Who Actually Gets In — Modern Paraphrase | fresh.bible
Who Actually Gets In.
Mark 10 — A rich man walks away, two disciples grab for power, and a blind beggar sees most clearly
11 min read
fresh.bible editorial
Key Takeaways
Jesus asks the same question — 'What do you want me to do for you?' — to power-seeking disciples and a blind beggar, and only the beggar gives the right answer.
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The rich man kept every commandment but couldn't let go of the one thing that had a grip on him — and walked away from Jesus heartbroken.
The kingdom of God belongs to people who come like children: no resume, no negotiation, just open hands.
Jesus redefines greatness permanently: real power flows downward, and the greatest person in the room is the one serving everyone else.
No one earns their way past the needle — salvation isn't a human achievement but something only God can make possible.
📢 Chapter 10 — Who Actually Gets In 🚪
left where he'd been teaching and headed toward and the area beyond the . And just like before, the crowds found him. They always did. He sat down and started teaching — because that's what he did. But this chapter isn't one smooth lesson. It's a series of encounters, one after another, and every single one asks the same question from a different angle: what does it actually take to enter God's ?
The answers are going to surprise everyone — the religious leaders, the , a wealthy man who thought he had it figured out, and two brothers who wanted the best seats. By the end, the person who understands it best will be a blind beggar on the side of the road.
What God Joined Together 💔
The showed up with a question — but it wasn't really a question. It was a test. They wanted to trap him:
"Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?"
turned it back on them:
"What did Moses command you?"
They answered:
"Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away."
And Jesus replied:
"He wrote that because of the hardness of your hearts. But from the very beginning of creation, God made them male and female. That's why a man leaves his father and mother and holds fast to his wife, and the two become one flesh. They aren't two anymore — they're one. What God has joined together, let no one tear apart."
Later, in private, the asked him about it again. Jesus told them plainly:
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
This is a heavy passage and it deserves to be treated that way. Jesus wasn't handing out condemnation to people who've been through divorce. He was speaking into a culture where men could discard their wives for almost any reason — and the women had no recourse, no safety net, nothing. He was restoring the weight of a that people had started treating as disposable. Marriage, the way God designed it, wasn't meant to be an arrangement you walk away from when it stops being easy. That doesn't mean every situation is simple. But Jesus wanted them to feel the seriousness of what they were asking about. And you can tell — even the disciples needed to sit with it.
Let Them Come 🧒
Right after this heavy conversation, something beautiful happened — and almost didn't. People were bringing their children to , hoping he'd place his hands on them and bless them. The tried to stop it. They pushed the families back. Maybe they thought Jesus was too important, too busy, too focused on the grown-up stuff.
Jesus saw what they were doing. And he was angry:
"Let the children come to me — don't stop them. The Kingdom of God belongs to people like these. I'm telling you the truth: anyone who doesn't receive the kingdom of God the way a child does will never enter it."
Then he picked the children up, held them in his arms, and them, laying his hands on each one.
Think about the contrast. The just tried to use theology as a weapon. The disciples just tried to manage who gets access to Jesus. And the people who got closest to him? Kids. Not because children are innocent or naive — but because they come without pretense. No resume. No negotiating. No "let me show you why I deserve this." They just come. That's the posture Jesus is looking for. And most of us have been trained out of it.
The Man Who Had Everything 💰
As was heading out, a man ran up to him — actually ran — and dropped to his knees. This wasn't casual. He was urgent:
"Good Teacher, what do I need to do to inherit Eternal Life?"
Jesus said:
"Why are you calling me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments — don't murder, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't lie, don't defraud anyone, honor your father and mother."
The man replied:
"Teacher, I've kept all of these since I was young."
And here's the detail that changes everything. tells us that Jesus looked at him — and loved him. Not frustration. Not disappointment. . Then he said:
"You're missing one thing. Go sell everything you own, give the money to the poor, and you'll have treasure in heaven. Then come follow me."
The man's face fell. He walked away heartbroken — because he had a lot of wealth.
This wasn't a blanket rule that every follower has to sell their house. This was a diagnosis. Jesus looked at this specific man, saw the one thing standing between him and God, and named it. The man's wealth wasn't just something he had — it was something that had him. And when the moment came to choose, he couldn't let go. He came running to Jesus. He left walking the other direction. That's one of the saddest exits in the entire Bible.
A Camel and a Needle 🪡
watched him leave. Then he looked around at his and said:
"How hard it is for wealthy people to enter the Kingdom of God."
The disciples were stunned. In their culture, wealth was a sign of God's blessing. If the rich can't get in, who can? Jesus doubled down:
"Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God. It's easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter God's kingdom."
Now they were really alarmed. They asked each other:
"Then who can possibly be saved?"
Jesus looked right at them and said:
"With people, it's impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God."
That last line is the whole point. Jesus wasn't saying wealth automatically disqualifies you. He was saying that the thing we trust most — security, comfort, control — is the thing most likely to keep us from trusting God. And the harder truth? We can't fix that on our own. No one earns their way past the needle. It takes something only God can do.
What About Us? 🤚
You can almost hear the wheels turning in head. He said what everyone was thinking:
"We left everything to follow you."
It's partly a question, partly a statement. Partly "did we make the right call?" responded:
"I'm telling you the truth — no one who has left home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or property for my sake and for the Gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this life — homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and property — along with persecutions. And in the age to come, eternal life.
But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."
Catch that word he slipped in? "Along with persecutions." He didn't a comfortable trade. He promised a fuller life — deeper relationships, richer community, eternal significance — and also hardship. Both. At the same time. Following Jesus has never been a strategy for a smoother life. It's a trade: everything you're clinging to for everything that actually lasts.
Walking Toward What's Coming ⛰️
This next moment is quiet and unsettling. They were on the road heading up to . was walking ahead of them — out in front, alone. The were amazed. The people following behind were afraid. Something about his pace, his resolve, the way he was moving — it shook them.
He pulled the twelve aside and told them, plainly, what was about to happen:
"We're going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the Scribes. They will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, spit on him, flog him, and kill him. And after three days, he will rise."
He said it like someone walking into a burning building on purpose. No panic. No hesitation. Just the facts, laid out in order — betrayal, mockery, torture, , . And the disciples heard every word. But based on what happens next, it's clear they weren't really listening.
Immediately — literally right after described his own execution — and walked up to him with a request:
"Teacher, we want you to do something for us — whatever we ask."
Jesus said:
"What do you want me to do for you?"
They answered:
"When you come into your glory, let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left."
The timing is almost unbelievable. Jesus just said "they will kill me," and these two said "can we get the best seats?" Jesus responded:
"You don't understand what you're asking. Can you drink the cup I'm about to drink? Can you go through the Baptism I'm about to go through?"
They said:
"We can."
Jesus told them:
"You will drink that cup. You will go through that baptism. But the seats at my right and left? That's not mine to give — those are reserved for who they've been prepared for."
When the other ten heard about it, they were furious — probably not because of the theology, but because James and John beat them to the ask. Jesus called all of them together:
"You know how it works in the world. The people considered rulers lord their power over everyone beneath them. Their leaders throw their weight around.
That is not how it works with you. Whoever wants to be great among you must become your servant. Whoever wants to be first must be the slave of everyone else. Because even the Son of Man didn't come to be served — he came to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
That last sentence redefines leadership permanently. In every system humans build — corporate, political, social — power flows upward. You climb. You accumulate. You get served. Jesus flipped it. Real greatness flows downward. The greatest person in the room is the one no one notices because they're too busy making sure everyone else is taken care of. Two thousand years later, we still build organizations, , and platforms that run on the old system. And every time we do, this passage is standing right there, asking us what we think greatness actually looks like.
The Man Who Wouldn't Stay Quiet 👁️
They came to . And as was leaving the city — surrounded by his and a huge crowd — a blind beggar named Bartimaeus was sitting by the road. When he heard it was Jesus of passing by, he started shouting:
"Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"
People told him to be quiet. He shouted louder:
"Son of David, have mercy on me!"
Jesus stopped. Right there. In the middle of everything. He said:
"Call him over."
The crowd shifted. They told Bartimaeus:
"Get up — take heart. He's calling you."
Bartimaeus threw off his cloak — which, for a beggar, was basically everything he owned — jumped to his feet, and came to Jesus. And then Jesus asked him the exact same question he'd just asked and :
"What do you want me to do for you?"
Same words. Completely different answer. Bartimaeus said:
"Rabbi, let me see again."
Jesus told him:
"Go — your Faith has made you well."
Instantly, his sight came back. And he followed Jesus down the road.
Here's what's remarkable. A rich man walked away because he couldn't let go of what he had. Two disciples asked for status and power. But a blind beggar on the side of the road — someone with nothing, someone everyone told to be quiet — he's the one who saw most clearly. He knew exactly what he needed. He knew exactly who to ask. And he didn't let anything stop him. That's the Jesus had been looking for all chapter long. Not perfection. Not credentials. Not wealth or position. Just someone who knows they need him and won't stop calling out until they find him.