26 Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

27 But Jesus said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”

28 “Look,” said Peter, “we have left all we had to follow You.”

29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30 will fail to receive many times more in this age—and in the age to come, eternal life.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Yuan Vongsavanh

Yesterday, we ended with Jesus’s striking statement: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (v25). This leads those who are listening to ask the bewildered question in verse 26: “Who then can be saved?”

From Matthew 19:5, where the same event is recounted, we know that the disciples were among those who were asking that question. I can picture them puzzled, wondering— the rich and powerful have everything and can do anything. If not the rich, then who? Jesus answers in verse 27, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Notice, He doesn’t point to any human trait as making salvation possible—rich or poor, powerful or weak—it’s only by God’s power that anyone enters His kingdom.

Jesus’ words in John 14:6 reinforce this truth: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Salvation is not about who we are and what we give up, but about what God has done through Jesus.

Yet, Peter still doesn’t quite grasp it. In verse 28, he insists, “We have left all we had to follow you!” He’s still thinking about the rich man who wouldn’t let go of his riches. Peter might be thinking: Surely we will get to enter God’s kingdom, because unlike the rich man, we’ve left everything behind? But Jesus, ever patient, reassures him in verse 29 that those who leave everything for Him will receive much more. And in verse 30, He promises something far greater—eternal life in the age to come.

Let’s reflect on this: Our salvation isn’t based on who we are or what we do, but on what God has done. Through Jesus, the impossible becomes possible.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Yuan is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.