"The Encounter of the Rich Man With Jesus: A Trilogy for Self-Reflection on the One Thing Lacking"

"The Encounter of the Rich Man With Jesus: A Trilogy for Self-Reflection on the One Thing Lacking"

04/21/2025

Have you ever found navigating the chaos and confusion of your daily life or spiritual journey difficult? How can you break free from life's demands and move forward? How much further do you need to go, or have you reached a point of peace and contentment, or perhaps one of exhaustion and frustration? These are signs of a healthy and vibrant interior life. Sometimes the answers are unclear and the challenges we face knock us off our feet—a significant emotional setback, cognitive blindness, or worse, we may find ourselves mired in a spiritual tar pit of acedia, the noonday devil of discipleship, akin to the struggles faced by Mother Teresa of Calcutta and other Saints and holy Ascetics.

Many of us get led down a rabbit hole when reading Sacred Scripture. A saying from Dr. Scott Hahn has guided me in situations like this: "A text taken out of context is a mere pretext."  I was also advised that when I reach a dead end or find myself coming to what seems to be a profound and final conclusion to one of these passages, I should "go deeper." Sacred Scripture contains many stories and accounts that harmoniously align with one another. The Holy Bible presents a unified plan of salvation comprising many parts, all guided by one Spirit and revealing the mystery of the one true Christ.

This trilogy presents a broader context using three passages from Scripture as part of that unified plan, hoping to provide different insights into a perplexing and challenging Gospel, specifically the Encounter of the Rich Man and Jesus. The story of the Rich Man presents several essential points from the outset: first, he has already inherited eternal life, but he either doesn’t know it or doesn’t believe it; second, Jesus loves him so much that He challenges the Rich Man to go deeper, granting him what he seeks; and third, the indispensable Jewish culture, specifically the religious training that occurs during a boy’s life and the practices and traditions that continue throughout his adulthood. The precise age of the Rich Man is unknown, but we are led to believe he is proficient in his lessons, prayers, and obligations, and wants to advance his understanding.

As I mused over the Encounter, my half-century-old "Spidey-sense" as a Minister of the Word alerted me to a profound pause between Jesus’ statement, "You lack one thing," and his instruction to “Go, sell what you have.” I don’t mean a pause of only one or two breaths. Consider 40 as the appropriate choice. In Jewish numerology, 40 represents change and transition. Recall Moses’ 40 years in the desert, and Jesus’ 40 days in the desert, 40 days when Jesus was with the Apostles after His Resurrection, and 40 days of Lent. Try counting 40 heartbeats or 40 seconds in silence and stillness. Additionally, Jesus' loving gaze at the Rich Man makes this moment even more powerful. It’s as though time stands still for the Rich Man and thrusts him into a desert, a place of stillness and emptiness, where one must reconcile oneself as the person they are now with the person Jesus calls them to be.  Will the Rich Man embrace the teachings he received in his youth? After all, these are the same teachings Jesus learned during his youth, inseparable from his time in the desert and proclaimed throughout his ministry. Discovering what he lacks is simply about manifesting the truth of God’s promises in his life. Sadly, the Rich Man is taken aback by the word “lack.” Jesus’s challenge and loving gaze paralyze him.

I believe Jesus is telling us that to “lack” as a disciple means that something essential and orderly is missing, deficient, or incomplete. By contrast, something foreign has infiltrated and dominated a vital space, causing a disordered life. The Rich Man’s life is disordered, but he doesn’t realize it. Do his great possessions obscure what truly matters as a son of Abraham and the Prophets in the service of God? This is a story of transformation, a call to a new life with Jesus, and it requires an honest self-evaluation of our relationship with God, not an inventory of our possessions or a recitation of our accomplishments.

The first passage is from the Prophet Isaiah in the Old Testament, specifically Isaiah 43:19. The second is the account of Jesus' Baptism, as recorded in Matthew 3:13-17. The third is the account of Jesus's Temptation in the desert, as recorded in Matthew 4:1-11.  I hope you hear the harmony between each pairing and discover what is lacking, as you have never encountered it before.

The Encounter of the Rich Man With Jesus

“And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ And he said to him, ‘Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.’ And Jesus looked upon him and loved him, and said to him, ‘You lack one thing; go sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ At that saying, his countenance fell, and he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.” Mt 19:16-23.

The Rich Man’s Blindness

The words of the Prophet Isaiah herald the arrival of a new spirit for Israel's beleaguered, burdened, and disordered people. Isaiah’s message is a proclamation of good news, foretelling the coming of Christ, who brings a new Spirit for the Law of Moses, the Prophets and ancient traditions:

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” Isaiah 43:19.

In the context of Isaiah, the story of the Rich Man is a frequently retold tale of the Israelites' blindness and hardness of heart toward God and their fellow man. The Israelites no longer lived in the Spirit of God’s covenant. They gradually neglected their obligations to the poor, widows, and orphans. Jesus preached how the Spirit was supplanted by logs in their eyes, stony hearts, tongue-wagging prayers, and wayward, idolatrous faith.

Jesus calls the Rich Man to transform his earthly pursuits, see the Spirit already dwelling within him, and experience a new life by following Him. The Rich Man would rather remain complacent than learn humility and commit to the radical service of his neighbors as a disciple of Jesus. Thus, the Rich Man lacks the essential application of the Spirit residing within the Law of Moses and all that he was taught. He lacks the lived experience of the Spirit alive in the words of the Good Teacher before whom he kneels. 

The Rich Man’s Encounter With Baptism

The account of Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River marks the beginning of his mission and serves as a lens through which we can begin to understand the essence of Jesus throughout his ministry.

“Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so for now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and behold, a voice from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Mt 3:13-17.

At this point, we don’t know for sure whether the Rich Man witnessed everything that occurred and heard what was said at Jesus’ baptism or whether the Rich Man was baptized by John the Baptist, as reported in the Gospel of Mark, “And there went out to him all the country of Judea and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.” (Mk 1:5). The young man’s behavior is quite different from the Pharisees and Sadducees whom John the Baptist called, “You brood of vipers!” (Mt 3:7). The Rich Man approached Jesus in earnest and knelt before him. His discourse with Jesus reveals a depth of sincerity and readiness to learn.

We know the Holy Spirit was present at Jesus’s baptism and is present at every Baptism today, revealing certain aspects of sacramental grace, including a zeal to do things in a new spirit. The aspects at Baptism are priest, prophet, and king (CCC 1341), and reveal a great deal about the Rich Man. He doesn’t lack the aspect of a priest. He acknowledges Jesus's holiness by referring to Him as good, an attribute of God taught to him from his youth. The Rich Man doesn’t lack the aspect of a prophet. He evangelizes by openly speaking of all that God has done for him in the presence of Jesus and the assembled crowd, and he professes his lifelong commitment to following all he has learned since his youth.

One can easily imagine the Rich Man looking at the loving expression on Jesus' face, eagerly awaiting his affirmation and the admiration of those around him. However, his expectations go unmet for two reasons. First, he does not testify to doing works of compassion towards the poor, the starving, the imprisoned, the alien, the widow, and the orphan. Second, no one in the assembly comes forward to testify on his behalf that he ever did any of these works. These omissions starkly reveal the deficiencies in his seemingly devout life. His heart focuses on acquiring and holding onto worldly possessions rather than addressing the needs of his neighbors.

The Rich Man does not perceive that he is on the cusp of entering a deeper life renewed by the Spirit through humility and charity. He does not perceive that he must embody a greater kingship than that required by the Law of Moses to inherit the kingdom of God. Participating as a king alongside Jesus demands that we remain open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, urging us to care for others as we care for ourselves. Thus, the Rich Man lacks the proper order of kingship because he does not possess the required disposition of justice. (CCC 1131).

The responsibility of any king is to administer justice. The essence of kingship requires us to draw from the treasury of our hearts. The act of dispensing justice can take many forms. It involves giving our time, talent, and resources, as well as the attitude with which we take those actions, even to the point of giving up everything. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) provides the following definition of justice:

“Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the “virtue of religion.” Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. “You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall judge your neighbor.” “Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.” (CCC1807).

A king during the time of Jesus differed significantly from our modern perception of royalty today. I enjoy portrayals of monarchs that resemble characters from Walt Disney’s vibrant adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s "Alice Through the Looking Glass."  In Jesus's era, a king who ruled one nation often had authority over several subordinate kings from other nations, typically through direct conquest, a quid pro quo covenant, or by marriage or inheritance. The "king of kings" would delegate various degrees of power to these lesser kings, and can be summed up as “be righteous to yours as I am righteous with you.” This understanding closely aligns with the teachings found in the Catechism. The Rich Man, sadly, remains blind to the righteous use of his great possessions.

The Rich Man’s Encounter in the Desert

The Gospel account of Jesus's three temptations by the devil in the desert demonstrates Jesus’s mastery over things important to us by putting them in their proper order.

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but from every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’

Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will give his angels charge of you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’”

Again the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you fall down and worship me. Then Jesus said to him, “Begone, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’”

Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him.” Mt. 4:1-11.

The devil's three temptations are plenty, prestige, and power. Commanding stone to turn into bread says, “I satisfy my bodily needs on my terms whenever I choose.” Throwing myself down from the pinnacle of the temple, I say, “I am invincible, and I desire recognition in the eyes of the world, for I am a good person doing everything my way." Having all the kingdoms of the world if I but prostrate before the devil says to God, who made me a little less than the angels: “I have a cosmic perspective, an extensive education, business and social connections, and a profound spirituality, which makes me much like a god and ranks me above my neighbor.”

The Rich Man seems to have everything under control. He is wealthy and possesses a remarkable ability to acquire and build wealth. Like his contemporaries, he likely enjoys a prominent position at the Temple. However, Jesus does not acknowledge these accomplishments because they do not answer the question posed by the Rich Man. Instead, Jesus invites him to reflect on living without these good and important things.

The Rich Man expects a detailed playbook filled with strategies, complete with “X’s” and “O’s” and arrows, which he can take from Jesus and add to his collection of great possessions— and he is expecting to receive it now. Possessing it now succumbs to the temptation of plenty. Receiving it from the Good Teacher in response to his advanced and learned question succumbs to the temptation of prestige. He will treasure the instruction given to him and him alone by the Good Teacher and store it among all his other great possessions, surrendering to the temptation of power by ranking himself on par with Abraham, Solomon, and David.  

Jesus does not provide a straightforward answer because Jesus loves the Rich Man so profoundly that he withholds the instant gratification he seeks. Instead, He offers him something far more valuable: the tranquility that comes from a deep understanding of himself, his relationship with God, and his neighbor as he spends time with Jesus as a disciple.  

The Rich Man faces a dilemma common to young men: having the wisdom to act rightly to the right question. That moment of loving gaze may have reminded Jesus of an event from his youth: his heart’s desire to be in the Temple with the elders, asking them questions and discussing the mysteries of God, but not realizing the hurt he had caused Mary and Joseph. (Luke 2:41-52). Jesus presents a paradox for the Rich Man to figure out. From the Rich Man's perspective, “Selling all my possessions will not happen overnight and requires careful consideration. I want to get the best price for my possessions, but finding the right type of buyer is challenging; it will take time, and they will want to negotiate their value well below what I am satisfied with. Then, after emptying myself of my possessions, how will I protect my earnings, make them grow, and ensure that my money will not run out? Who can I trust to know how I want my funds dispersed when I am on the road with Jesus? How does this inherit eternal life? All I’ve accomplished is converting one form of my stuff into another.” Perhaps Jesus is counseling the Rich Man to take his time to grow in wisdom and maturity as he separates himself from the things that anchor him to the world, while not abandoning all that he has learned and observed from his youth, especially honoring his father and mother and the practice of daily prayer.  

The daily prayer recited by devout Jews is known as the Shema prayer. Jesus learned this prayer in his youth, the same prayer that the Rich Man was also taught. Jesus rebuked the devil with the Wisdom in the Shema, restoring the objects of the three temptations to their inherent goodness and proper order. The first two strophes are as follows:

“Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. Take to heart these instructions with which I charge you this day. Impress them upon your children. Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them serve as a symbol on your forehead; inscribe them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Deut 6:4-9.

“If, then, you obey the commandments that I enjoin upon you this day, loving the LORD your God and serving Him with all your heart and soul, I will grant the rain for your land in season, the early rain and the late. You shall gather in your new grain and wine and oil— I will also provide grass in the fields for your cattle—and thus you shall eat your fill. Take care not to be lured away to serve other gods and bow to them. For the LORD’s anger will flare up against you, and He will shut up the skies so that there will be no rain and the ground will not yield its produce; and you will soon perish from the good land that the LORD is assigning to you. Therefore impress these My words upon your very heart: bind them as a sign on your hand and let them serve as a symbol on your forehead, and teach them to your children—reciting them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up; and inscribe them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates— to the end that you and your children may endure, in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to assign to them, as long as there is a heaven over the earth.” Deut 11:13-21.

The pause and the look of love from Jesus were meant to penetrate deeply into the heart of the Rich Man and call him to seek the Wisdom of the Shema and pray for the grace to find the answer to questions like, “Do I place my complete trust in God?” or, “Do I humble myself and bless God when I pray the Shema?” or, “Do I exercise mastery and order over my great possessions, or do they have mastery over me?” The key to the Shema is day-long contemplation, putting the Holy Voice heard in the Prayer into living action.

Jesus fully understands that the Rich Man is coming of age as an adult, just as he did in his home in Nazareth. Jesus and the Rich Man differ in their socio-economic status. Jesus has the hardworking life and the skills and tools of a craftsman; the Rich Man has amassed great possessions, no doubt comprising the aspects of plenty, prestige, and power. Moreover, they have even greater possessions in common: loving parents, a sincerely practiced faith, and the daily Shema prayer.

My patron saint, St. Paul, has words of wisdom that go to the heart of the matter in his First Letter to the Corinthians:

“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought as a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood. So faith, hope, and love abide, these three, but the greatest of these is love.” (1Cor 13:11-13).

The Rich Man is stung by Jesus's answer to his astute and direct question. He thinks like a child and as one who sees himself in a mirror dimly. The Rich Man lacks the Wisdom, maturity, and understanding of his great spiritual and worldly possessions.  

Conclusion

The Spirit spoken of by the Prophet Isaiah instructs us to remain alert and vigilant, recognizing opportunities to imitate Jesus Christ and make righteous use of our possessions. We must not allow created things and simple pleasures to overshadow or control the works of the Creator. The essence and design infused into creation are inherently good, not simply in appearance, like the way the apple seemed pleasing to Eve, but intrinsically good. The Book of Genesis reminds us that God created everything out of pure love, intending for His creation to serve Him and our neighbors. He declared all He made to be good, and there was nothing He created that was not good.

We are baptized into the Order of Kingship with our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him, with Him, and in Him, we exercise the authority of our free will. We are responsible for the safety and well-being of the treasury of our interior tabernacle, or more precisely, our immortal soul. The king's gaze must look outward and inward: outward to keep harmful things out and inward to nurture and share good, beautiful, and virtuous things. Our kingship aligns with the King of Kings when we engage in sacrifice, perform works of penance, practice fasting, give alms, and carry out the corporal works of mercy. 

The devil tempted Jesus, and he continues to tempt us today by distorting the proper use of our great possessions, leading us away from justice and righteousness. We honor and glorify the lowest and vilest thing in all creation when we distort the order and use of the things of this world. Throughout His teachings and ministry, Jesus demonstrated His mastery over the devil. Jesus showed us the antidote for an excessive focus on our great possessions through prayer and time alone with God in silence. In our discipleship with Jesus, we find completeness and lack nothing through works of faith, hope, and charity.

The Gospel account doesn’t reveal what the Rich Man lacked or what he decided to do, only that he left sorrowful. We can conjecture that Jesus had the Rich Man in mind in the story of Lazarus, as recorded in Luke 16:19-31, and the lesson of serving two masters in the account of Matthew 6:24.  Broadening the context of this story reveals a certain path of truth with which to examine what we lack, what needs to be transformed in our lives and in our relationships with our neighbor, and reveal the heavenly reward already present in the life of the Church.

Therefore, be watchful for opportunities to dispense justice. Don't be discouraged. Pray for wisdom and grace to do the will of the Father. Then go and do them every day in the tranquility of order and goodwill.

Viva Cristo Rey!

SK Paul Thomas, Lecturer 15659

“Peace is the tranquility of order.” St. Augustine

References:

The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition. Nihil obstat: May 4, 2018. Ascension Press.

Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition. 2000. Libreria Editrice Vaticana

The Noonday Devil. Jean-Charles Nault, O.S.B. Ignatius Press.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shema