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Holy insights!!!!

This week I made some changes to the way I do my studying of the scriptures, and it has been wonderful! I started using the tools offered on lds.org and finding additional resources to deepen my study has made this week's reading so much more meaningful.

Anyway, here is what I got:

On Matthew 19, we read about the young man who asked Jesus how he could obtain eternal life, to which he was told that in addition to the normal commandments he already kept he should sell all the he had and give to the poor. For the young man, this commandment was too hard for him to keep and he left, "sorrowful" because he had too many possessions and he was not willing to part with them, to which Jesus answered:

Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

It is interesting to note two things that provide another insight into the story that comes from Mark chapter 10:

1. The young man came to Jesus running, which to me indicates that he seemed eager to meet Jesus, even excited, possibly because of what he had heard from others (verse 17) 
2. When Jesus explained to the young man that he had to sell his property and give it to the poor, it was because He loved the young man (verse 21).

When I think of the young man running to Jesus, combined with the knowledge that he left sad, it makes me think that the young man believed that following Jesus would be easy, so his disappointment can be understood. Also, the fact that Jesus told the young man to sell his possessions was not a test of his faithfulness, but as a commandment given out of love, it was given because He knew what the young man needed and what would be best for his spiritual growth. We have moments when we are eager to follow the commandments, or "spiritual high" as I have heard before, but unlike the young man, we have to be willing to give up anything that Heavenly Father knows is going to prevent us from being able to follow Him. In fact, anything we know hinders our spiritual growth can be substituted for the word "rich" above. The entire point of the passage is to help us understand the need to put Heavenly Father first. I like what Elder Russell M. Ballard has to say about it:

Another highlight from my readings this week comes from Matthew 20:1-16. This is the parable of the laborers in the vineyard, and up until this week I had never understood its meaning, and after reading it, researching, and talking about it with my lovely wife, it finally makes sense. What I understood is that basically some are working in the field right now, which means some are actively partaking of the blessings of the gospel (I, for example, was born in the church and have always had the gospel in my life). Others will join the fold and partake of those blessings later in life (at the eleventh hour). In the end, when the Savior returns to the Earth, all those who are in the field will receive the same reward that is promised to the faithful. 

Those of us who have been in the field from the beginning should not be as the laborers in the parable who were upset with those who joined the work later and received the same reward. We have to be happy for them because, regardless of the timing, they received the same blessings we did and we should be happy for their happiness, just as Heavenly Father is happy when any of His children are on the path back to His presence.