The Impossibility of Entering the Kingdom of God

This past Sunday morning, our sermon text was Mark 10:17-31. There Jesus makes the astounding statement concerning the rich young ruler that it "would be easier for a camel to go through through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God." (Mark 10:25)

We discussed that the interpretations sometimes put forward suggesting that the "eye of a needle" was a gate in Jerusalem that camels passed through with great difficulty is simply unfounded. No, Jesus used this colorful metaphor to speak of impossibility (which he clarifies in v. 27 by confirming "with man it is impossible"). Jesus is suggesting that from man's perspective, wealth, possessions, and riches keep a person out of the Kingdom of God. They make it impossible for him to enter in. Our sermon discussed why this is the case at great length (available for download here).

What I want to consider here is that, if your theology has great difficulty making sense of the "impossibility" of someone coming into the Kingdom of God, then your understanding of sin is vastly inferior. Given the general testimony of Scripture concerning the status of our fallen hearts after Adam, we should not be surprised at all to hear Jesus speaking of the impossibility of this person or that person entering the Kingdom. We should instead respond with a hearty, "Yes Lord. It is impossible for us. It is only possible if you intervene, change our hearts, and draw us to yourself."

Consider Romans 3:10b-18

None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. Their throat is pan open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.

The venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.

That is the testimony of Scripture concerning mankind. Or consider Genesis 6:5 "The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Every intention! The thoughts of his heart. Only evil. Continually.

There is no room to wriggle here. The portrait of our fallen hearts in Scripture renders it, not only difficult, but absolutely impossible that any one of us would ever wake up one day and decide, on our own, to trust in Jesus for righteousness. To believe on him, to cling to his Gospel, to repent from our sins, these are all gifts of his grace and the effects of his causing us to be born-again (1 Peter 1:3).

So I'll say it again: if you read Mark 10:25 and shudder at Jesus saying about this man or that one, "It's impossible for your heart to come and enter the Kingdom," then it's time for a foundation adjustment of your theology.