The Christian faith is paradoxically both challenging yet simple. On one hand, Jesus says the way is hard and few find it. On the other, His yoke is easy and we must become like children to enter the kingdom. We will examine how it is difficult yet simple to recognize who Jesus is, what He came to do, and how we should respond.
- It is difficult yet simple to recognize who Jesus truly is – the good God and King. The rich young ruler had a high view of Jesus but not high enough to recognize He is God.
- It is difficult yet simple to recognize what Jesus came to do – to bring salvation that we cannot achieve ourselves. We must recognize our need for a Savior due to our sin.
- It is difficult yet simple to respond properly to Jesus – to repent, believe, and follow Him. This involves identifying and turning from our idols to find satisfaction in Christ alone.
The rich young ruler illustrates how most find the cost of following Jesus too high. Hudson Taylor shows that when you recognize the sacrifice Christ made for you, sacrifice becomes gain. The question is, which example will you follow – forfeiting everything like the ruler or seeming to sacrifice nothing like Taylor because you’ve found full satisfaction in Christ?