What It Costs to Follow.
Matthew 19 — The chapter where every "right" answer costs more than expected
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Matthew 19 — The chapter where every "right" answer costs more than expected
7 min read
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was on the move. He left — the region where most of his ministry had happened — and crossed into , beyond the . This wasn't a random road trip. He was heading toward . Toward everything that was waiting for him there.
Large crowds followed, and he healed people along the way. But the conversations that happened on this stretch of road hit different. Marriage. Children. Money. Identity. One after another, people brought Jesus their biggest questions — and every answer turned the world upside down.
The showed up with a question designed to corner . Divorce was a heated debate among at the time — one school said a man could divorce his wife for almost anything, another said only for serious offenses. They wanted to force Jesus to pick a side so they could use his answer against him:
The Pharisees asked him, "Is it lawful to divorce your wife for any reason at all?"
Jesus didn't take the bait. Instead, he went all the way back to the beginning:
Jesus answered, "Haven't you read that the Creator made them male and female from the start? And he said, 'A man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' They're not two anymore — they're one. So what God has joined together, no one should tear apart."
They pushed back:
The Pharisees said, "Then why did Moses command a certificate of divorce?"
Jesus told them, "Moses allowed divorce because of the hardness of your hearts. But that was never the original design. And I'm telling you — whoever divorces his wife, except in the case of sexual immorality, and marries someone else, commits adultery."
This is a heavy passage. Jesus wasn't trying to pile guilt on anyone who's been through divorce — he was restoring the weight of a that people had started treating like paperwork. In a culture where men could discard a wife over a burned meal, Jesus said: that was never God's intent. Marriage was designed to be permanent. The fact that made allowances didn't mean it was the plan — it meant human hearts were already broken. And the brokenness was the problem, not the solution.
The heard all of this and had an honest reaction — maybe a little too honest:
The disciples said, "If that's how it is between a husband and wife, it might be better not to get married at all."
Jesus replied, "Not everyone can accept this — only those who've been given the ability. Some people are born unable to marry. Some have been made that way by others. And some have chosen to set aside marriage for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whoever can accept this, accept it."
didn't them for the question. He acknowledged that singleness is a real, legitimate path — not a consolation prize, not a waiting room. Some people are called to it. And for those who are, it's not less than marriage. It's a different kind of devotion entirely.
Right after this intense conversation about marriage and commitment, people started bringing their children to — hoping he'd bless them and pray over them. The tried to wave them off. They probably thought Jesus had more important things to do.
Jesus corrected them immediately:
"Let the little children come to me. Don't stop them. The kingdom of heaven belongs to people like these."
Then he placed his hands on them and prayed. And moved on.
No long explanation. No theological lecture. Just a quiet, powerful statement: the belongs to people who come with nothing to offer, nothing to prove, and no agenda. Kids don't schedule a meeting to network with Jesus. They just come. And that's exactly the posture he's looking for. The disciples kept trying to manage who had access to Jesus. Jesus kept tearing down the velvet rope.
Then someone approached with a question that seemed simple enough:
A young man came up and asked, "Teacher, what good thing do I need to do to get Eternal Life?"
Jesus said, "Why are you asking me about what's good? There's only one who is good. But if you want to enter life, keep the commandments."
The man asked, "Which ones?"
Jesus listed them: "Don't murder. Don't commit adultery. Don't steal. Don't lie. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself."
The young man said, "I've kept all of these. What am I still missing?"
And here's where the conversation turned:
Jesus told him, "If you want to be complete, go sell everything you own, give the money to the poor — you'll have treasure in heaven — and then come follow me."
When the young man heard this, he walked away grieving. Because he had a lot of wealth.
He came looking for one more box to check. Jesus gave him the one box he couldn't. Notice — Jesus didn't chase after him. He didn't soften the ask or negotiate a smaller commitment. He let the man walk away. Because Jesus wasn't interested in a partial yes. He wanted the man's whole life. And the man's wealth had a grip on him that was stronger than his desire for God. That's the tragedy of this story. He wasn't a bad person. He was a good person who couldn't let go of the one thing standing between him and everything.
turned to his after the young man left, and what he said next stunned them:
Jesus said, "I'm telling you the truth — it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. In fact, it's easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God."
The disciples were floored:
They asked, "Then who can possibly be saved?"
Jesus looked right at them and said, "With people, it's impossible. But with God, all things are possible."
Here's why this hit so hard: in that culture, wealth was seen as a sign of God's blessing. If the rich couldn't make it in, who could? Jesus wasn't saying money is . He was saying money is powerful — powerful enough to become the thing you trust instead of God. And you probably won't even notice it happening. It's not that the rich young man loved money more than God on paper. It's that when he had to choose, his grip on what he had was tighter than his reach for what was being offered. That's the danger. Not that you have things — but that your things have you.
— always the one to say what everyone else was thinking — jumped in:
Peter said, "We've left everything to follow you. So what do we get?"
Honest question. Maybe a little self-serving, but honest. And didn't rebuke him for it:
Jesus told him, "I'm telling you the truth — in the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, or land for my sake will receive a hundred times as much — and will inherit eternal life.
But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."
That last line is the one to sit with. The doesn't reward the way the world rewards. The people at the front of the line might end up at the back. The ones who looked like they had it all figured out — wealth, status, religious credentials — might watch the ones who had nothing walk in ahead of them. It's not about what you accumulate. It's about what you're willing to release. The rich young man held on and walked away sad. The let go and were promised everything. Same invitation. Opposite responses. And Jesus let both of them choose.