“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.” (Matt. 19:23-30)

After the Rich Young Ruler walked away from the Lord, and from eternal life, Jesus turned to His disciples. He had an important lesson He wanted to teach. “It is difficult for a rich person to enter into the kingdom of heaven. In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to be saved.”

Jesus does not say it is impossible for rich people to be saved, only difficult. That rich people can come to faith, is the testimony of other passages of Scripture. For example, in John 3, we read of a man named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, who came to Jesus by night. Nicodemus would have been classified among the upper echelon of society, for he was a member of the Sanhedrin, and highly educated, which cost money.

Joseph of Arimathea, who was also among the Sanhedrin, was wealthy, for the Bible says that he provided a purchased tomb for the burial of Jesus.

He too was a disciple of Christ.

The apostle Paul came from a prosperous family of tent makers, which was a prized skill, in a lucrative trade.

Then there was Zacchaeus, that wee little man who sat in the sycamore tree. Zacchaeus was so wealthy that he could afford to make restitution, and then some, to the people he had robbed.

In addition to Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea, and Zacchaeus, there were several of the apostles who would probably have been considered rich by some.

This may help to explain why the disciples were exceedingly amazed at what Jesus had to say. James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came from a family that was wealthy enough to have hired servants.

Matthew, as a former tax collector, would have had opportunity to acquire money. He was wealthy enough to hold a banquet, following his conversion, and invite many of his friends to meet Jesus.

There was plenty of food, and the wine flowed freely.

Not all of the disciples came from financially secure backgrounds, but like most people, they had dreams of being financially well off some day.

Like most people, they respected those who had the ability to make money. They thought that such people would go to heaven because they had been blessed of God. Jesus points out that even the rich have spiritual temptations. In particular, there is the temptation to be covetous.

That was the problem of the Young Ruler. He did not want to make a radical separation from his lifestyle in order to receive eternal life.

There was no agonizing over the decision. The Young Ruler simply left the Lord. He followed the natural inclination of his heart, which led him away from love, and away from discipleship.

The Young Ruler came to Jesus lost, and he left lost. He came to Jesus with his coins, and he left clutching them more tightly than ever.

The Young Ruler heard what he had to do to be perfect, and he chose to believe it was too high a price to pay.

In his actions, the Young Ruler was not alone. The abuse and misuse of wealth has destroyed many a life. Wealth has seductive powers of its own. Money alone cannot make anyone happy. A reporter once asked Henry Ford how much money it would take to make someone happy. He replied wisely, “Just a little bit more.”

Jesus asked one rich person to settle for a little less, and he said, “No!” While Jesus was speaking, Peter had been thinking.

He compared himself, and the other disciples to the Young Ruler, and said, “Behold, Lord, we have forsaken all and followed Thee.”

This was mostly true.

Peter and the other disciples had given up a lot to be with Jesus.

Certainly in their hearts, they had given all to Jesus. In 1896, Judson Van DeVenter meditated on this concept, and then wrote the following.

“All to Jesus I surrender,
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.
I surrender all,
I surrender all;
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Humbly at His feet I bow;
Worldly pleasures all forsaken,
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Lord, I give myself to Thee;
Fill me with Thy love and power,
Let Thy blessing fall on me.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Now I feel the sacred flame;
Oh, the joy of full salvation!
Glory, glory, to His Name!”

Now, Peter wanted to know what reward, if any, there would be for such sacrifice. The Lord’s response to Peter shows that his question was not considered to be inappropriate. The Lord acknowledges that Peter was not being boastful, but accurate in his statement.

“Yes, Peter, you have followed me.”

What a wonderful acknowledgment that was. No greater honor can ever be given to anyone than to hear the Lord say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant. You have followed me.”

When a person follows Christ, a definite change takes place as the heart embraces a new set of priorities, one of which is to minister to others. Instead of getting as much as we can from others, we find a way to give.

Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

The world says, “You only go around life once, so, grab all the gusto you can get.”

Jesus said, that “the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give His life a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45).”

Jesus ministered to others by giving them His time, His wisdom, His healing touch, and ultimately His life’s blood. Those who follow Christ are asked to give their lives to others.

But do not think that the world will always appreciate such a noble gesture. The Bible states plainly that the world is hostile to Christians. The Bible says that men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil.

Men do not tolerate evil, they love it.

The dope addict delights to do drugs. The lawless revel in being rebellious. The profane person feels more powerful when using profanity without apology. Those who are sadistic, find pleasure in inflicting pain. The sensual heart is naturally drawn to provocative material and eagerly seeks to see more.

The follower of Christ who calls upon individuals to repent, soon discovers resentment and hostility.

It is the nature of people to defend who they are, and what they do.

That is why salvation is so rare, and difficult, and few there be that find it (Matt. 7:14).

The only hope to change the heart of someone who loves their sin is to preach the gospel, and pray that God will reveal the exceeding sinfulness of sin.

That is what Peter did at Pentecost.

Despite his own inconsistencies, Peter preached the gospel, and as he proclaimed Christ, the people were made to see, that by wicked hands they too had taken, and crucified, and killed Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God (Acts 2:22-23).

The crowd in Jerusalem, on the Day of Pentecost, was shocked when the heavenly light dawned, and they were made self-aware.

The Holy Spirit brought understanding.

Because of their sins, they had led them to kill the Lord of glory!

Just a few days before, the people had enjoyed crying out, “CRUCIFY HIM! CRUCIFY HIM!”

There was mass hysteria.

In their lust for blood, the people killed the Messiah!

The people killed Love.

All who follow Christ will know something of the same sufferings of the Lord.

However, if there are hardships and dangers in following the Lord, so there is reward. The disciples were promised, that in the regeneration, “when the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, the apostle shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

If this passage is to be taken literally, then the fulfillment must be in the new heaven, and the new earth, called the regeneration. The Bible teaches that Jesus is coming a second time, and only a second time, to the earth (Heb. 9:28).

When the Lord returns, He will return in the same manner in which He left (Acts 1:11). When Jesus comes, He will judge the nations and renovate the earth (2 Peter 3:10).

If the new earth is patterned after this earth, then all the world will be under the personal theocratic kingdom of Jesus.

If nations exists, ruling over Israel will be the Twelve Apostles. What a time of justice that will be.

Once the disciples were dragged to the bar of Judean injustice. In the future, they shall be advanced to the bench.

Once the representatives of the twelve tribes of Israel trampled upon the apostles, but in the future the members of the tribes of Israel who hurt them shall tremble before the apostles.

Apart from a literal understanding of this passage, there is the spiritual dimension, whereby several truths are taught.

First, those who share Christ’s campaign, will share His victories. In human warfare, the ordinary soldier who wins the battles is often forgotten, as the leaders take the glory.During World War II, the Philippines fell to the Japanese. General MacArthur was told to leave the area, and flee to Australia. The soldiers felt abandon by the Allied leadership, and spoke of about it saying,

“We are the battling bastards of Bataan.
We have no father, no brother,
No sister, no mother.”

In contrast, the Lord promises to share His glory with those who follow Him.

Second, the Lord promises that the Christian will receive far more than he ever has to give up. What the Christian receives is not new and more material possessions, but a new fellowship that is both human and divine. When a person becomes a Christian, there is a fellowship of the saints to which the believer may enter.

Cyprian (d. 259), one of the ancient church fathers said, “He who has not the church for his mother, cannot have God for his Father.” Those who follow Christ must love what He loves. The Bible says that Christ loves the Church. John asks, “How can anyone say the love of God dwells in him unless he loves the brethren?” (1 John 4:9-17).

The third spiritual lesson of the passage is that in the final assessment there will be surprises for “many that are first shall be last, and the last shall be first” (19:30). God’s standards are not man’s standards.

The rich may be in for a rude awakening if they have trusted in their riches more than God.

The self righteous person will be surprised when they discover that the prostitute, and drunkards, will go into the kingdom of heaven before them. The only question left to consider is this. Will we be surprised in the Day of Judgment? Have we forsaken all to follow Christ? If not, why not?

If we forsake all to follow Christ we will know something about ministering to others.

If we forsake all to follow Christ, we will know something about suffering physically, financially, or emotionally.

If we forsake all to follow Christ, we will know something about enjoying the family of God.

This is the teaching of the Lord.