The Ultimate Concern

 PROPERS:          PROPER 23, YEAR B  

TEXT:                MARK 10:17-31

PREACHED AT ST. PAUL’S CHAPEL, MAGNOLIA SPRINGS, ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2021.

 

ONE SENTENCE:        The choices we make reflect our highest values.

 

            When I was in my first year in seminary, the bulk of our time was invested in a study of the Hebrew Scriptures – which we call the Old Testament.

 

            However, the course work was leavened with a class entitled Ascetical Theology. In other words, the theology of the Holy Spirit.  To say it was esoteric and largely above my head is a monumental understatement.

 

            Our text was Paul Tillich’s three-volume Systematic Theology. The three books – if I was asked to define them in an understandable way – dealt with some very complex philosophical concepts. I struggled to understand him.

 

            Paul Tillich, like most great 20^th century theologians, was German.  He had studied in the finest German institutions of higher education early in the century.  And like most of those others – except the martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer – he fled the terrors and persecution of the Nazi regime – especially after being removed from his teaching post. He came to the United States, where academic freedom, free speech, and open inquiry were valued. 

 

            Tillich taught at Union Theological Seminary in New York for many years before moving to Harvard.  He became one of the most recognized and respected scholars of his era.  He even appeared on the cover of Time magazine.

 

            He is remembered and taught to this day – 56 years after his death. His sermons are remarkable – much more accessible than his denser writings. He coined various phrases that have withstood the test of time.  One was his way of describing God as “the ground of being.” Another is “being grasped by the ultimate concern” – which was his philosophical way of describing the experience of faith.

 

            The issue of the ultimate concern is the point of the gospel lesson today.

 

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When I was a child, we knew this passage as the Rich Young Ruler.

 

            This anonymous young man comes to Jesus and wants to know what he needs to do to inherit the Kingdom of God.

 

            Jesus obliges. “You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” Seven of the Ten Commandments.

 

            The young man is self-satisfied. “Teacher, I have kept all of these since my youth.”

 

            The next line is what has stuck with me for many years: “Jesus looked at him and loved him.”  Jesus knew well that he was about to break the young man’s heart, and he loved him nonetheless.  “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 

 

            An aside here: It is possible to love someone deeply and speak the truth to him or her. In fact, if you truly love someone, you will have the courage to speak the reflected, thoughtful truth – no matter how hard it may be – to that person. Remember that.  It is something Jesus does, and something we are called to do.

 

            But, back to the main point: The young man, who aspired to God’s kingdom, was crestfallen. He yearned for righteousness, but he had great riches which he loved more.

 

            The question is:  What was his ultimate concern?  

 

            If you have ever had a deep experience of faith – one which prompted you to reorient your life – you know what Paul Tillich means when he wrote about “being grasped by the ultimate concern.” Everything else fades into the background.  The experience of faith is all that matters.

 

            That is why Jesus’ words continue… about the difficulty of a rich person entering the Kingdom of Heaven. It is not just about rich folks.  It is roadblock for all of us who place something else – no matter what it may be – as our ultimate concern.

 

            Yes, these are hard words.  All of us love and treasure various aspects of life – our families, our homes, our comfort, our safety, our security.  All of these mean the world to us.  But we need to know this:  We will not know the power of God’s kingdom while it is second, third, or fourth place in our hierarchy of treasures.

 

            That is difficult to hear.  It is the truth.

 

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            Yet remember: Jesus looked at him and loved him.  He looks at you and loves you, too.