Heal Thy Financial Heart Disease
Financial Nugget # 17
Matthew 19:16-26, “Behold, a man came to Yeshua and said, “Teacher, what good thing must I do that I may have eternal life?” 17Yeshua said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? Only One is good, Yehovah, but if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18The man said to him, “Which commandments?” Yeshua said, “Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, 19honor your father and your mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.” 20The young man said to him, “All these things I have obeyed from my childhood. What do I still need?” 21Yeshua said to him, “If you wish to be completely mature, go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22But when the young man heard what Yeshua said, he went away sorrowful, for he had many possessions. 23Yeshua said to his disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is difficult for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. 24Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of Yehovah.” 25When the disciples heard it, they were very astonished and said, “Who then can be saved?” 26Yeshua looked at them and said, “With people this is impossible, but with Yehovah all things are possible.””
So, did you catch the rich young man’s financial health, or heart, condition? Yep, that’s it, financial heart disease. His financial arteries were blocked up, and he was unwilling to open his financial hand and allow his financial blood to flow again. This man was financially sick. His financial life had an obstruction, but because he was rich, he neglected it, or he didn’t even notice it. It appears he had a Chronic Total Occlusion (CTO). He had sticky fingers and a stingy heart. His heart was attached to his stuff. He did not own his junk, his junk owned him. He truly believed he owned his own property. He had no clue that he was actually only a steward of Yehovah’s possessions.
Yeshua gave him a simple prescription to heal his financial heart obstruction. Literally, Yeshua offered this man a financial coronary artery bypass, just exactly what the man needed to heal his financial heart disease. All he had to do was have a giant yard sale and give all the proceeds to his poor neighbors, the homeless, the widows, and the orphans. Notice that in verse 20 he claims to have obeyed the commandment to love Yehovah and his neighbor as himself. But apparently he did not, nor had he truly loved Yehovah or his neighbors. Notice also that Yeshua told him to give to the poor, not to his local synagogue or favorite 501c3 charity. This man was self-righteous in his own eyes, but he was not righteous in his spirit. He was not righteous in the Court of Heaven. Yeshua showed this young man a simple correction to the course of his life, but he refused to follow the Master’s instructions, His Torah. Therefore, he missed out on becoming Yeshua’s disciple.
This young man’s riches had deceived him. Yeshua had warned of the deceitfulness of riches in Matthew 13:22, “What was sown among the thornbushes, this is the person who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.” and in Mark 4:19, “but the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires of other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” and in Luke 8:14, “The seeds that fell among the thorns are people who hear the word, but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and their fruit does not mature.” If this Hebrew man never repented of his financial heart obstruction, he died with his fists clenched around his bags full of money, then he probably went straight to hell. This is one heart disease that Yeshua was willing to heal, but this man was unwilling to obey Doctor Yeshua; he did not have the faith to be healed. He very likely died in his sin. Friends, we need to have a slippery grip on our wealth. Allow the Father to bless you with wealth on one hand, but freely let the wealth go out from your life with your other hand, as He tells you to let it go. Do not allow your heart to attach itself to your stuff as it passes through your life. It’s not your property anyway. Your life is not about you; it’s about what Yeshua wants to do in you and through you. You need a heart free of attachments for his will to be done in and through you.
This young man did not mix his obedience with faith in Yehovah. He did not mix his faith with obedience to Yeshua. He may have suffered with his financial heart disease for the rest of his life and died a worldly wealthy, but spiritually bankrupt old man. Yeshua wants us to understand that we own nothing, but are only stewards of his gifts, talents and property. He also wants us to understand that he means for us to instantly obey when he tells us what to do to fix ourselves. No time delay between command and obedience. Zero percent ownership, zero time delay. Delayed obedience is disobedience from a rebellious heart. We are 100% stewards, Yehovah is 100% Owner. Facing this reality is the only way this universe works properly. The rich young ruler thought he owned his goods, but his stuff actually owned him. That misunderstanding may have cost him his eternal salvation. Don’t let it cost you yours.
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