Swallowing the Camel

Matthew 19: 16-22.  And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” Then he said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER; YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY; YOU SHALL NOT STEAL; YOU SHALL NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS; HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER; and YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?” Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property. And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

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     You have probably heard the saying: "Straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel."  As far as I can tell, this saying originated with Jesus when speaking of the Pharisees.  He said of them, "Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!"  (Matthew 23:24)  So what does it mean?  It means that humans have a tendency to concern themselves with things that are unimportant and small, sometimes failing to be concerned with the things that are fundamentally more important.
         In the case of the young rich ruler, he failed to be concerned with the most important issue in life, while keeping all the rules.  According to the young man, he kept all 613 rules of the Jewish law.  BUT--He missed the biggest one of all!
The first two of the Ten Commandments deal with the issue of idolatry. 

1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
   
2. You shall not make idols. 

         What if you keep all 613 rules of the law, but fall into idolatry?  Let me define modern-day idolatry.  "Idolatry is allowing anything to come between us and God."  Anything that causes a disconnect in our relationship with God is toxic to our spiritual life.
         In the case of the young rich ruler, he walked away from following Jesus, because he loved his riches.  This was a stumbling block that stood in the way of his relationship to God.  He walked away from Jesus with great sorrow, but not enough to sell his riches.
            

Questions to Consider:

1. Have you had to give up anything of significance in order to follow Jesus?
2. What is it about idolatry that makes it dangerous to our spiritual well-being?
   
3. Do you have any "camels" in your life that you have swallowed?