Sermon for November 22nd, 2020

Matthew 19:16-26

16 Then someone came to him and said, “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 wish to enter into 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; also, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to him, “I have kept all these;[a] what do I still lack?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astounded and said, “Then who can be saved?” 26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”

Counting Camels: Through the Eye of A Needle

Today is our final sermon in our series on Camels (and their status as valuable resources) in the Bible. Last week, we talked about Job, the man with 3,000 camels, and so I couldn't resist this joke:

• What's the difference between Job and King Arthur? One had a lot of camels. The other had... Camelot.
• You probably already know that a camel with one hump is called a dromedary camel, while a camel with two humps is called a bactrian camel. But what do you call a camel with three humps? Pregnant.
• What do you call a camel with no humps? Humphrey
• What do you call the cry of a camel? A hump-back wail!

It's probably a good idea to start a sermon like this with a few laughs (or groans!), since it's not one of Jesus' most popular messages--especially not in 21st century America, one of the wealthiest nations in history. Even if you are in the "middle class" today in America, you are among the top 10% compared to the rest of the world. Basically, we are the guy who comes to Jesus and goes away grieving, because he had many possessions. We are the guy about whom Jesus told his disciples, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle" than for that guy (us) "to enter the kingdom of God." Add to that the fact that, as Americans, we *really* don't like to be told where we can and can't go.