Mark 10:13-31

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This transcript has been automatically generated, and therefore may not be 100% accurate.

We have somebody coming to read Rachel coming to read the Bible passage to us.

Is that on Chris? Oh, hello. Good morning. If you'd like to find in your Bibles, we're at Mark chapter 10 and that should be on page 1014. So that's Mark chapter 10.

We'll be starting to read at verse 13.

Mark chapter 10. People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. But the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

Truly, I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them. As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. Good teacher, he asked, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Why do you call me good?

Jesus answered, no one is good except God alone. You know the commandments. You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud honour your father and mother. Teacher, he declared, all these things I have kept since I was a boy. Jesus looked at him and loved him.

One thing you lack, he said, go sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come follow me. At this the man's face fell. He went away, sad because he had great wealth. Jesus looked round and said to his disciples, how hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God.

The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God. 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. The disciples were even more amazed and said to each other, who then can be saved? Jesus looked at them and said, with man this is impossible, but not with God.

All things are possible with God. Then Peter spoke up, we have left everything to follow you. Truly I tell you. Jesus replied, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for me in the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age. Homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields, along with persecutions.

And in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last and the last first. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Thank you very much, Rachel. Fantastic. Having a bit of a read of that. If you've got your Bible open, keep your Bible right open in front of you. That would be really helpful as we just take a look at it this morning.

My name is Rob, I am the Children's Youth and Families Minister here at Totley All Saints. Have you spotted it? Have you spotted it? The question this morning? Have you spotted it?

Professor Sneaky Nincompoop was asking the question and if you've listened really carefully, the question's just been given again right there in that Bible reading. And if you still have no idea what I'm talking about, then I've got a big question written down for you this morning, so you do not forget what we're looking at. There you go. That's the question. What can I do to get into God's kingdom?

What can I do to get into heaven? We have got that big question and we're going to answer it with a big answer here this morning. And if you've got your Bible open, verse 13, that true story, it's a brilliant one. Verse 13. Did you see?

There were children? If you're a child, give me a wave. There were children who were going up to Jesus. The adults were taking them. It was wonderful.

And then the disciples said, no, no, hang on, Stop. Back off. Move those children away. Jesus hasn't got time for children. No, no, no, no, no, no.

Move them away. No, no. Jesus is only going to be speaking to the adults this morning. No. Move them away.

Jesus does not want to hold any child. Everyone just do this. It's one of those moments. It's one of those moments. Jesus is doing it.

Oh, disciples. Are you joking? I can't believe you're doing this. Again and again and again. He's doing it.

And Jesus speaks to them very, very clearly. No, disciples. Don't stop the children. Don't stop the children from coming to me. This is really helpful for the answer right here.

Don't stop the children or anybody else from coming to me. Take a look. Verse 14. I've got it. So important, it's up on the screen as well.

Verse 14. Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. His instruction is our answer this morning. Here we go. Let's take it off.

Hopefully you'll still be able to see it. One pic there and one pic there. Come to Jesus. Simple as that. Come to Jesus.

How can I get into God's kingdom? Oh, there you Go. Come to Jesus.

Brilliant. Absolutely fantastic. And the reason why is because children are a great example how you can get into God's kingdom, because they are childlike. Let me unpick that a little bit. Can I have my three little volunteers that I've prepped already just to come down here to the front and grab three very special children and they can make their way over here.

You see, we're going to take a look at what it means to be childlike. Here we go. Wonderful. We've got baby Ben. Wonderful.

We have got toddler Tilly. And we've also got child Chelsea. Ah, there they are. Wonderful. Let's start with baby Ben.

Baby Ben, go for it. Wonderful. Fantastic. Baby Ben drinks a lot. A lot of milk.

He needs his parent or carer needs. Absolutely. If they stop feeding baby Ben, where is baby Ben going to get his milk? He's not going to go in his pram and wheel himself down to the co op or pick up the phone and call, deliver. Moo.

Come on. That was a good one. That was a good one. He's not going to be able to do any of those things. He needs his parent, a carer.

He has got open hands. Every single one of you in this room, just put out your hands like that. We're going to do this a lot. Open up your hands. Open hands.

There is nothing he can offer. There is nothing he can give. There is nothing he can do. Baby Ben needs the parent of carer. Well done.

Put your hands down. Here we go. We've got toddler Tilly. Off you go. Now, toddler Tilly doesn't actually know this right now, but toddler Tilly needs her nappy changing.

Toddler Tilly needs a nappy changing and needs the parent of carer. If the parent and carer doesn't change toddler Tilly's nappy, what's going to happen? Well, she's going to get a rash, isn't she? She's not going to be cared for. She needs the parent or carer.

So are you ready? She's got open hands. Open hands. There's nothing she can give. There is nothing can offer.

There is nothing she can do. She needs her parental carer. Thank you very much. Next we've got child Chelsea. Wonderful.

Child Chelsea needs a home to live in and needs her parent or carer. If they stop giving child Chelsea a home to live in, what's she going to do? Is she going to pick up the phone and call up a hotel and pay for that room with the money? That she doesn't really have. Is she going to go on, right, move and buy herself a house?

No. Everyone say no, thank you very much. No, not at all. She has got all together, one more time. She's got.

She's got open hands. There is nothing she can offer, there is nothing she can give, there is nothing she can do. Each one of them totally dependent on mum, dad or their carer. If you in this room are a young person, turn to the person right now and look at them and look at them and go. You're the person that's providing for me right now, aren't you?

Go on, go on, turn to them right now. Thank you very much. You three, would you like to head away? Brilliant, you know it. And turn to them right now and say, do you know what?

I've got open hands. Go on, do it now, do it. If you're a young person, I've got open hands right now.

But what has that got to do with this question here? What can I do to get into God's kingdom? Well, take a look at verse 15. You've got your Bible open, have a look at it. But it's also up on the screen as well.

This is when Jesus says something incredibly big to every single one of us this morning. Truly, I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. Want to know how to get into God's kingdom? Well, take a look at the children who are childlike, not childish. I know you're desperate to be childish adults and I don't mean being naive like a child either, but with open hands.

Here is a big answer this morning. It says very clearly, come to Jesus. And you need to remember this, Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do. Everybody say it with me.

3, 2, 1. Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do. There is nothing you can offer, There is nothing you can give. There is nothing you can do.

What can I do to get into God's kingdom? This is our answer. Are you ready? Big loud voices. Three, two, one.

Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do. But I reckon there are lots of people, lots of people who still try to do something or they fall back on thinking that they need to do something earlier on. Rachel, read for us in the Bible, if you've still got the Bible, turn to it right now, please do mark chapter 10. And if you remember the true story, we turn to taking a look at a man who was rich, incredibly rich, and that rich man, he comes running up to Jesus, Good teacher, good teacher.

What must I do to get eternal life? Hang on, I've heard that question here this morning. Have you heard it here this morning as well? I think it's sitting over here. Oh, yes, there it is.

What can I do to get into God's kingdom? That's it. Well, Jesus listed some commandments, do you remember? Here they are again, written down on this lovely piece of paper. They're written down in your Bible as well.

Here we go. You should not murder anyone. And the man's thinking, great, I've not done that. That's wonderful. You should not commit adultery, which is of course where that rich man is going to be looking at women in the way that he should only be looking at his wife.

Don't steal, don't lie, don't be dishonest. Listen and respect your dad and mum. Does anybody need that explaining? Anybody? I can explain that one as well.

Well, do you know what the rich man is coming to Jesus, and he has got closed hands. He's got closed hands wrapped around those rules. Oh, brilliant. This is doable. I've been keeping all of these rules since I was a little boy.

He even says these immortal words, I can do it. The independence of a young child. I can do it. He comes to Jesus. He's got three, two, one.

Closed hands, absolutely closed hands. Jesus looks at him, looks at him a little bit like a parent might look at a child. And he knows there's still something not right with that man because not only is he holding onto these, he's also holding onto money. Oh, well done. I don't need to say anything from now on.

He's holding on to money. He's got closed hands wrapped around his coins. He's got great wealth with both of these. What's he saying? I can do it.

He's got absolutely. Jesus sees the money. Take a look at verse 21. Jesus sees the money. But look at what Jesus tells that man.

Verse 21. One thing you lack, he said, go sell everything and you will have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me. At this the man's face fell. He went away sad because he had great wealth.

The treasure in heaven is a relationship with God. But money is far more important to him Now. Money is number one in his life. He loves it. He can't let it go.

He's got closed hands. Absolutely.

What's number one in your life for you? Great. Do you know, if you've not started thinking about that question, he Has. What's number one? What's number one?

I reckon what's the one thing you spend most of your time doing? And I don't mean going to work, although we'll come to that in a second, but something you really enjoy doing, that's probably the one thing, isn't it?

What's number one? Are you a little bit like the rich ruler? Oh, stick with me then. Are you a bit like the rich ruler? The rich man.

Sorry, the money. Do you find security in your money? Are you somebody who counts it, like my daughter who counts it and hopes she's got enough for that toy? Or are you an adult in the room that counts it and looks at their bank statements? Oh, we've got enough.

This is wonderful. I'm going to go buy that next thing. Like the house, the new car, a new kitchen, a brand new bathroom area. Did you know? I'll ask this question a few times, but did you know you will never have enough money in your life?

If you're a young person, it's a good piece of advice to listen into. You'll never have enough. So maybe it's money or is it number one in your life? Stuff. Stuff.

It could be anything. It could be toys, games, trinkets, it could be games, consoles, sports, having all the gear, all your latest bike to go cycling with, having absolutely everything in your life, like the latest mobile phone. And did you know that even though you've got the latest mobile phone, it's not long until the next latest mobile phone comes into the shop? And guess what? You want the next latest mobile phone.

Is stuff number one in your life or is it your job?

I'll come to you in a second. Is it your job? Is it your job? Because as an adult, let's be honest, we get a job and we have now status and that's really, really powerful in our life. We love that.

Not only status, but then we get a bit more proud in what we're doing. That becomes number one and more important than our relationship with God. And then with all that status, we get a new lifestyle that is lovely and wonderful and the lifestyle is more important than anything. I'm also putting up there. School.

Because you haven't got a job but you go to school, don't you? It's school. Now. This is where some people just laugh at me. School.

You're joking. It's half term. I don't care. Well, do you know what I think there are lots of young people who start wanting to succeed and it starts with doing Absolutely. Best they can at school, to do the best exams at school, to go into university, to get the top level there, to get the best job.

And suddenly succeeding becomes more important than God. To the point of we don't go to church anymore because I just want to stay at home and do my revision and do all my practising. Did you know for adults and children as well, there's nothing at the top of a career ladder. There you go. There's three things, but I'm going to top it off now.

And you know what I'm building? What am I building? Power. I thought it was going to go better than that. No, it's a great big number one.

What's number one in your life? Look at that, right at the top. Relationships. Relationships. What about friendships?

Are you somebody who really wants to be the greatest, or are you somebody who looks in a friendship group and go, ah, I'd really like to be that person, or I just want to hang around that person because they're really, really popular and that person or that desire inside of you is more important than your relationship with God. Are you a mum or a dad or are you a granny or granddad? And actually, when you look at the children in your life, do those children become more important than your relationship with God? Or is finding the right person to marry or to be with for the rest of your life, does that become more important than your relationship with God? Now, don't hear me wrong.

I'm not saying any of those things are bad things. They're great things, aren't they? Everything I've just said, they're great, they're wonderful, they are good gifts that God gives us. They're wonderful. But the problem comes in when we swap.

We take away that relationship with God and we swap it with one of those things there and they become more important and we end up. Could you all do it with me now? Put out your hands. You had open hands earlier on, but this is what we end up doing. We end up having closed hands.

Closed hands. What a challenge. Back in January, January 5th, we looked at Mark, chapter 8 and verse 34, and this is what it said. You could gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul. You could gain the whole world and not be in God's kingdom for eternity.

Jesus is saying it is totally impossible for you to get into God's kingdom. Grasping on to all of these things. Let me show you what I mean. Thomas, will you come and stand over here for me? And I'm going to give you this box to hold on to.

There you go. Just take a little bit more step that way. You hold onto that mate. That'll be wonderful. You see, in our life we could end up holding onto all the games.

Wonderful. It's going to get heavier, so just hold on to this. All the toys. Oh, there you go. All the toys that we could buy.

Sorry. Relationships. I'm going to hold on to those sports. All the gear. Okay.

A nice little cap there. Of course, for your doctorate, you're doing incredibly well at education. Some more toys. Latest mobile phone. Wonderful.

Some more toys. Did you know it's an all age service? More toys. Bear with me. More toys.

That's my landlord. Or status. Hey, that came in handy, didn't it? Your Nintendo Switch. Wonderful.

Brilliant. You could close your entire hand on all of those. And soon as we do that, we end up forgetting who we really need. We end up forgetting about Jesus. And we start to think we can do it on our own.

And the trouble is, every single one of us in this room, we end up with closed hands. We all end up with closed hands. And I'm sure now you're asking this question, well, who can be saved? Who really can get into God's kingdom? Well, the disciples asked that question.

Take a look at it on the screen or inside your Bible, of course. Verse 27. With man this is impossible. But not with God. Hey, this is the good news this morning.

This is fantastic good news. Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do. Because no matter who you are, no matter what you have been holding onto your entire life, God has done something amazing for you. He sent Jesus.

And it is Jesus who makes it possible for you to be with him forever. Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do.

It's been done for you. Everybody together. You ready? Three, two, one. Come to Jesus.

There is nothing you can do. It's been done for you. You see, when Jesus died on the cross, he took the consequence that we deserve for grabbing hold onto everything else and turning our backs on God. And he made it possible for us to be with him forever. You ready?

Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do. It's been done for you. Thomas, you've got a lot of stuff in your hands. And you know what?

There is no way you are going to be able to accept that gift. So therefore, you know what you need to do.

He's got to let it go. Thomas, do that for me. Got to have open hands. Everybody else, open hands. Open hands.

Come to Jesus. Nothing to bring, Nothing to offer. Nothing to do why come to Jesus? There is nothing you can do. It's been done for you.

You know, Jesus gave up the riches of heaven to come and die for us. Are you willing to let go of your riches so that you can be with him forever? If you're an adult in this room, I think it's been very challenging to take a look at some of these things. And I reckon it's very challenging and we should continue to think about it. But I think we all end up doing this, closing our hands.

If you're a child in this room, well, congratulations, because Jesus is pointing out to you right now. Be childlike. Continue to do exactly what we had earlier on. Open hands. Knowing exactly who Jesus is, knowing exactly who, what he's done for us.

Knowing exactly what he has prepared for us. How do you get into God's kingdom altogether? Come to Jesus. There is nothing you can do. It's been done for you.

Thomas, do take a seat and let me pray for us. All right now, bow your heads and let me pray. Father God, thank you that when we made other things more important than you in our life, you still sent Jesus for us. We are sorry that we close our hands around your good gifts and make them number one. Please forgive us.

Please help us to turn back to you, to be childlike and trust in you. May we come to Jesus as there is nothing we can do as being done at the cross. Amen. Amen.