When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Luke 18:22) You probably recognize this verse as being Jesus’ response to the rich young ruler’s question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Lk. 18:18) (I had the privilege of preaching from this passage yesterday morning at my church. If you’d like to hear an MP3 after Tuesday, you can download it here.) At first glance, it might seem that Jesus is saying that if anyone wants to have eternal life, they need to give up all their material possessions. …
