The Rich Young Man

Matthew 19:16-23

¹⁶  And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” ¹⁷ And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” ¹⁸ He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, ¹⁹ Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁰ The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” ²¹ Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ²²  When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

²³ And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus and Rich Young Man

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on Matthew 19:16-22

Christ knew that covetousness was the sin which most easily beset this young man; though he had got honestly what he possessed, yet he could not cheerfully part with it, and by this his want of sincerity was shown. Christ’s promises make his precepts easy, and his yoke pleasant and very comfortable; yet this promise was as much a trial of the young man’s faith, as the precept was of his charity and contempt of the world. It is required of us in following Christ, that we duly attend his ordinances, strictly follow his pattern, and cheerfully submit to his disposals; and this from love to him, and in dependence on him. To sell all, and give to the poor, will not serve, but we are to follow Christ. The gospel is the only remedy for lost sinners. Many abstain from gross vices who do not attend to their obligations to God. Thousands of instances of disobedience in thought, word, and deed, are marked against them in the book of God. Thus numbers forsake Christ, loving this present world: they feel convictions and desires, but they depart sorrowful, perhaps trembling. It behoves us to try ourselves in these matters, for the Lord will try us.

WATCH Harvest America…

You can find a location near you that is hosting a Harvest America. You could turn on your radio and listen to it live. Maybe you would like to invite some friends or family over to your home to watch it from your computer, i-pad, tablet, i-phone, or other electronic device. (link for radio and online information) With the way technology is these days maybe you would like to invite someone in a cool way out to the Harvest Crusade, to your house, or a venue and just don’t know how. Well we have an E-vite you can send to them, just click here and it will be on it’s way providing them with all info that they may need to join!

A Short Message from Greg Laurie;

What if on One Day, churches from all over the nation brought in the Harvest Crusade and streamed it live right into their church? At last year’s Harvest, individuals watched the live stream broadcast from every state of the union and 32 countries around the world! Now, with HD-quality video available through Internet streaming and satellite, people could fill churches, theaters, coffee houses, and living rooms, linking together as One Church in thousands of locations.

For what purpose? One Message! The only message that can save a soul—the simple proclamation of the gospel, which will be given from a gifted evangelist, Greg Laurie.

And if this is repeated over the next three years, we could conservatively see more than five million people in live-stream events and effectively see some 500,000 professions of faith! That’s more than we’ve seen in our 22-year history of Harvest Crusades!

Will you consider joining hundreds of other churches across America on August 26 as we seek to bring hope to a nation? From promotions to the follow-up process, this website will provide churches and individuals with all the tools and resources needed to host a successful evangelistic event for your community, whether you host it at your church, a neutral venue, or in your living room.

Harvest America is HERE…

Where will you be in 6 hours?

What if on One Day, churches from all over the nation brought in the Harvest Crusade and streamed it live right into their church? At last year’s Harvest, individuals watched the live stream broadcast from every state of the union and 32 countries around the world! Now, with HD-quality video available through Internet streaming and satellite, people could fill churches, theaters, coffee houses, and living rooms, linking together as One Church in thousands of locations.

For what purpose? One Message! The only message that can save a soul—the simple proclamation of the gospel. Now a short message from Greg Laurie…

The stage is set, the messages are prepared, and 1,913 host venues are poised to shine the light of Jesus this Sunday at Harvest America.

Find a location near you and make plans to be there. If you can’t show up in person, here’s a link that outlines all of the ways you can view or listen to the event, including TV, Roku, web, and radio.

More than just attending the event, now is the time for last-minute invites. Ask the Holy Spirit to bring someone to mind that you can invite. Then pick up the phone or walk across the street and ask them. And don’t forget share it on Facebook as well.

I will continue to be praying for you who are inviting, that God would give you boldness and tact and that He would remove obstacles and excuses for those who are being invited.

Let me know what location you’ll be attending by leaving me a comment on Facebook. I can’t wait to see what God will do!

Until Sunday,
Greg Laurie

Create In Me A Clean Heart…

Matthew 23:25-26 25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.”

Some people try so hard to look so clean and perfect on the outside; trying to play the part and put on a show for the whole world to see that ‘they’ are pious. Putting in that ‘extra effort’ which results in them being seen as upright and holy in the sight of man. But God reveals all, and all comes out in the wash when He establishes it to be so. Yet on the inside their souls are full of sin; greed, self indulgence, pride, self ambitions, etc… failing to realize that their hypocrisy has ended in their bones rotting as they slowly drift into a path of becoming white washed tombs.
But all are warned, and given a way of escape from this destructive path. By truly cleansing and purifying our inner being, so too will our outer being become so. When we truly set our hearts on God and His word, He will cleanse us of all iniquity as we take the first steps of putting on our new man. He then walks with us on that journey of sanctification until our days end, and forevermore. We are then seen as perfect, because God sees the Christ in us rather than the sin in us.

Psalm 51:10 “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me, Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me…˝

This is my prayer; that I may not be a hypocrite, and that I may not put to shame or mock the word of God by becoming an actor or pretender. But that You may protect me from this vain and vile way of life. And may You create and form and mold a clean heart and spirit within me, erasing all iniquity and defilement. Help me to live a life of righteousness that will glorify You in Your sight and not in the sight of man. I so desperately need your mercies and grace Lord. And may you help me be made holy and pure for the rest of my days, for they are fleeting away like a vapor
– Amen

Mercy not Scrifice – Hosea 6:6

“…For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings…” – ESV / Commentary

Pride of Hearts – Obadiah 1:3

“….The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, “Who can bring me down to the ground?” …” – ESV / Commentary

Walking in God’s Name – Micah 4:5

“…All the nations may walk in the name of their gods; we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever…” – ESV / Commentary

Walk in Love – 2 John 1:6

“…And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love….” – ESV / Commentary

Partnership in Faith – Philemon 1:6

“…I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ…” – ESV / Commentary

Itching Ears – 2 Timothy 4:3

“…For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear…” – ESV / Commentary