I want you to see something here. Jesus looked at this young man and loved him… without any life change happening. Many of us would expect Jesus to be full of positive emotions towards him after he surrendered all to God. But that’s not what we have here. Instead, we have a life controlled by the love of money… and the Savior brimming over with love for the soul ensnared therein.
Jesus looked at this man, and He saw right to the heart of the matter. He saw a heart that worshipped at the altar of Mammon. He saw a heart that – in spite of upkeeping an appearance of righteousness – did not truly have God on the throne. He saw a ruler whose riches owned him. Jesus was moved with overflowing compassion, desiring to see him free to run in the path of God’s commands. He gently gave the young man the difficult answer that he needed to hear.
When He did so, His instructions for change were entirely free of reproach. They contained not even a hint of condemnation. They flowed from Jesus heart saturated with love alone.
This is how Jesus deals with each one of us, too. He looks at us and sees right to our hearts. If there is anything there competing with our First Love, He gently puts His finger on it. He longs to see us free. Brimming over with love for us, He tenderly calls us to surrender.
If we will give Him our “Yes,” the liberty awaiting us is far more glorious than we could ever imagine…
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God asked Abraham for Isaac. He asked this rich young ruler for all of his wealth. He asks anyone wanting to follow Him to lay down our lives daily. Why, do you think, is He so insistent on having everything?
Feeding On Jesus 
I believe He is so insistent on having everything because this is our place of greatest fruitfulness and joy. He knows that the greatest satisfaction of a human life is an undistracted walk with Him.
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WONDERFULLY explained, Danielle! I believe you are 100% right on with this! Thank you so much 🙂 💖
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It’s a trust issue. We only really trust, if we trust fully. Completely. BTW, I figured out why we resonate! My parents were missionaries to Brazil. We have much in common! God bless you, Jennifer. Thanks for this post.
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Oh, how wonderful, Cheryl! Did you live in Brazil with them? My husband lived there when he was 12, and amazingly, has not forgotten his Portuguese. What a special connection! And that is SUCH a key insight, too, about trust. Thank you so much for sharing, my dear sister 💕🤗
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Because he is everything 💕🌷
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YES! So He deserves it all!
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He knows that if we hold anything more dear to us than Him, it will ultimately destroy us. He loves us too much to let that happen.
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Wow, yes, SUCH a vital truth to understand. Jesus must have been sad that this young man (at least at that moment) was in danger of that very thing. I wonder if, as he got older, he became any wiser about it.
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I love the way Corrie Ten Boom said that God wants us to have the best blessings, but first He needs to pry our fingers loose from the lesser things we’re clinging to.
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Goodness did that woman overflow with wisdom. I was just watching an interview filmed of her the other day that blessed me immensely. I have been incredibly inspired by her life and teachings!
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I love this thought provoking post and comments. EVERYTHING means giving HIM Lordship over your life not as domination but as Divine overseer. Under His watchful control we all have wonderful freedom and abundant life. We are kept on the PATH…The Path to Eternity. He will keep us there. Surrender all to HIM. Blessings!
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Faye, I really love how you explained the vitally important distinction: “not as domination but as Divine overseer.” That is so good, and so, so accurate. Freedom to run in the path of His commands!
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