Bible text: “Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven”. Matthew 19. 23-30
Saint Paul in his First Letter to Timothy 6.10 states that “for the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many grieves.” This particular bible phrase clarifies what Jesus meant when He made mentioned about rich people who will never make it to the kingdom of God. The rich are those who have tremendous or excessive love for money. Peter in the gospel has a very interesting follow through question to Jesus when He declared how impossible it is for the rich person to enter the kingdom of God. “Then who can be saved?” It seems that Peter’s statement suggests that if this is the case, therefore nobody will be saved. The love of money cannot only be attributed to those who actually possessed them that they just use resources for their own pleasure and leisure and never mind helping people, it is also attributed to those who are not materially rich but extremely preoccupied with ambition to make money and always thinking that what they have is never enough for them therefore not even bothered to share something to those in dire need. People are rich not only because of what they have but also of their selfish dream to make money.
God wants everybody to be rich that is why in the Book of Genesis He gave our first parents the marching command, go, multiply and subdue the earth. He wanted everything to multiply. He gave us power to discover and explore the world. However, the fruits are meant for stewardship which refers to the way time, talents, material possessions, or wealth are used or given for the service of God. Charity is the key but it is not only giving something to our desperate neighbours but we also have to give something for the Church to continue its mission.
Nobody is too rich who has no need at all in life and nobody is too poor who has nothing to give. Everybody has his/her own need and everybody has something to give. This is what the gospel calls abandonment. We have to be generous in our won capacity for it is the way to the kingdom of God.