Luke 18:18 – And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? (KJV)
"Inheritance" is a word that has come to mind often over the past few days while my grandchildren have been visiting. One day I discovered that I was mentally cataloguing the children's physical attributes as well as the natural talents that seem to be a part of our family's gene pool.
My oldest granddaughter is athletic. She has been doing quite well in gymnastic competitions for a couple of years, but doctor's orders have required that she give up her gymnastics for at least 12 weeks to rest due to problems with her knees. It is very difficult for her to give up all that she has achieved in order to comply.
While we were talking about the sacrifices often required to put one's inherent gifts to their best use, I thought of Jesus' encounter with the young ruler who asked the question in today's Scripture verse: "Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" The conversation that ensued between Jesus and this young man was about the need to keep the commandments. Mark then tells us that Jesus looked at the young ruler and loved him. When Jesus spoke again, He told the young ruler that to inherit eternal life he must sell all that he owned, distribute his money to the poor, then follow Jesus. Hearing this, the young man just walked away. (Mark 10:21-22 KJV)
Is it possible that we, too, are like that young ruler? We know the Lord has richly blessed us, but when faced with sacrifice in order to put our inherent gifts to their best use, we find it too difficult to comply. Losing sight of our inheritance, too often we just walk away.
Prayer: Dear Lord, You have given gifts abundantly to all the members of Your family. Help us to keep our inheritance of eternal life in full view. Give us, we pray, the strength and the courage to comply with the sacrifices you require and to follow the teachings of Your Son, Jesus the Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen.
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