingdom of God and experiencing the fulfillment found in Christ.

💡Eternal Life

Eternal life is portrayed as both a reward and a free gift from God, equated with the Kingdom of God. It is not something that can be earned through personal achievements or efforts but must be received in humility. The video highlights that eternal life is the ultimate goal for disciples and can only be attained through complete surrender to God, detachment from worldly desires, and reliance on Jesus.

💡Neediness

Neediness refers to the acknowledgment of one’s dependence on God, much like a child depends on their parents. The video uses the analogy of children to illustrate that those who recognize their need for God’s grace are best positioned to receive the Kingdom of God. Neediness is contrasted with self-reliance or attachment to worldly things, which hinders spiritual growth.

💡Rich Young Man

The rich young man is a key figure in the video, representing someone who seeks eternal life but struggles with his attachment to worldly possessions. Jesus challenges him to sell his possessions and give to the poor, illustrating the theme of detachment. The man’s inability to do so serves as an example of how attachment to wealth can prevent someone from fully following Jesus and receiving eternal life.

💡Greed

Greed is defined as a disordered emotional attachment to wealth or possessions. In the video, the rich young man’s inability to part with his wealth is portrayed as a form of greed, which prevents him from fully embracing discipleship. The video emphasizes that greed goes beyond material wealth and includes any excessive attachment to things that hinder spiritual freedom.

💡Childlike Dependence

Childlike dependence is the attitude of humility and reliance on God, similar to how a child depends on their parents. The video stresses that this attitude is necessary to receive the Kingdom of God or eternal life. It contrasts with self-reliance and attachment to worldly things, as those who are childlike are open to receiving God’s grace as a free gift.

💡Gaze of Divine Love

The 'gaze of divine love' refers to the loving look that Jesus gives the rich young man, inviting him to detach from his possessions and follow Him. The video highlights that this gaze is transformative and can lead to a deep recognition of one’s true needs. However, the young man misses this invitation because he is too preoccupied with his wealth. This gaze represents the unconditional love and call to discipleship that Jesus extends to all.

Highlights

The concept of discipleship in Mark's Gospel involves detachment from power, pleasure, and possessions.

Eternal life and the kingdom of God are used interchangeably in Mark's Gospel.

Jesus emphasizes that inheriting eternal life requires more than following commandments; it requires detachment from worldly possessions.

Detachment is described as the willingness to give up emotional dependence on power, pleasure, and possessions.

Possessions are not inherently problematic, but the unwillingness to share them is a barrier to discipleship.

Jesus invites the young rich man to detach from his wealth, which in the Middle Eastern culture of that time included family, home, and land.

The disciple must be willing to leave family, home, and lands to follow Jesus, indicating a total commitment to discipleship.

Jesus calls for disciples to place all security and trust in Him alone, rather than in possessions or worldly status.

The key to discipleship is attaching oneself solely to Jesus, seeking Him for all needs rather than relying on power, pleasure, or possessions.

Jesus' gaze of divine love is highlighted as transformative, offering a chance for total commitment that the young rich man ultimately rejects.

Jesus invites individuals to relinquish their emotional attachments to experience the fullness of life offered by Him.

The disciple must have zeal and earnestness to follow Jesus, focusing on the ultimate goal of eternal life.

The idea of spiritual complacency from material wealth is presented as a danger to authentic discipleship.

Jesus promises a return of '100 fold' to those who give up everything to follow Him, along with the gift of eternal life.

The Gospel challenges individuals to ensure that power, pleasure, and possessions do not become obstacles to receiving eternal life.

Transcripts

we are still in the context of the way

of discipleship and Mark's Gospel this

is Mark chapter 10 verses 17 through 30

and again Jesus is still teaching on

power pleasure this time on possessions

and so we've been walking through the

gospel last couple weeks on discipleship

and the radical demands of discipleship

you may recall that last weekend we left

off with Jesus illustrating that the

kingdom of God which is eternal life so

the kingdom of God and eternal life

these are used interchangeably

throughout of course the homily probably

in the text too if I really studied it

more closely but basically if I say

kingdom of God or eternal life they're

the same thing so these terms are used

interchangeably and so then we left off

last weekend with this child use

demonstrates that those apt recipients

of the kingdom of God or eternal life

are like children

okay those who are able to acknowledge

their neediness as children right this

is why you always hear mom my mom yeah

dad dad dad

right okay they're always needy okay and

so they acknowledge that as well and

that's why they become the apt

recipients for the king of God because

it is a free gift so this young rich man

who appears to be pursuing eternal life

on the basis of his own efforts asks

what he must do to inherit eternal life

for to gain eternal life and so Jesus

tells him of course

to do the usual things of following the

commandments but he senses a

dissatisfaction there and so what this

amounts to is that essentially what he

tells him go sell what you having to the

poor this is you know what he tells this

particular man for what he needs what is

lacking so in addition to receiving

eternal life as a free unmerited gift

like a child we also have to detach

ourselves from the three peas of power

pleasure and possessions alright this is

a lifetime pursuit if you will let's

understand what an attached

is okay we have a disordered attachment

or an emotional attachment to these

things an attachment is a disordered

emotional dependence all right which is

what this young man suffers from

regarding possessions or riches and so

possessions and themselves are not the

problem though rather his unwillingness

to share them is that is to give to

those who have less than himself the

poor as Jesus says the man was not just

rich

he was also greedy greedy of course is

another word for disorder emotionally

attached all right when you're greedy if

you just think of the Christmas Carol

and Scrooge all right at my knees her

Scrooge he loves his money and he can't

part with it no matter how much he has

he doesn't even he doesn't need that

much so when Jesus says to this young

man go sell what you have it means to

part with family home and land in the

Middle Eastern culture them in that

context the wealth is family home and

land because your lands are your assets

so they don't have cash reserves and

mutual funds I don't have stocks okay

they have they have their land and then

they have their animals or their crops

and their fields of course and then they

have the family connection which is

their social network of income basically

to survive and thrive

all right so family home and lands is

wealth all right so then that's of

course required for discipleship

remember that everyone's supposed to

relinquish those things if you're gonna

be Jesus's disciple all right family

home and land cuz that's what Jesus says

way back several weeks ago come and

follow me all right when you follow the

Lord you're detaching or you're leaving

your home your family in your lands to

follow the Lord alright so then that is

required for discipleship and that's

what you see

that's what Jesus is saying to him when

he says go sell what you have he means

to relinquish family home and lands it

does not mean to divest oneself of all

your financial assets okay it's not what

it means

alright go so what you have you to the

poor and he sent and he's telling this

to this particular man because this

particular man has that particular

attachment to his

sessions so today we are challenged to

ask ourselves if we have any inordinate

affections any disordered affections for

possessions since they hinder our

receiving of the kingdom of God all

right any attachment to how our pleasure

or possessions are going to hinder us

from receiving the kingdom of God or

hinder us from receiving eternal life so

much like this man the Gospel as I began

to allude to earlier he is dissatisfied

with the usual answer of how to eternal

how to inherit eternal life which is to

follow the commands and live a just life

and so we also as Catholics all right we

also have a sense of you know of

dissatisfaction with doing the same old

things if you've ever used the phrase

same old same old alright then you

probably have a sense of a

dissatisfaction with the usual living of

the Catholic religion and so then you

start to think well I'm kind of

dissatisfied alright so we still have

that dissatisfaction as well so what

more was must we do what else is there

well that more can be summed up by

detachment okay so the problem is

attachment so we we need to do more

detachment

okay so detachment from the world of

power pleasure and possessions and we

need to attach ourselves solely to Jesus

Christ

alright this is the problem that we have

a lot all right when we are frustrated

when we are angry when we are impatient

when we are just spent or whatever it

might be whenever we don't feel good

whenever we feel bad we go to power or

pleasure or possessions or we go to our

family dog or whatever it might be but

we're always going somewhere else other

than Jesus to fulfill our needs Jesus if

we make Jesus our emotional support if

Jesus is the only soul emotional support

that I go to him for everything or

whenever I feel bad then he becomes the

person whom I have chosen to follow and

whom I have put all my trust and

confidence in

that is what it truly means to be a

disciple that I go to Jesus for

everything that I never go to power

pleasure or possessions and then I and I

no longer have an attachment to those

things

that whenever I feel bad I go to Jesus I

go to his church I go to the Eucharist

okay that's what it means to attach

ourselves to Jesus and so the one most

important thing in life is to receive

God's gift of eternal life which is

through the relinquish our emotional

dependence on the power pleasure

possessions and we we kind of have these

things you know if you're really looking

at your lives and this is a good time

we're not we're not in Lent yet but we

are approaching a semi penitential

season of Advent but nonetheless we're a

discipleship we're just talking about

discipleship all right and we don't have

these little things that we go to when

we feel bad okay and we feel bad or

reject it or abandon or unloved then we

go to one of these things and we usually

have some kind of sin that we usually go

to but we have this this or we go just

go sit on a couch with our dog you know

I are you don't worry drink our diet

coke and smoker cigarettes or whatever

might be okay alright but the thing is

we don't go to Jesus the point is we

have to go to Jesus all right the

disciple seeks out Jesus at all costs

okay he always he or she will always go

to Jesus for everything so we're being

challenged to place all of our security

and trust in Jesus alone not in

possessions not in wealth not in things

or notoriety or status or popularity or

career or a good reputation or pleasure

pursuits none of those things are going

to fulfill us what we need is Jesus we

need to be looking at him as if he were

a mirror and we see ourselves in him the

way he sees us and we are enlightened by

looking at him by being with him so that

we can be formed and healed and brought

to new life which is what Jesus is

ultimately offering this young rich man

a new life all right so this this man

one point about this is that this man

exhibits an unusual zeal and earnestness

to follow Jesus he runs up to the Lord

and He desires him to answer his heart's

burning question

and so yeah at least demonstrates that

he wants to follow the Lord okay

zeal and earnestness for discipleship

where is ours where is our zeal and

earnestness for eternal life do we

realize that all of our life on earth

should be spent striving for eternal

life because it's the one most important

thing that we're supposed to achieve by

the end of our lifetime here on earth is

that we are welcomed into heaven at the

end of it we cannot receive eternal life

if we are trying to earn it okay we must

allow ourselves to receive God's gift in

that childlike dependence upon Jesus and

so this young rich man is very

interesting because Jesus looking at

this young man he loved him it's the

only place in the gospel where it's

written that Jesus looked on an

individual with love so Jesus is gays

alright except he misses of course this

gaze of Jesus because his face fell and

his at this response said Jesus response

to what he must do but he's looking at

this young man and it's the only place

where it says that he looks on in a

vision with love his gaze of divine love

how does Jesus look at you have you ever

seen him look back at you his gaze of

divine love which he looks at with this

young man would have been enough for him

to give up all his possessions at that

moment okay his heart would have been

captivated by Jesus he would have

instantaneously understood and believed

with his whole heart that he does not

need any of his possessions any of his

wealth any of his family any of his

lands to have what truly satisfies his

her he would have seen it right there in

Jesus but he missed it because he was

too preoccupied with all the thoughts of

all the things that he owns and so he

Jesus was offering this new life to him

this new freedom except he could not

bring himself to embrace the self-denial

that leads to true wealth which is

attachment to Jesus that's our wealth to

be attached to the Lord to be so

attached to Lord that nothing on earth

would ever disturb our inner peace ever

again that's where we want to be that's

where the disciple lives and so riches

and material prosperity can be very

dangerous if we are emotionally attached

to them sharing them helps us detach

from them and so this particular man's

solution to his emotional attachment to

possessions was to share them and then

follow Jesus of course what happens

tragically the man remains a slave to

his things and they end up owning him

and he cannot bring himself to pay such

a high price not even for eternal life

not even for eternal life will he let go

of his possessions spiritual complacency

can resolve from material wealth we have

to realize that and so then again in

this great context of discipleship

anyone who is going to follow the Lord

his being will it has to be willing to

pick up his cross or her across foul

laughter Lord and deny him or herself

deny self pick up cross follow the Lord

it's the only way in which we are going

to be satisfied and glorified all right

and this is all in that context last

several weeks are all in the way of

discipleship all right on power pleasure

possessions which can be summed up in

that way so we can become too

comfortable and so self-reliant that we

avoid the total surrender of our lives

to God demanded by the gospel this is

what riches do they provide a false or

superficial comfort or security or

satisfaction but yet even if you have

these things you still have that sense

of something more like this young rich

man there's something more I'm missing

something else I'm not experiencing the

fullness of the kingdom that I should be

experiencing or that I think I should be

experiencing or that the gospel or the

church is teaching me or father James

teaching me that I should be

experiencing okay as

Siple that the king of god is a kingdom

of love of joy and peace and then i

should be experiencing that and living

that now and if i'm not what is missing

or what is what am i attached to where

do I put my security where do I put my

hope and trust so this this gospel this

particular gospel on discipleship this

part it is it is demanding this is the

radical demands of discipleship of

authentic discipleship which of course

rewards us in the sense that we

experience the kingdom of God in the

here and now

alright so despite all these previous

teachings on discipleship that we get to

the rest this gospel the disciples still

regard the prosperous as those who have

the first claim on the kingdom alright

in the end it is difficult for all to

enter the kingdom of God if it is easier

for a camel to pass through the eye of a

needle so then who can be saved if not

those already favored by God with the

blessing of wealth and prosperity the

Old Testament understood the ste ology

if you will of well if someone is rich

and wealthy they must already be favored

and blessed by God right so they have

the first claim on the kingdom that was

the thinking it actually leads to a

gospel of prosperity in the New

Testament which we don't teach we don't

teach that in the Catholic Church a

gospel of prosperity okay sometimes the

good suffer

alright that's that's not that so that's

that's the situation that we that's the

reality so the so this is why the

disciples are so surprised and then

exceedingly astonished how who can be

saved then Jesus is no one no one can be

saved you can't be the remember the

context no one be saved on your own

efforts no one can be saved by how great

you are in the world no one can be saved

how rich you are okay it's the king of

God is not a human achievement

it's a free unmerited gift that has to

be received as a child all right so no

one can be saved only with God he says

only with God is it possible to enter

eternal life can be saved only with God

can you enter eternal life not upon our

own efforts eternal life is beyond human

achievement

I be earned not as a reward for good

behavior and it cannot be claimed as a

right

we're not deserving of it but God has a

gift for us that he's giving us or

offering us we don't deserve eternal

life we're sinners okay but then this is

the whole point about this context

who's gonna receive the kingdom of God

who's gonna receive is her life only

those who are able to see it through

their own neediness I need I'm broken

help me okay this is the attitude we

should have towards God so that we can

receive this gift of life that he has

for us and of course we don't want to be

filling ourselves up as a false

substitute with all these things of the

world so eternal life remains God's gift

free gift just for you just for me okay

to understand it in that context if you

were the only person God ever created in

the world past present future and he

created all of heaven and it's an

salvation and an eternal life just for

you that's how good he is he did that

just for you not for everyone just for

you that is the understanding we want to

have of how how great our Father is that

he is a gentle father who prepares great

things for us and this is what we are

trying to receive from him so of course

Peter had a challenge is this a lord

we've given up everything okay what's in

it for us right he's giving up home

lands family ties and he's detached

himself mostly from the world to follow

Jesus what does Jesus promise he

promises that he will receive it all

back 100 fold 100 fold

okay so anyone who has anything in the

stock market our mutual funds

what's a hundred percent return on

investment worth 100 percent okay it's

pretty good yeah a hundred percent okay

100 percent return on investment

everything you give up will be returned

to you a hundred times more with eternal

life and oh by the way persecutions he

throws that word in there

you're gonna suffer but you're gonna

have the most all-important one thing

eternal life and all other stuff yeah

you can have all that back hundred times

more children lands and mothers and

brothers you know you'll be will but you

you will be you will be wealthy beyond

your wildest dreams that's what the Lord

is saying and and and by the way an

eternal life the one all-important thing

that is you cannot do without and so

then will we be able to stay focused on

the one most important thing of eternal

life and live our lives for it or will

the three P's of Power pleasure and

possession be an obstacle for us to

receive eternal life