The Heart of the Matter

All-In

There are things in life that just are not going to happen if you’re not ‘all-in’. Most true in the hardest things.

A golf shot. Or, if you bowl. You’ve got to be all in on your next shot. Hunt.

Meal/prep. Cooking. Ever finish a dish and wonder what’s still missing? Yuck. You checked out for a while and missed something.

If you’re operating a saw or power tools, you better be all in. Or else your fingers will be all off.

Exercise. Your head can tell you you need to and it’s a good thing. But, if your heart isn’t in it, forget it. Or, if your body isn’t up to it. An injury. Illness. Weakness.

And, you don’t need to know what’s it’s going to take to finish. You just need to be all in to get started so you’re prepared to go farther when you need to dig deeper.

Fight cancer. It will tax everything you have. Mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually there will be days when you just don’t feel like you can go on. But, if you’re in the fight, you’ve got to keep moving.

One step at a time. Other illnesses require as much. Your family needs you to to keep fighting. You need to be all in.

Marriage. You’ve got to be all in to get married to the person you’re preparing to marry. You don’t need to have everything in place for your 40th or 50th year. You just need to be cognitively, mentally into it. Your heart needs to be engaged.

Too often in a marriage, the heart engages but the head is left out of the equation. And we wonder what the person was thinking marrying that guy! He’s got an obvious history!

There must be some physical attraction. No one else needs to be attracted so you don’t need to pick the best looking of the bunch. Just need to be attractive to you.

Spiritually, you need to be on the same page. The best page is the God page together. Both committed to loving God more than anything else, including each other.

Parenting. Same deal. You better be all with your kids in each moment. You don’t need to know everything about raising teenagers when you first have them, but you better be ready to learn.

Here’s the deal, if you’re not, you’ll be exposed soon enough.

You’ll quit exercising.

Your golf score will go way up.

You can give up on life and die.

Your marriage will hit the rocks. Then, you’ve really got to be all in to get it back in shape.

And, your kids may not have anything to do w/ you.

And, if these things require you being ‘all-in’, none are more important than your relationship w/ God. Which is what Jesus said. All-in. All your heart, mind, soul, and strength.

Your head needs to be engaged. Your heart needs to be there. You body needs to be ready to perform. And, spiritually, you need to be on the same page w/ everyone else involved. If you’re not, you’ll get exposed and failure becomes a real possibility.

Everything needs to be engaged to start. Then, as things grow and change, we adapt. But we had to be ‘all-in’ to start on the right path.

All-in. If you’re not all in, then it is not going to happen. You may start, but the finish will be elusive. And of the important things in life, your relationship w/ God is the most important. He demands the greatest commitment to being ‘all-in’.

You can be ‘mostly-in’ to start. But you’ve got to start ‘all-in’ to finish. God will expose what’s not quite there in your life soon enough so you can make the necessary changes.

We are just a few months/weeks away from X’s crux. There have been several key lessons He made sure everyone knew before He left.

He’d been saying that all the ppl needed to do was have faith in Him, believe in Him to be Who He said He is and that He would be able to do what He said He’d be able to do.

So, now, He’s zeroing in on exactly what that looks like.

There were/are plenty of ppl who are ‘sorta’ in w/ Jesus. They like Jesus just fine to the extent they can still control their own lives. Church is pretty cool as long as the preacher isn’t boring and music isn’t too old and stodgy. But, if anything else comes up then no one will miss me for a Sunday or two.

‘Cause, I’m in control, I call the shots, I’ll do all that I can but I have my limits.

Isn’t that good enough for God?

Here’s a situ where Jesus exposed what was lacking in a guy who seemed to have it all together. On the surface, it looked like he was ‘all-in.’ But, Jesus got below the surface and exposed what was missing.

Exposed

Luke 18:18–23 NIV

A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, 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 commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy.

Between the 3 passages where this story is told, we know this guy was young, in position of authority, wealthy, and a regular at the synagogue and temple. He clearly had a lot on the ball. He was recognized as someone who was mature for his age and given responsibility that few his age had.

Implied, he had a big house, large flocks of sheep, herds of cattle, a wife and kids. It was assumed he was right w/ God.

The general feeling was, if someone was wealthy, then they were already right w/ God and He blessed him for his righteousness. As he grew wealthier, he remained righteous, so God blessed him more and more.

Everyone in that society looked up to wealthy ppl like this wanting to be just like them. And, the wealthy young ruler knew that and saw his position as proof he was right w/ God and nothing needed to change.

Yet, he was unsettled in his heart. He was asking to be affirmed by Jesus b/c something just didn’t seem right. He knew it.

We know it when something isn’t right in our heart. We can feel it. Maybe we need help isolating exactly what it is.

Well, he pressed Jesus and Jesus didn’t disappoint him w/ his guidance. But He did sadden him once he realized what was missing.

He addressed Jesus, “Good Teacher.”

That word for good means, intrinsically good. Not that He only does good things. But, He is fundamentally good inside and out.

Theologically, we all know that fundamentally, ppl are not intrinsically good. Our DNA is corrupt. We do some good things. But we are not good, or good enough, for God. Only God is good in the way this guy addressed Him.

So, by using the term, he indicated he knew, cognitively, believed, in his head that Jesus is the Son of God, in fact, making Him God.

But, Jesus called him out on this b/c He knew the man’s heart. While he bel’d Jesus to be the Son of God, He did not believe in Jesus as the Son of the God to be saved. His head was there. His body was in the presence of Jesus. But his heart was not therefore his soul was not engaged either.

We need to hear a pause in the convo. There would have been a pause after Jesus said, “No one is good except God alone.”

During that pause, Jesus was allowing the ruler to respond w/, “And I believe you are good and believe in you as the Messiah.”

But, he didn’t say that. Jesus already knew the guy’s heart. But he needed to get him to do something so he recognized what was lacking his heart so he could do something about it if he chose to.

Had he confirmed he believed in Jesus, Jesus would have declared him to be saved and his position in the Kingdom was secure. But, that didn’t happen.

The assignment Jesus gave him was intended to illustrate to the ruler what Jesus knew to be true about where he was at that time..

“What must I do to be saved?”

He had self-doubt. This wasn’t just a Q to get Jesus to affirm the obvious. He knew something was lacking in his life. He felt like he was doing everything right. But, that was the problem. He bel’d he was doing everything right. He did not believe salvation was beyond his ability to achieve.

He was pretty sure he was okay w/ God, or rather, God was okay w/ him. He felt strongly he’d been doing it right all his life. If this is all that’s req’d, then I’m golden!

But wait, there’s more.

In his defense, the Jewish leadership had been teaching this for centuries. You this and this and this and this, then you’ll be saved. That’s all they knew. They lacked the understanding of the necessary faith and relationship with God and His Son. So, he sought clarity.

So, Jesus gave him and assignment based on the 10 commandments. He went straight to the second half regarding how we treat each other.

Don’t cheat on your wife.

Don’t kill anybody.

Don’t steal anything from anybody.

Don’t lie about anybody.

And, honor your father and mother.

This young ruler had high standards of morality. He didn’t need to break any of these. He was committed to his wife and kids. He didn’t hate anyone enough to wish them dead. He could buy whatever he wanted, didn’t need to steal it. Why lie when you have all you want. And, his dad and mom set him up well and he loved and respected them for it.

He said, He’d don’ all these things since he came of age.

He’s got this. Nailed it! Aced the test. All he was waiting to hear from Jesus was to assure him he was saved and his place in the kingdom was secure.

But then, the other shoe dropped. Jesus exposed what was lacking in his spiritual life. He said, “Sell everything you have and give the proceeds to the poor.”

Jesus could have specifically pointed out all the ways the ruler fell short of God’s standard. Sins committed, omitted, mistakes made, wrong things said. But, instead, He chose to give the man something to do so he could figure this out on his own.

After all, that was his problem. He was doing it all on his own.

He kept all those commands. He knew he did. But these were all things he could control. He didn’t need God’s help to do any of these commands Jesus called him on.

But, there was more going on in this assignment.

Jesus was clear about what are the 2 greatest commandments.

Love God w/ all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. “All-in”. Love God w/ everything you have, and love God more than everything you have.

Then, love your neighbor as yourself.

So, by telling the man to sell everything, he was exposing the reality that though his head was engaged w/ God and he said he loved God more than everything he had; his heart was not that into God.

He loved his stuff. He loved his lifestyle. In his heart, he was unwilling to part w/ everything even if it meant that’s what it took to be saved.

Then, to give all the proceeds to the poor is a tangible way to demonstrate you love your neighbors as much as you love yourself, if not even more than you love your stuff.

He was probably already very generous. But the idea to give his entire wealth away was beyond his ability to compute and comprehend. Being this generous to give all the proceeds away would demonstrate he understood how generous God would be w/ him.

It’s how generous God would need to be w/ him to save him. But, He wasn’t prep’d to go there.

Pause: This is not a universal command to sell all your stuff and give away the proceeds. This was specifically for this guy. The point for all of us is if there is anything we place a higher priority on than God then we should get rid of it, no matter what it is.

You examine your own heart and if you need to get rid of something, do it.

Works don’t save you. How you behave will not secure your position in the heaven. But how you behave is based on what you believe.

Whatever this guy said or thought, there was something he valued greater than God. Therefore, he was violating the Greatest Command #1.

And, if anyone violates #1, then obedience to #2 is impossible. Even if we don’t kill anyone, God’s not impressed w/ our self-control. He wants control. We must cede control of our lives to accomplish everything we hope to see in eternity.

Even this assignment isn’t done. Jesus told him once he was done w/ all this, then come and follow Him.

IOW, leave your position of authority, your high salary, your influence in the religious community; and come be a nobody w/ me.

Even if the guy came to the point where he could liquidate everything and give away the proceeds, if he could have kept his position he could started over and rebuilt his wealth. Jesus was like, it’s got to end once and for all. No going back.

All-in, or not at all. Partially in is not all in at all.

The ruler was deeply saddened. He loved his stuff. In fact, he clearly understood what Jesus was getting at w/ this assignment and he openly chose not to obey it. He couldn’t. He had started down this path as a boy. But he couldn’t finish b/c his heart was not in it.

His heart was w/ his stuff and he couldn’t bear to part with it even for Jesus.

This ought to rattle your cage just a little bit. This ruler thought for sure he was right w/ God. It wasn’t until Jesus challenged him that he realized what was lacking in his spiritual life. He was unaware. Jesus exposed him.

For us, where are we? Are we sure we are all right w/ God? God will expose us at the right time in the right areas of our life. Are you ready?

The discs who witnessed this exchange were rattled. It shook them to their core. They were at least as confident as this ruler that they are right w/ God. Have then missed something? As important as this is, they want to make sure they are where they need to be, doing what they need to be doing w/ Jesus and for Him.

So, they asked. And Jesus affirmed them. The ruler he exposed. The discs were affirmed for what they believed and what they did.

Affirmed

Luke 18:24–30 NIV

Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, 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.” Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?” Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!” “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come eternal life.”

So now we get one of Jesus’ more famous quotes. It’s easier for a camel to go thru the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.

The camel was the largest animal they were familiar w/. And, the eye of the needle was the smallest opening they could see. So, the impossibility of the event was crystal clear.

Not that being rich is the problem. Jesus knew human nature. It’s the love of stuff more than you love God. And, the more stuff you have, the more likely it is you’ll love it more than God.

Not only do we get this, there was an added angle for the c.1. Again, the assumption that someone was rich b/c they were right w/ God. And the assumption that b/c they were rich, they were right w/ God.

The discs had been brought up to believe this. In fact, the wealthier, healthier, and right-er w/ God.

We can slip into that trap, too. If someone appears to have it all together on the surface, we can assume that God has blessed them more than the rest.

Reality it, God’s blessing can have little to do w/ net worth and togetherness of one’s life. We can’t know what’s roiling underneath the surface even when the surface seems as smooth as ice.

Jesus made it a point to choose those who didn’t have it together. That’s God’s history. He chooses ppl who need Him, know they need Him. And the wealthy are less likely to fully come to grips w/ their need of God.

This is why the discs asked the next questions. First, if the wealthy can’t save themselves, then who can?

Jesus’ answer was, “No one. No one can save themselves. Only God can save you and He has his standard of faith, being all-in. Not all-in control.”

So, do we have any hope of being saved? Yes. We have tremendous hope. We couldn’t do it for ourselves if we tried. But, it’s a free gift of God. Stop trying. Just believe in Jesus and He offers you a hand up and the off-ramp from the highway to Hell.

Good thing wealth doesn’t matter. There is only so much we can do to be wealthy. In fact, for most of us, it is impossible to become wealthy. If this were the condition for salvation, then our goose is cooked.

Peter’s statement next has an implied question. True. The 12 had left everything to follow Jesus. They had done what Jesus demanded the ruler do.

So, the implied Q: What do we get in return? If wealth is not the endgame goal, then what?

Many make the mistake of seeing material blessing in Jesus’ answer here. That, whatever financial bottom line we give up will be multiplied and returned. The spiritual investment plan.

But to see anything material in his answer flies in the face of the message he just sent the ruler.

First of all, Jesus’ emphasis was on family relationships. They left the security and comfort of family. But, by joining Him, they gained a new family. This new family treats each other better than their old family. There are more of them, from all over the world, who genuinely love each other and act like it.

Not only will we experience these new family relationships in heaven, we do now w/ our fellow church members.

The second thing Jesus referred to was not the material stuff itself, but the safety and security we thought we had b/c of it. The contentment stuff like that provides is a veneer, temporary, easily lost.

But the safety, security, and contentment He offers is deep, significant, and lasting. No matter how much stuff you have, if you have Jesus you enough to be able to sleep like a baby at night and not worry about tomorrow.

Total reliance on God is necessary. Partial reliance is not reliance on God, at all. It’s not just the rich that have the problem. We all do. The only hope we have comes from outside us. We can’t make it happen.

For almost 3 years the ppl had heard Jesus say these things. At first, it caused them to rethink everything. But then, ppl settled in and many bel’d though they hadn’t gone all the way w/ Jesus, they had gone far enough to get where they wanted to go.

How about you? Are you all in, or just mostly in? Is your reliance on Jesus total, or partial.

For them, Jesus would be gone soon. They had no idea what was coming.

For us, we don’t know what tomorrow holds. Don’t wait till tomorrow to get rid of whatever may have a higher priority to you than Jesus.

All-in. Head, heart, body, and soul. That’s all it takes to be saved.

Applications

Check Your Head

Do you know enough? You don’t need to know everything. You don’t need to know how your life will finish. You just need to know enough to get started and be prepared to adapt so you can finish successfully.

Is your head in?

Check Your Heart

They say the greatest distance an idea will ever cover is the distance between your head and your heart. We begin by knowing the truth. Then, we transition to believing the truth.

Do you believe what you know to be true? Do you believe in Jesus? Which is more that just believing that Jesus saves ppl.

You don’t need to believe everything today you need to believe in a few years. You’ll have time to adapt. But do you believe enough to get started so you can adapt?

Is your heart in?

What are you hanging onto?

What’s in your way, between you and God? What do you need to get rid of?

Someday, you might be able to take it back. But for now, you must surrender it as if it will gone forever.

What Jesus said, whatever contentment or pleasure this thing gives you, it will be multiplied and replaced by Jesus when you give him his rightful place in your life.

What do you need to get rid of?

Here’s the deal, if you’re not all in, you’ll be exposed soon enough.

You’ll quit exercising.

Your golf score will go way up.

You can give up on life and die.

Your marriage will hit the rocks. Then, you’ve really got to be all in to get it back in shape.

And, your kids may not have anything to do w/ you.

And, if these things require you being ‘all-in’, none are more important than your relationship w/ God. Which is what Jesus said. All-in. All your heart, mind, soul, and strength.

Your head needs to be engaged. Your heart needs to be there. You body needs to be ready to perform. And, spiritually, you need to be on the same page w/ everyone else involved. If you’re not, you’ll get exposed and failure becomes a real possibility.

Everything needs to be engaged to start. Then, as things grow and change, we adapt. But we had to be ‘all-in’ to start on the right path.

All-in. If you’re not all in, then it is not going to happen. You may start, but the finish will be elusive. And of the important things in life, your relationship w/ God is the most important. He demands the greatest commitment to being ‘all-in’.

You can be ‘mostly-in’ to start. But you’ve got to start ‘all-in’ to finish. God will expose what’s not quite there in your life soon enough so you can make the necessary changes.