In the 10th chapter of Apostle Mark’s gospel we find a story that highlights God’s great love for His most prized creation–man.  This story, though often preached, is rarely presented from God’s perspective, and never in the Institutional Church.     “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son (so) that he who BELIEVES IN HIM should not perish but (instead) have eternal life ….”  We know the rest of the passage from having memorized John 3:16,17 as children.  With that famous statement in mind, let us examine the focal passage for this posting (Mk. 10:17-22).  Let us examine it as God, through His Holy Spirit, led Mark to write it.  NEVER READ THE BIBLE.  Always “STUDY” the holy tome in order “to show yourself approved of God ….” as we are commanded to do in 2 Timothy 2:15.  Comparing reading the Scriptures to studying them is like comparing watching a race to running in it.  Watchers have no chance of gaining the prize that only comes with victory.  Only runners can gain the victory and win the prize–eternal life.  And not just any runners are eligible for victory.  As the Apostle Paul stated, we all run the race, but only one wins the prize (1 Cor. 9:24-27).  The Lord makes it clear that only those runners who have put in the hours of effort and sacrifice and have diligently followed the rules have a chance at winning the prize.  Note in John 3:16 that one must believe “IN” Jesus in order to receive eternal life.  But notice also that believing in Him does not guarantee salvation.  Note that the believer “SHOULD,” not “would” receive eternal life.  The difference between “should” and “would” is the difference between “I can” and “I do.”  In this life the one who believes IN Jesus HOPES for salvation (1 Thes. 5:8).  Salvation for the believer is not guaranteed any more that all race runners are guaranteed the prize.  Two important truths  must be noted in this passage.  In God’s world–His true church–the expression “believes in” God entails 1) KNOWING HIS WORDS, 2) BELIEVING THEM AND 3) OBEYING THEM.  Satan believes in God, knows His Words and believes them.  His problem involves obedience.   Mark this: BELIEVING “IN” JESUS, “KNOWING” HIS WORDS AND “BELIEVING” THEM WILL NOT QUALIFY THE BELIEVER FOR SALVATION.  ONLY OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S WORDS UNTIL THE END OF THE BELIEVER’S LIFE WILL SAVE HIM (Mat. 10:22).  With that in mind let us turn to Mark 10:17-22.

A very rich man “came running” to Jesus as He was walking across the countryside.  As I wrote in the series titled “One Came Running,” (to download use “Running” as your key word), the man wanted an answer to his heart-felt question and had heard about this man called Jesus of Nazareth Who spoke words that no one else was saying.  There came a point in the Mark 10 scene when it is written: “And Jesus, BEHOLDING HIM, LOVED HIM.”  The question is, why did He love him?  Doesn’t He love everyone in the world as John 3:16,17 tells us?  Let us STUDY the passage for those nuggets of Truth that are so often overlooked.  It is these Truths, found only in the Lord’s “fine print,” which one must know, believe and obey in order to understand the subject under consideration.  So why did Jesus, after “beholding him,” then “loved him” beyond His natural love for His fellow man?  From the man’s reaction to seeing Him, Jesus knew that the man HAD BEEN LOOKING FOR HIM.  And having found Him, had RUN TO HIM.  Having reached Him the man FELL TO HIS KNEES BEFORE HIM AND ASKED HIM, not the high priest in the Jerusalem temple, not his local rabbi, but JESUS HIMSELF how to be saved.  Why did he ask Jesus?  Because God, through His Holy Spirit, had told him that THE ONLY ONE WHO HAD THE WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE WAS JESUS OF NAZARETH.  The man also knew that he had to believe those Words and obey them.  Today’s smarter-than-God Sinners Saved By Grace need to have the faith of this man, which they do not.  Otherewise they would obey His Words relative to salvation instead of professing that they do not need to because they already have salvation.  Faith is believing what He said (Rom. 10:19).  But that faith does not convert the soul.  In Acts 3:19 we are told to repent (reverse course) and be CONVERTED (not saved) so that our past sins can be forgiven.  Conversion brings with it the death of the old sinning man and the creation of the new holy man into which God places His Holy Spirit which empowers the new creation to resist Satan’s temptations to sin.   Without this conversion and the new creation’s power to resist sin (do works of faith) one cannot be holy.  Without holiness there can be no salvation, which the Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 5:21; 6:18-22: “But now (following conversion–being made righteous) and having become servants of God, you have your fruit (works) of holiness, THE END OF WHICH IS EVERLASTING LIFE” (vs. 22).  The formula for salvation is: conversion–justification (forgiveness of sin=righteousness–righteousness–holiness–hope until the end of life–salvation upon the arrival of Christ.   It all begins with faith, without which it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6).  But faith must be proven by works of faith, for faith without works (obedience of God’s Word–proof of conversion) is dead (Jam. 2:14,17,18,20,24,26).  We live by our faith (Rom. 1:17).  Therefore, if our faith is without works of obedience, then we are spiritually dead.  Sinners Saved By Grace admittedly live in sin and are therefore spiritually dead.  In verse 19 we are told that we either walk in righteousness or sin depending on who’s “voice” we yield to–God or Satan.  The operative word is “yield.”  We decide which voice to obey, and in so doing determine our own eternity.  Read Sin is a Choice.  Use the word “Choice” to download the series.  On two different occasions the Apostle Peter listened to and obeyed two different “voices.”

Recall that when Jesus asked His 12 disciples if they were going to leave Him as had all the other disciples, Peter replied, “Where would we go, (only) YOU HAVE THE WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE” (Jn. 6:68).  Recall that Jesus told him (Peter) that the Words he had spoken were not His Words, but that God had spoken through him (by His Holy Spirit).  Shortly thereafter Peter corrected Jesus after hearing Satan’s voice (Mat. 16:21-23).  The same disciple heard two different voices from two different sources and believed both of them.  Peter allowed his personal desire to dictate which voice he believed in each instance.

Note also that Judas, the thief, was one of those who agreed with Peter in the first instance and remained with the other eleven when the other disciples left Jesus and went back into the world.  Judas believed that Jesus was the Son of God, that His Words were God’s Words.  He used Christ’s Words as he preached the gospel, healed the sick and cast devils out of people.  BUT JUDAS WAS A SINNER who, like the rich man, believed what Jesus said, BUT REFUSED TO OBEY HIM.  Both died in their sins knowing what their sins would cost them.  Both knew that their faith was not enough to save them.  Both believed IN Jesus and BELIEVED His Words.  Both died without Him, fully aware that they could NOT sin with impunity.  Both were more spiritually perceptive than today’s church people who claim that they CAN sin with impunity because they BELIEVE IN Jesus and BELIEVE His Words.  And like Judas and the rich man, they will not rise in the first resurrection to meet the Lord in the air, descend with Him to the Mt. of Olives, enter Jerusalem and there help Him establish the Kingdom of God from whence He and they will rule the universe forever.  Read God’s Very Elect: Future Caretakers of the Universe.  Use “Caretakers” as your key word.  Now back to our STUDY of the focal episode.

The man, on his knees before Jesus, has asked Him what he must do to be saved.  Jesus then voiced four Words that, though of utmost importance, are rejected outright by church people: “YOU KNOW THE COMMMANDMENTS.”  The man was a Jew.  Jews knew the Ten Commandments.  The man told Jesus that he had obeyed all ten of them all of his life.  “THEN Jesus, BEHOLDING HIM, LOVED HIM.”  Note that Jesus loved him THEN.  What did Jesus THEN behold (learn about him) that caused Him to “love him” beyond His love for mankind in general?  THAT HE OBEYED THE LAW.  Notice that it does not say that Jesus loved those who were with the rich man, or those who were nearby and saw what was going on.  Jesus had a special love for HIM.  Why?  Because 1) the man had searched diligently for Him, 2) knew that only Jesus had the Words of eternal life, 3) had begun running when he saw Him, 4) had expressed his desire for God’s Truth, 5) had humbled himself in public, and most importantly 6) HE OBEYED THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.

This is the point at which Judas and the billions who have followed in his footsteps got off God’s track and onto Satan’s track (Gal. 1:6-9).  Today numbering approximately 2 1/2 billion, those in Satan’s Catholic/Protestant religious system have all chosen to join the devil on his church track by not merely breaking God’s Law, but doing away with it.  But unlike the rich man and Judas, they “know” that because they believe “in” Jesus, they are on God’s heaven-bound track.  Just as Islamic Jehadists “know” their god has commanded them to kill all non-Muslims, just as Zoroasterists “know” that fire is the true god, just as sun worshippers “know” that the ball of light in the sky is the true god, just as Indians “know” that their gods have four legs, Catholics and Protestants “know” that they are serving the Biblical God and have already received their reward–eternal life.  The problem is that all of those mentioned above worship, obey and serve Satan who has deceived them into believing his lies.   Satan has deceived them (Rev. 12:9) into following him, just as did Adam and Eve.  NEVER DOUBT THE POWER OF SATAN.

Each Sunday morning Jesus watches as billions of professing believers dutifully pay homage to their sun god, Biblically known as Tammuz (see Eze. 8) whom the Israelites worshipped with sunrise services (vss 14,16).  Modern Israelites and their Gentile converts carry on their ancient ancestors’ traditions by obeying the same god, even to having sunrise services on the day they worship his mother, the goddess of fertility whose name in English is Easter.  Knowing all of the above, one can understand why God is pouring out His wrath on the so-called “Christian nations.”  L.J.