Hey, carpool crew. I'm Pastor Justin and I'm really glad you're here. As we start this new month on Carpooling with Jesus, we will jump into big questions, specifically questions that people ask Jesus. Because when someone had a real question, Jesus gave a real answer. Maybe you'll see that the questions people ask Jesus are not that different from the questions you have. This is gonna be a great month. Today's question is a big one, and it comes from the book of Mark, chapter 10, verse 17. The book of Mark is in the New Testament, and it's one of the four gospels. This is what it says. As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" This verse starts the story of a rich young man who wanted to know how to live forever with God. He knew Jesus was important and had the answers, but he didn't realize how hard it might be to truly follow him. When Jesus answered his question, here's the one thing I want you to remember for the ride today: loving God means putting him first, more than anything else. The rich young ruler was a man who seemed to have it all. He had tons of money, fancy clothes, probably the biggest house in the neighborhood with the biggest collection of shoes and Pokemon cards. Not really, but you know what I mean? But deep down, something was missing inside of the rich young ruler. So one day he saw Jesus walking by and he ran to him, not strolled, not walked, he ran. That tells us that this wasn't just a casual question. This is something that has been burning in his heart and on his mind. He knelt down and asked Jesus, what must I do to inherit eternal life? And that's a big way of saying, how can I be with God forever? Now that question, it was huge back then and it still is today. People wondered, is it about following rules, being really good? But Jesus was about to surprise everyone. First, Jesus reminded him about God's commandments, things like honoring your parents, not stealing, telling the truth, and the man said, I followed all those since I was a kid. Then Jesus went a little deeper. He looked at the man with love in his eyes and said, go sell everything you have, give the money to the poor and come follow me. Whoa. That is not what the man expected, and sadly, he couldn't do it. The man walked away sad. Why? Because even though he wanted to follow Jesus, he loved his stuff. His heart was too attached to the things he owned and not enough to God who made him. Jesus wasn't being mean. Jesus isn't against having stuff. So what was Jesus doing? Well, he showed the rich young man what was really in his heart, the love of his things. And sometimes we have to ask ourselves that same question. Is there something I love more than God? Maybe it's screen time on your iPad. Maybe it's sneaking and grabbing mom or dad's phone, which you shouldn't do by the way. Maybe it's Legos, BMX or another sport, maybe it's painting or even always wanting people to like you, even if it means making bad decisions. Loving God first means putting him first, more than anything else. And that choice, it changes everything. Remember, no matter where you are or how you're listening, God loves you. Parents, if you like today's podcast, go leave a rating and a review for us on Apple or Spotify. It really helps us out. Before you go, answer this question together. What's something I really love that I'm putting before Jesus? Can't wait to tackle the next big question tomorrow.
