False Security

False Security

Mark 10:24 - 'And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!' KJV

This is a very interesting story. I encourage you to read it thoroughly because I don't have time to go into all of it. But basically, there was a man that claimed to have obeyed all God's commandments since his youth! And he had great possessions, or a lot of things. But Jesus told him, since he has obeyed all of the commandments, to give away what he had and then come and follow him.

Well, of course the man went away and felt horrible because what Jesus showed him was that, what he thought he had, he really didn't have. Jesus was basically showing this man that his security was in what he had and not what God has for him! This is powerful because right after that, Jesus said that it's very hard for a person that has earthly riches to enter into the Kingdom of God. This is not talking about heaven, but it's talking about our place in the Kingdom of God here on earth! And riches is not just about money.

But it's whatever we deem valuable. You see, when a person is insecure and doesn't really know who they are in Christ, they will use positions, wealth, reputations, etc. to prove to people who they are. Their confidence is built upon what people think about them instead of what they know about themselves. This man in the story obviously had that problem because he basically told Jesus that he had done no wrong since his youth. I'm sure there were people around him that would have agreed with that because he had great possessions and felt he was somebody.

Let me break it down for you. Many of us struggle with false security. These are positions we have in the church, positions we have on our jobs, things we have accomplished, and reputations we have earned, and we consider these to be things of value. But, they are not of any value to God! YOU are of value, not what you have or what you have accomplished. Until you know that, you will never be satisfied! What you have can be taken away from you instantly. God loves YOU! You are who he made and he put something special in you that only he can bring out. You can't do it without him. So you must face your false securities and let them go.

You must become transparent before him and allow him to show you who you really are. Listen to what he said about this man that came to him bragging about how good he has been. The word says in Mark 10:21, "Then Jesus beholding him loved him..." Wow! Jesus loved HIM! Not his things or his possessions. Not his reputation or his position. Jesus loved him and wanted him to know that by asking him to give up everything that he was using as false security and be secure in him! So what we have to realize is that we cannot attach ourselves to things for security in this life. Our security is only based on who God made us, not things.

(Please read this entire story! Mark 10: 17-31)