Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. (James 5:2)
Expanded Passage: James 5:2
He was the kind of man parents hoped their daughters would bring home someday. Well-educated and an established community leader, he had ambition and was probably destined for great things. He lived by a strict moral code. Even as a young man he had been careful about his choices and his reputation.
One of the leading thinkers in the field of ethics was to speak nearby, so he went to see him. The more the man heard, the more he felt that something was missing in his life. He admired the speaker’s wisdom and the future benefits he offered. This was something the young man simply must have! He blurted out a question. “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
This is a retelling of the story called “The Rich Young Ruler” as given in Luke 18:18–23. Jesus directly addressed his question. He offered him a position as one of his followers. Perhaps he could have been one of the disciples—a world changer. Jesus asked him to sell his possessions to the poor and promised him treasure in heaven, but the young man went away sad, because he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He couldn’t let go of what he had, to grasp what he was promised. His gifts from God were obstacles in his path to God.
Hold lightly to the things of this world.
Calvin Wylie is a retired federal employee. He is the son of a Wesleyan pastor and evangelist. Calvin and his wife, Tammy, live in Clemson, South Carolina.
© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
