Mi Historia Favorita, Julio 5, 2026

First Christians in the world. What a blessing it is to be with you guys again at my favorite campus. And we rejoice that Kristen was able to read the scriptures this morning and that is the passage that we'll study today. And so as you know, each of our pastors are preaching in different campuses so that our congregations know what's going on in each of the campuses. It's not that I left on vacation for a month or anything like that. But we'll be here and we'll have different pastors visiting different campuses throughout the summer. The story this morning is of the rich young ruler. And it's this idea of a young man who draws close to Jesus. And on this occasion we see a lot of teaching from Jesus towards us. About the nature of God. The nature of man. And about salvation. How should we draw near to God? And I think this morning we'll learn that in this passage. But before we begin, why don't we pray together? Heavenly Father, we come before you this morning. Recognizing that we don't understand everything. And that we need your word to open our minds and our hearts. To understand who you are. And to understand who we are. And the way in which we should draw near to you. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen. The first thing we'll see is that when we draw near to God. We need a correct perspective on the holiness of God. And that's the first point in our notes. It will be on, there it is on the screen.

So you can fill out your notes in your bulletin. When we draw near to God. When we approach him. We need a correct perspective on the holiness of God. In Luke chapter 18 verses 18 through 21 it says. And a ruler asked him, good teacher what must I do to inherit eternal life? And Jesus said to him, why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments. Do not commit adultery. Do not murder. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother. And he said, all these I have kept from my youth. And this is how the conversation begins between this young man, this ruler, this wealthy man of influence with Jesus. It's probable that he was a magistrate or a judge in that place. And he comes to Jesus. Jesus to touch on a very serious theme or idea with him. And based on the conversation they have, I don't believe that the rich young ruler came to Jesus in a hypocritical way. We don't see Jesus tell him, oh, don't come to me with your questions. I can see the heart behind your question, that you have bad intentions, the way that Jesus handled the Pharisees. I believe the young man was sincere in his question. But we can truly be sincerely wrong sometimes. And we see so much love and patience in Jesus's response.

And we'll see in the reference in the book of Matthew, we see that Jesus looked on him and loved him. But he draws near to Jesus and he gives him two titles, teacher and good. And it shows that he had a reverence or a respect for the person of Christ. The fact that he called him teacher and it came to him to ask him a question, shows an attitude that he genuinely came to learn. And this teacher, he describes him as good. And I think what he was trying to communicate is among the rabbis and other teachers, Jesus had established himself as being a better teacher, a good teacher above them. Oftentimes, someone can come to Jesus with reverence, perhaps with good thoughts about Jesus, without having a relationship with Jesus. And that's what was happening with this young man. He revered Jesus, he respected Jesus, he wanted to learn from Jesus. But sadly, we'll see at the end, he didn't wanna follow Jesus. And Jesus asked him, why do you call me good? If only God is good. Unfortunately, many people have used this passage wrongly to say that Jesus didn't believe himself to be God based on this passage. But what Jesus is doing is using the description of the rich young ruler and that he has an incorrect view

of what it means to be good. Because if you read passages like Hebrews 4.15, it doesn't say that Jesus is good, it says Jesus is perfect. Where it says we have a great high priest who was tempted in every way and yet he was without sin. When he was speaking with the Pharisees in chapter eight of the book of John, he asked them, who among you can accuse me of sin? Jesus wasn't just good, he was perfect. The problem was the question the young ruler was asking. When he asks him, what must I do to inherit the kingdom of heaven? His perspective of what it meant to be good was very low. Entonces, Jesús tiene que elevarle el significado de lo que es ser bueno. And so Jesus had to raise his perspective of what it means to be good. Oh, ¿quieres hablar de ser bueno? Oh, you want to talk about being good? Entonces, empecemos por Dios. Well, let's start talking about God. Porque lo que nosotros hacemos cuando hablamos de ser buenos. Because what we do when we talk about being good. Empezamos comparándonos con los demás. We start comparing ourselves with others. Yo no soy como tal persona. I'm not like that guy. Yo no soy tan malo. I'm not that bad. Empezamos en el lugar incorrecto.

We start at the wrong place. Si queremos hablar de bondad. If we want to speak about goodness. Tenemos que hablar de perfección. We have to speak about perfection. Porque es en ese momento que tú empiezas a ver la santidad de Dios. Because it's in that moment that you start to see the holiness of God. Que te das cuenta que no hay nada que tú puedes hacer. That you start to realize there's nothing you can do. Y por eso Jesús eleva el significado de ser bueno. And that's why Jesus elevates what it means to be good. Y le dice, Bueno solo Dios, además tú sabes los mandamientos. He says, so only God is good. And furthermore, you know the commandments. Si quieres llegar al cielo. If you want to go to heaven. En los términos que me estás preguntando acerca de hacer algo. Based on the terms that you're asking me on doing something. Entonces examinemos los diez mandamientos. Well let's take a look at the Ten Commandments. Y pongan atención a esto. And pay attention to this. Le da la segunda sección del decálogo de los diez mandamientos. He gives him the second section of the Ten Commandments. No le da los primeros cuatro. He doesn't give him the first four. Le da los últimos seis. He gives him the last six. Por eso en la narrativa de Mateo,

Básicamente lo resume, amar a tu prójimo como a ti mismo. And that's why in the book of Matthew, it's summarized as love your neighbor as yourself. Porque si no han puesto atención, los diez mandamientos se resumen en dos mandamientos. Because if you pay attention, the Ten Commandments are really summarized in two commandments. Amar a Dios con toda tu mente, alma y corazón. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and spirit. Si haces eso perfecto, vas a cumplir los primeros cuatro. If you do that perfectly, then you'll fulfill the first four. Y amar a tu prójimo como a ti mismo. And love your neighbor as yourself. Si haces eso perfecto, vas a cumplir los últimos seis. If you do that perfectly, you'll fulfill the last six. Por eso cuando le dicen, ¿Cuáles son los dos mandamientos más grandes? And that's why when they ask Jesus, what's the greatest commandment? Amar a Dios con toda tu mente, alma y corazón. He says, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Y amar a tu prójimo como a ti mismo. And love your neighbor as yourself. Entonces Jesús le dice, okay, sigamos en tus términos. ¿Qué cosas tienes que hacer

para llegar al reino de los cielos? And so Jesus says, let's talk about it on these terms. What must you do to enter the kingdom of heaven? Hablemos cómo has amado a tu prójimo. Let's see how you've loved your neighbor. ¿Y qué le contesta el joven? And how does the young man respond? Maestro, todo eso los he cumplido desde mi juventud. Teacher, I've done that, all of these from the time of my youth. Y nos damos cuenta que él tiene esa obediencia al estilo decimos aquí, check the box. ¿Cómo se diría en español? We'll see. So we see that he has that kind of obedience of like, chequea la caja, sí. La lista de la grocery, ¿verdad? Y esto mezclado. Like a grocery list. ¿Cuál es la otra cosa que me falta para entrar al reino de los cielos? What is that other thing that I'm missing to enter into the kingdom of heaven? Vemos que como su estándar de la santidad de Dios era muy bajo. We see that his standards de la santidad de Dios era muy bajo. His understanding of the holiness of God was very low. Y su percepción de su bondad era muy alto. And his perception of his goodness was very high.

Entonces pensaba que solo le faltaba algo más en la lista que hacer. So he figured he must just be missing one little thing on his to-do list. Pero vemos que al acercarnos a Dios. But we can see as we draw near to God. Necesitamos una perspectiva correcta de nuestra maldad. We need a correct perspective on our wickedness. Y eso es lo que le va a ayudar Jesús en el versículo 22 y 23. And that's what Jesus is going to talk about in verses 22 through 23. Cuando Jesús lo oyó, le dijo, te falta todavía una cosa. Vende todo lo que tiene y reparte entre los pobres. Y tendrás tesoros en los cielos. Y ven y sígueme. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, one thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor. And you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me. Pero al oír esto, se puso muy triste, pues era sumamente rico. But when he heard these things, he became very sad. for he was extremely rich. In the story of, in the Gospel of Mark, the same story,

it says before Jesus said this, that Jesus loved him. Because I think that the rich young ruler had been tricked, deceived. It's that sometimes our good works can deceive us about our nature. It's not wrong to want to do right by other people. But it is wrong when those good things we do keep us from seeing how bad we really are. Because that weighs on us too much. Because when you live with this idea that the more things I do, the better I am. But Jesus is showing that there's always something more to do. Because what the law does, is it weighs, it crushes us under its weight. That's why the law doesn't produce joy. How many more commandments do I have to obey? Not only do they not produce joy in our lives, it also produces judgment towards other people. Because there's always another thing and another thing that we're not doing. And I think that this is something beautiful that the law can do within us, even though at the same time it's very painful. Because when the law puts that pressure upon you to the point where you realize that you're not perfect, because it's in that moment that you can see Christ as the perfect. Christ who is perfect.

When you see those who are around you that aren't perfect, it takes you to see Christ who was perfect for them. You're missing just one thing. Now this response is really interesting for me. Because it would look like Jesus is adding another commandment to the 10 Commandments. But if you pay attention, this is simply just an application of the commandment. The rich young ruler says, I've followed all these 10 Commandments even from the time I was young. I love my neighbor as myself. If he's fulfilled those six Commandments, that's what he's done. But what Jesus does is he puts that to the test. Oh, you love your neighbor as yourself, really? Okay, take the thing you love the most, get rid of them, to give it to those that don't have. What he's telling him, you don't love your neighbor the way you say you love him. So don't draw near to me, don't come to me telling me you've fulfilled all these Commandments when you know you haven't. And right now, I've just proven that you're not willing to do that. And Jesus doesn't just prove that he doesn't love his neighbor as himself, but he also proves that he doesn't love God above all else. Because when Jesus asks him this,

it says that he became sad and he left. Because he had. so many riches, and so if following Jesus meant to get rid of that, he loved his riches more than he loved God. And just one question, he proved that he didn't love his neighbor, and he didn't love God the way he thought he did. Therefore, when we draw near to God, when we approach him, we need a correct perspective on salvation. Look at what verses 24 and 25 say. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said how difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God. And some of us might be thinking, oh, those rich people that love their things more than they love God. Let's define the context of what it means to be rich. First, if you're in this place, seated, you drove here with a cell phone in your hand, hopefully not at the same time. We don't want you getting in trouble. You're in the top 1% of wealth in the world. When John the Baptist was preaching the gospel to some Roman citizens, or they would come to be baptized, he would tell them, if you have two tunics, give one and keep the other. Having two tunics, that was abundance. And so before you start to think that you're not that rich person in the story, you better think twice about it. How difficult it is for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God, Jesus said. It's easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. And some people wanting to soften this message have said that the eye of the needle is actually was an entrance in the east of Jerusalem. But there's no historical evidence that confirms that. What Jesus is saying is that in human terms, it is impossible to have salvation. And to that, the disciples respond. And so verse 26 says that those who heard it said, then who can be saved? But he said, what is impossible with man is possible with God. You have to think about the disciples.

So this man was rich, and in that culture, people thought that if someone was financially prosperous, then they had favor from God. And I don't think that's changed much. I think that many people today think that same way. This young man had power, he had influence, and he had morality. Under the social expectations and what people would have thought of him, they would have considered him a very good man. And if that man's not saved, who then could be saved? And Jesus tells them, that's the point, it can't be by a human work, it can't be by our good actions and works, because what's impossible for man is possible for God. And that phrase that they use at youth conferences, what's impossible for young people and man is possible for God, it sounds good. But what he's talking about here, in the context, it's salvation. And Peter, being Peter, says in verse 28, and Peter said, see, we have left our homes and followed you, and he said to them, truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time and in the age to come. I love Peter because we wouldn't get to laugh quite as much as we read scriptures if it weren't for him. Because if we're honest, there's so many of us who act just like Peter. Where he's like, wow, I thought that rich man who's like, he's a VIP, he can't be saved by his works. But hey, Jesus, I've left it all. And so, I'm looking pretty good. And so, Peter's wanting a gold star and a medal and, me, me, teacher, me. You know who we're talking about here, right? And Jesus says to Peter, Peter, you don't understand either, what you've left in order to follow me. It doesn't compare at all. It's like exchanging dust for gold. There's no one who's left at all who's not going to receive so much more in this life

and the one to come. The rich young man came to Jesus confident that there was something that he could do in order to be saved. But you know, there's a real little story right before this one. And it's the story of when the little children came to Jesus. And I don't think it's right there just before this story by accident. The rich man came to Jesus with his power, his money, his influence, his morality. And he left without the kingdom of heaven. The children came to Jesus with no power, no money, no influence. And Jesus says, to those belongs the kingdom of heaven. Either we come to Jesus with, as the children did, with a simple faith, knowing that there's nothing we could bring to Jesus, that we need him the way those children needed him, only by faith. But when we draw near to him like the rich young ruler did. We leave empty without the kingdom of heaven. There's something the rich young man had he was correct about, and it's that God demands perfect work in order to be saved. And yes, there are works that have to be done for us to have eternal life, but they're not our works, they're the works of Christ. Jesus came and he lived this life perfectly. He died a death as if he had been the worst of sinners. Not because of his wrongdoing, but because of our wickedness. And in those works, and on that cross, upon which everyone who places their faith, and those who forget about their own righteousness, and they dress in the righteousness of Christ, those are who receive the kingdom of God. And I want to ask you this morning, what's keeping you from coming to Christ? A wrong perception of your own holiness? A wrong perception of the holiness of God? Of your wickedness? What is keeping you from drawing near to God?

Let me ask you another question. What things are you loving more than you love God? If God were to say, hey, leave that behind today, instead of leaving it, you would become sad and you would leave Jesus. Do you think it's worth it? You think it's really difficult what Jesus was asking the rich young ruler to do? You know the crazy thing about all of this? That Jesus is the rich young ruler. He left his glory, his power, his majesty, to give it all for us. What is it that could be worth more than Christ himself? Nothing. No sin, nor treasure, nor mother, father, sons and daughters, homes. Nothing is worth more than Christ. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we come before you this morning, recognizing that we have valued things in our hearts more than you, recognizing that so often we've missed and we've gotten wrong your holiness, we've thought too highly of ourselves, Lord, and Lord, I know this morning there are people loving the things of this world, and that's keeping them from coming to you. I ask, Lord, that you would bring life and repentance to everyone, God, I ask that you would help us to see if there are things in our hearts, preventing us from having a relationship with you. We give you thanks for your son Jesus, who left it all, Lord, to come and to save us, for your glory. In the name of Jesus, we pray, amen.