Gospel of 18 August 2020
Tuesday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time
Matthew 19:23-30
It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I tell you solemnly, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Yes, I tell you again, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.’ When the disciples heard this they were astonished. ‘Who can be saved, then?’ they said. Jesus gazed at them. ‘For men’ he told them ‘this is impossible; for God everything is possible.’
Then Peter spoke. ‘What about us?’ he said to him ‘We have left everything and followed you. What are we to have, then?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I tell you solemnly, when all is made new and the Son of Man sits on his throne of glory, you will yourselves sit on twelve thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children or land for the sake of my name will be repaid a hundred times over, and also inherit eternal life.
‘Many who are first will be last, and the last, first.’
Reflexion
“Making the impossible possible” sounds like a good tag line for today’s gospel and perhaps a good title for a motivational book. What would you find in such a book? Keep on telling yourself that nothing is impossible and keep repeating that a thousand times; shrink the problem in your head; stop giving excuses and just move on; don’t confuse “I can’t” with “I don’t want to.”
But is this what our Lord is telling His disciples? I think we need to go back to the context of our Lord’s words. Today’s passage is a continuation of yesterday’s story of the rich young man who was challenged by our Lord to sell all his possessions, give it to the poor and follow Him.
We can sense that Jesus' disciples were taken aback by the challenge He extended to the man with many possessions. Their surprise was even greater when Jesus told them how difficult it is for the rich to enter God's kingdom. Much easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. St Matthew tells us they were amazed and exceedingly astonished.
Theirs was a world where riches were regarded as a blessing from God for the just and upright. Wealth offered security and a sense of well-being. To give all that up seemed senseless.
But our Lord was inviting those who would be His followers to find the basis of their security and well-being not in transient riches or possessions, but in Him. Could they do that?
The dismay and frustration of the disciples are clearly reflected in their question to Jesus: "Who can be saved, then?"
Up to that point, the disciples had been thinking like the man with many possessions. He had come to Jesus asking, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" as if such a gift could be earned. Both the disciples and the man who went away sad, were focusing on themselves, their efforts, their strengths, their resources and their accomplishments instead of focusing on God and on grace.
Once again, our Lord’s response was intended to shift their focus from themselves to God: "For men ... this is impossible; for God everything is possible" Every challenge, every demand Jesus places upon His disciples becomes possible if, by faith, the disciples have learned to rely on grace and to approach each challenge as an opportunity to respond to God's call.
So our Lord’s saying today is not to be construed as some quick-fix motivational speech. He is not suggesting in the least that as long as we fix our thinking, we will fix the problem. Like all other instances, He is asking us to place our trust in Him rather than in our own resources, strengths and abilities. We will continue to meet many obstacles and difficulties, and some of them would be humanly impossible to overcome and solve. But that doesn’t mean it’s the end of the road for us or the end of the world.
This is because the goal of life is much more than overcoming the failures and roadblocks that we will experience in this life. The goal of life is eternal life, our salvation. And this is what our Lord wishes to teach us:
First, it is impossible for us to enter the kingdom on our own. No amount of willpower or good works will enable a person to reach eternal life. We also can’t buy our way to heaven with our wealth.
Secondly, only God can give us eternal life because all things are possible with Him. He can enable us to do by grace what we could never achieve by nature. Helped by the Lord’s limitless strength, even the wealthiest of persons or the poorest, the most incorrigible sinner or saint, can lay hold of the kingdom. This is the paradox of the kingdom, the expectations of many are destined to be overturned, for many who are first will be last and the last will be first.