Scriptural Highlights

• Trusting in riches can keep a person out of the kingdom of God.
• Seek heavenly, rather than earthly, treasures.
• Followers of christ must be willing to forsake all to be true disciples.
• Seek spiritual wealth with enthusiasm and energy.

A study of this lesson should help us better understand that we must be willing to sacrifice the things of this world to obtain a place in the kindom of heaven.

Trusting In Riches Can Keep A Person Out Of The Kingdom Of God

1. READ MARK 10:17-21. A rich young man seeks Jesus to find the path to eternal life.
• When the young man asked how he might obtain eternal life, Jesus began reciting the commandments.
• The young man's response: "Master, all these have I observed from my youth" (v20).
• WHAT DID THE MASTER THEN TELL THE YOUNG MAN?
• "One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me" (v21).
2. V22: "And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions."
• WHY DO YOU THINK THE LORD ASKED HIM TO GIVE UP ALL HIS POSSESSIONS?
• Joseph Smith: "A religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation." (Lectures on Faith, p58)
• Joseph F. Smith: "The difficulty with the young man [was that] he had great possessions, and he preferred to rely upon his wealth rather than forsake all and follow Christ.... No man can obtain the gift of eternal life unless he is willing to sacrifice all earthly things in order to obtain it." (Gospel Doctrine, p261)
• This was a good young man. He sought to keep the commandments all his life, but he had grown comfortable with his riches and was not willing to part with them. When Joseph and Sidney saw their vision of the three degrees of glory, many of those who would receive a terrestrial reward were described this way, "These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men....  These are they who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown over the kingdom of our God" (D&C 76:79). The young man was a good person, but was not willing to take the extra step that would bring him eternal glory.
• HOW DOES THE SAVIOR'S INSTRUCTION TO THE RICH YOUNG MAN APPLY TO US?
• President Lee spoke of a bishop who described some of the people in his ward:
       "In response to the Master, "Come ... follow me" (Mark 10:21), some members almost, but not quite, say, 'thou persuadest me almost to be honest but I need extra help to pass a test.'
       "Almost thou persuadest me to keep the Sabbath day holy, but it's fun to play ball on Sunday.
       "Almost thou persuadest me to love my neighbor, but he is a rascal; to be tolerant of others' views, but they are dead wrong; to be kind to sister, but she hit me first; to go home teaching, but it's too cold and damp outside tonight; to pay tithes and offerings, but we do need a new color TV set; to find the owner of a lost watch, but no one returned the watch I lost; to pass the sacrament, but I've graduated from the deacons now; almost thou persuadest me to be reverent, but I had to tell my pal about my date last night; almost thou persuadest me to attend stake leadership meeting, but I know more than the leader on that subject, so why should I go? Thou persuadest me almost to go to sacrament meeting, but there is going to be such an uninteresting speaker tonight. Almost! Almost! Almost! but not quite, not able quite to reach." (Stand Ye In Holy Places, p291)
• In the case of the rich young man, he was unwilling to part with his riches. As we review the bishop's list of "almosts" above, what are we unwilling to part with? Is it riches? Is it our time? What about some of our habits? This is precisely the sacrifice that we need to make.
3. READ MARK 10:23-25. Hard to trust in riches and enter the kingdom of God.
• WHAT IS THE LORD CONDEMNING? IS HE CONDEMNING RICHES?
• V23: "how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!"
• Dallin H. Oaks: "In descending order of intensity, materialism may be an obsession, a preoccupation, or merely a strong interest. Whatever its degree, an interest becomes materialism when it is intense enough to override priorities that should be paramount.
       "From the emphasis given to this subject in the scriptures, it appears that materialism has been one of the greatest challenges to the children of God in all ages of time. Greed, the ugly face of materialism in action, has been one of Satan's most effective weapons in corrupting men and turning their hearts from God." (Pure in Heart, pp73-74)
• Joseph F. Smith: "The rich man may enter into the kingdom of heaven as freely as the poor, if he will bring his heart and affections into subjection to the law of God and to the principle of truth; if he will place his affections upon God, his heart upon the truth, and his soul upon the accomplishment of God's purposes, and not fix his affections and his hopes upon the things of the world." (Gospel Doctrine, p260)
• The Lord is not condemning riches. He is condemning the negative attitudes of men toward riches: greed, materialism, trusting in riches. The Lord would hardly condemn the means for building temples, sending missionaries into the field, or the results of an honest day's labor. Satan uses riches to temp men into losing their focus on eternal perspective.
• HOW CAN WE MAINTAIN A PROPER ATTITUDE TOWARD EARTHLY POSSESSIONS?
• Consider these warnings:
• John Wesley (founder of Methodism): "I fear, wherever riches have increased, the essence of religion has decreased in the same proportion. Therefore I do not see how it is possible, in the nature of things, for any revival of true religion to continue long. For religion must necessarily produce both industry and frugality, and these cannot but produce riches. But as riches increase so will pride, anger, and love of the world in all its branches." (Quoted by Dallin H. Oaks, Pure In Heart, p80)
• Brigham Young: "The worst fear that I have about this people is that they will get rich in this country, forget God and His people, wax fat, and kick themselves out of the Church and go to hell. This people will stand mobbing, robbing, poverty, and all manner of persecution, and be true. But my greater fear for them is that they cannot stand wealth; and yet they have to be tried with riches, for they will become the richest people on this earth." (Quoted by Dallin H Oaks, Pure In Heart, p81)
• D&C 82:19: "Every man seeking the interest of his neighbor, and doing all things with an eye single to the glory of God."
• D&C 78:5-7: "That you may be equal in the bonds of heavenly things, yea, and earthly things also, for the obtaining of heavenly things. For if ye are not equal in earthly things ye cannot be equal in obtaining heavenly things".
• We need to be willing to impart with and utilize our earthly possessions for the benefit of others and in building the kingdom of God.
• Mosiah 4:21: "And now, if God, who has created you, on whom you are dependent for your lives and for all that ye have and are, doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive, O then, how ye ought to impart of the substance that ye have one to another."
4. READ MARK 12:41-44. The widow's mite.
• WHAT WAS THE WIDOW WILLING TO DO THAT THE RICH YOUNG MAN WAS NOT?
• She was willing to follow the Lord's admonition to the young rich man to "go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor." Her heart was in the right place and the abundance of heaven was hers.
• HOW CAN WE DEVELOP AN ATTITUDE LIKE THE POOR WIDOW'S?
• If our attitude is closer to that of the rich young man rather than that of the widow, I believe that we are not fully converted. Recall that after King Benjamin had addressed his people, that there was a great change within in them. This was not a temporary change effected by Benjamin's great speech, but a permanent change "because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts" (Mosiah 5:2)..
       Only through true conversion are we willing to continue to live our lives in accordance with Celestial laws. As Alma was traveling to the land of Manti, he crossed paths with the sons of Mosiah. Alma rejoiced because they were still his brethren in the Lord "because they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God. But this is not all; they had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting; therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation" (Alma 17:2-3). If we want to change our attitudes, we need to immerse ourselves in the work and the word, fast and pray, as did the sons of Mosiah.

Seek Heavenly, Rather Than Earthly Treasures

1. Luke 12:13-15: "And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me.
        "And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?
        "And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."
• In this episode a man was hoping to use the Lord's influence to persuade his brother to part with a portion of his inheritance which in tradition belonged to the brother.
• WHAT DID JESUS TELL THE MAN WHO WAS CONCERNED ABOUT IS INHERITANCE?
• "Take heed, and beware of covetousness" (v14).
• WHAT IS COVETOUSNESS?
• A strong desire for wealth or for another person's possessions.
• WHY IS IT DANGEROUS TO COVET?
• As discussed earlier, this great desire for wealth can warp our priorities. Our efforts may become focused on material objects rather than the things of God.
• It may cause us to charge or borrow to obtain these earthly desires. President Hinckley has recently emphasized the importance of getting out of debt and setting our temporal houses in order. If we now continue to borrow to obtain a boat, a big screen TV, an vacation cabin, etc., we are now disobeying the counsel of our prophet.
• If we continue to covet it could lead us to other sins such as theft or other illegal activities in order to obtain that which we so desire.
• The Master further counseled, "a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth" (v15).
• In a modern world that puts so much emphasis on material wealth, it is hard to keep the Master's statement of truth in proper perspective. We seem to judge our success in life by how much money we earn and accumulate, by the size and beauty of our homes, by the value and luxury of our cars and by the vacations we take. We see boat shows, home shows, RV shows, and travel shows. We turn on the TV and see shiny new cars, hot tubs, exotic vacations, the lives of the rich and famous, and a dozen schemes for getting rich and living the good life. We are influenced by this flood of materialism all around us. But the Master teaches us that this is not where we find true abundance.
• Spencer W. Kimball: "This nation thought it had found the abundant life in 1929 when luxury came alike to the lowly and the well-to-do, greater luxury than that enjoyed by early kings and emperors. We were driving our unpaid-for autos over heavily bonded highways, en route to the bank to make the monthly installment payments on the radio, the refrigerator, the vacuum cleaner, on Father's new golf clubs and on Mother's new gown. Luxury-mad, we were borrowing from and bonding the generations yet unborn that we might have an abundance of the things which gave comfort, pleasure, and ease. Did this increase our joy? Not at all. This was a poor substitute for the abundant life. Crime increased, divorces were more usual homes were broken up. Finally, the end came to this orgy of spending. The Depression followed, and with it came temporary heartaches, disappointment, and despair, but after the smoke had cleared away, we found attendance at church services increased, friendships assumed new value, fellowship of interests was the rule, and men began to appreciate each other and again live a fuller life. For again rang down through the centuries the words of Divinity: 'For a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment but seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteousness, and all other things will be added unto you'." (Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p353)
• Are things so different today than they were in 1929???
2. READ LUKE 12:16-21. Parable of a certain rich man.
• The rich man obtained his wealth honestly, "the ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully".
• It is important to note that the Lord was not condemning the means of obtaining the riches or the riches themselves.
• WHAT IS THE LORD CONDEMNING?
• The man's attitude towards his riches and what he was doing with them.
• WHY DO MANY PEOPLE SET THEIR HEARTS ON WORLDLY WEALTH EVEN THOUGH THEY KNOW IT IS ONLY TEMPORARY?
• The man in the parable said to himself, "Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry" (v19). This is an attitude that is pervasive in our society today. With the advent of lotteries and get-rich-quick schemes, many dream of doing just as the man in the parable. They want to give up the world of work and go spend their time relaxing, going on vacations, recreating, etc.
       For most this is an illusion. Why can't we realize what the Lord said is true? Our abundance in life is dependant not on our material possessions, but on our spiritual possessions. Why should we spend our life in pursuit of a mirage? And if for some reason we achieve our material goals, will we be like the rich young man?
• HOW CAN WE DETERMINE WHETHER WE ARE TO CONCERNED WITH MATERIAL POSSESSIONS?
• Again, what we are concerned with is our spiritual attitudes, not the wealth or possessions. Many of a talent for making money and have blessed the Church and those around us with that ability. A prayerful study of the teachings of Jesus, as found in this lesson, will help us better determine our attitude. If we are living by the spirit, we will know where we need to change.
• HOW CAN WE BE MORE GENEROUS WITH OUR MATERIAL WEALTH AND OTHER BLESSINGS, SUCH AS TIME AND TALENTS?
• These are questions we need to ponder and pray about. We need to discuss them in our families. We need to review our priorities.

Followers Of Christ Must Be Willing To Forsake All To Be True Disciples

1. READ LUKE 14:16-24. Parable of the great supper.
• Elder Talmage taught that the invited guest represented the covenant people, or the house of Israel (Jesus the Christ, p452).
• WHY DIDN'T THE INVITED GUESTS (ISRAELITES) COME TO THE FEAST?
• They were caught up in their worldy pursuits and didn't have time to come to the great supper.
• WHO ARE THE "POOR, AND THE MAIMED, AND THE HALT, AND THE BLIND"?
• The humble seekers of truth, as are so many of the member of the Church.
• HOW DOES THE PARABLE OF THE GREAT SUPPER APPLY TO US? WHAT EXCUSES DO WE MAKE FOR NOT FEASTING AT THE LORD'S TABLE--FOR EXAMPLE, NOT READING THE SCRIPTURES OR GOING TO THE TEMPLE?
2. READ LUKE 14:25-33. We must forsake all to be Christ's disciples.
• WHAT ARE SOME THINGS WE ARE ASKED TO SACRIFICE?
• HOW HAVE YOU BEEN BLESSED FOR MAKING THESE SACRIFICES?
• Joseph Smith: "For a man to lay down his all, his character and reputation, his honor and applause, his good name among men, his houses, his lands, his brothers and sisters, his wife and children, and even his own life also—counting all things but filth and dross for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ—requires more than mere belief or supposition that he is doing the will of God; but actual knowledge, realizing that, when these sufferings are ended he will enter into eternal rest, and be a partaker of the glory of God…." (Lectures on Faith, p58)
• Bruce R. McConkie: "In the eternal perspective there is no such thing as sacrifice for the gospel cause. Men may forsake what seemingly is of great worldly worth here, but they will be rewarded with eternal riches hereafter. They forsake friends, families, and possessions for the gospel's sake, but they gain these same things again in far greater measure in the mansions on high." (DNTC, 1:557)

Seek Spiritual Wealth With Enthusiasm & Energy

1. READ LUKE 16:1-13. Parable of the unjust steward.
• WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS PARABLE?
• WHAT WAS THE LORD TEACHING?
• James E. Talmage: "Our Lord's purpose was to show the contrast between the care, thoughtfulness, and devotion of men engaged in the money-making affairs of earth, and the half-hearted ways of many who are professedly striving after spiritual riches. Worldly-minded men do not neglect provision for their future years, and often are sinfully eager to amass plenty; while the 'children of light,' or those who believe spiritual wealth to be above all earthly possessions, are less energetic, prudent, or wise....
       "Emulate the unjust steward and the lovers of mammon, not in their dishonesty, cupidity, and miserly hoarding of the wealth that is at best but transitory, but in their zeal, forethought, and provision for the future. Moreover, let not wealth become your master; keep it to its place as a servant." (Jesus the Christ, pp463-464)
• We need to compare the amount of time, thought, and energy we devote to accumulating money and possessions with the amount of time, thought, and energy they devote to seeking spiritual treasures.
• "No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." (Luke 16:13)
• WHO DO WE SERVE?

Summary

We live in a world and a time possessed with the pursuit of wordly possessions and wealth. Increasingly, we see many around us obsessed with accumlating the things of this world, becoming wealthier and wealthier, pursuing recreation and ease. Such is not in the eternal scheme of things. If we truly wish the riches of eternity, our priorities need to be different from those in the world. We must be willing to put away the things of the world and serve the Lord with all our heart, might, mind, and strength. We should be grateful for our earthly blessings, but we need to view them in their proper perspective.

Next Week

Lesson 18: Luke 15; 17

Additional Reading: Matthew 18:11-14