December 30: 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 a man of great wealth. Luke 18:22-23
The rich young ruler came to Jesus and asked how to inherit eternal life and the formula was given yet he refused, thinking he knew where life came from. How sad for the rich young ruler to refuse the advice of the Savior of the world, the richest man who had ever lived and yet he left it all in Heaven to come for us. Does not his coming to earth demonstrate for us how to find true wealth and riches? If he gave up his home in heaven and all the wealth and position and power and fame among the angels to come to this fallen sin cursed world to rescue his redeemed ones then would we fare better if we chose to live some other way?
Notice the text indicates that the rich young ruler went away sad because he was a man of great wealth. How significant to see that it is not riches that make happiness but the surrendering of our riches that brings us great joy. O if the world could only see and hear these words of our savior there would be much joy in the house of the Lord. But who will go to them and tell them of such truth? Who will go to them and wrest them from the enemy’s poisonous treats?
Just this morning I was reading a biography of C.T. Studd, missionary to China and Africa in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. How he responded to the call of Hudson Taylor to China and left with the famous Cambridge seven. They were all men who had great promise in business and medicine and other interests but they left them all behind in England for the riches of China and the gospel treasure they would find there.
C.T. Studd was the son of a very wealthy merchant in England and news arrived that he was going to inherit a large fortune soon. Attempting to decide what to do with the large sum he decided to find out what would have happened to the rich young ruler if he had given it all away as his Lord had directed, so he began to send large sums of money to Hudson Taylor for the work in China and sent another large sum of money to George Mueller in England for the work among the orphans and a significant sum for mission work in England. After his attempt to give away all his inheritance he had 3400 British pounds left to his name. He would propose marriage to his soon to be wife with this sum and she replied, “C.T. God told the rich young ruler to give it all away so let us make sure we start clean with the Lord.” They entered their marriage penniless and quite happy.
They served together in China for another ten years until ill health required that they return to England. In England they spent their time speaking to students about the missionary call of God, both in England and America. Hundreds of students responded to their influence to go to the mission field. In 1900 they set sail for India and served there for six years. They once again returned to England, this time completely penniless and in ill health, they were refused treatment because they were without the means to pay for the care. The group of businessmen refused to continue to support them as they were speaking of going to Africa, even though they were in ill health.
After four years in England, C.T. and his wife thought it best for him to go to Africa, even though they had little prospect of survival there. They agreed to leave his wife and children in England because the dangers of Africa were only too well known. Many predicted that C.T. would not survive his journey to Africa and they were right, he only lived another twenty one years serving the Lord in Africa, when doctors had said he would not survive the journey let alone the hostile climate in Africa.
C.T. would coin a phrase that has been quoted often since his death, "Some wish to live within the sound of Church or Chapel bell; I want to run a Rescue Shop within a yard of hell."
One missionary biographer writes these words of C.T. Studd “ "C.T.'s life stands as some rugged Gibraltar — a sign to all succeeding generations that it is worth while to lose all this world can offer and stake everything on the world to come. His life will be an eternal rebuke to easygoing Christianity. He has demonstrated what it means to follow Christ without counting the cost and without looking back.
May our lives be so influenced to give of our wealth and go with our lives to the places where the gospel has yet to be heard. Let us be found in giving, praying and going to the gospel poorest places on the earth.
Here We are Lord Send us!
Pastor phil
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