Bible Study – What Does It Take To Get Into The Kingdom
Share: Your highs (something that made you happy) and lows (something that made you sad) this week with others around you or write them down.
During the last weeks of Ordinary Time, the Gospel of Mark continues with the kingdom of God is open for all people. We hear this message in the readings about the rich man, the disciples jockeying for position, the blind man, the saints, the poor widow, and even Pilate as he queries Jesus about being a king. We don't have to pass an entrance exam; we are already in the kingdom. Through all the changes that occur in our lives, what will not change is God's love for each of us. The kingdom that Jesus is proclaiming is already here and yet is also still to come – the undercurrent of Advent, which is coming near.
What does it take to get in? That’s the question that Jesus is asked. Jesus answers the question that is not asked and offers a very different way of being. The commandments of old are valid but insufficient. The way we've always done it is not working. What in the world would be an entrance requirement for a way of life you have already begun? What if it is not about getting in but about noticing that you are already in?
Opening Prayer: Thank you, God, for loving us just the way we are. Help us to remember that we are a part of your kingdom because with God all things are possible. Amen.
Please open your Bibles to Mark 10:17-31 and read or read the scriptures below.
Mark 10:17-31
The Rich and the Kingdom of God
17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’[a]”
20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.
23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”
24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is[b] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 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.”
26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”
28 Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”
29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
Reflection Questions: (See answers at the bottom of the pages)
- What do you think the man who came to Jesus was trying to find out?
- What did the man say about the Ten Commandments?
- To see if you think it is possible that he never once slipped and broke any of the commandments, let's see if you can find the Ten Commandments in the Bible (Exodus 20:1-7; Deuteronomy 5:1-21). What might he have goofed up on?
- What does Jesus say about this?
- What is the man's response?
- In verses 23-26, do you think Jesus is saying that God does not love rich people?
- Is Jesus saying then that rich people probably won't get to be "in”?
- Peter wonders if he will be "in." What does Jesus say to him?
Click here for the young learner’s lesson.
Videos (Click on url)
Mark 10:17-31 The Rich Man: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM9gzEWgDmo or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0UNUY7963k
Gospel of Mark Summary: A complete Animated Overview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGHqu9-DtXk
Song: Walking with the Lord – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNx7XhZ3jrI
Activities:
Following God: Today as we have reflected if we are “in” or not, we have looked at what it takes to be “in.” Being “in” means following God’s ways for us. Think of ways in which you follow God. (Write down your thoughts on a piece of paper.)
Use paper, markers, and other art supplies to create something that will remind you how you are to follow God (a picture of a cross or three-dimensional cross, a picture about the creation around them, a reminder of how to treat people, a friendship bracelet to remind us of how to treat everyone, etc.) https://mx.pinterest.com/pin/42291683987365920/
“Impossible” Finger Painting: Use finger painting paper and paints. Splatter your paint and then try to form a camel with your finger. Then write “WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE” on your art work.
The Rich Man - Crossword: https://sermons4kids.com/activities/the-rich-young-man-1
The Rich Man - Word Search: https://sermons4kids.com/activities/the-rich-young-man-4
The Rich Man – Fill in the Blank: https://sermons4kids.com/activities/the-rich-young-man-2
The Rich Man – Multiple Choice: https://sermons4kids.com/activities/the-rich-young-man-3
Prayer: Help us, God, as we grow into your call to us. Guide us as we seek to live into the life you have given us. Help us to remember that with you, all things are possible. Amen.
Answers to the Reflection Questions:
- What do you think the man who came to Jesus was trying to find out? (What it would take to get "in.")
- What did the man say about the Ten Commandments? (That he had obeyed all of them all of his life.)
- To see if you think it is possible that he never once slipped and broke any of the commandments, let's see if you can find the Ten Commandments in the Bible (Exodus 20:1-7; Deuteronomy 5:1-21). What might he have goofed up on? (Maybe just once disobeyed his parents? Or maybe he said something once that was not altogether true?)
- What does Jesus say about this? (He doesn't look for places he has goofed, but instead offers him the chance to do even more, finding treasures in other places.)
- What is the man's response? (He just goes away sad because he had so many things he cannot part with.)
- In verses 23-26, do you think Jesus is saying that God does not love rich people? (No, it just may be they have more distractions and it might be harder for them.)
- Is Jesus saying then that rich people probably won't get to be "in”? (No, Jesus is saying that with God, all things are possible.)
Peter wonders if he will be "in." What does Jesus say to him? (There is no figuring who will be first and who will be last; just follow Jesus.)
