Did Jesus Command Us to Sell Everything We Own?
In Matthew chapter 19 a rich young man had a brief conversation with Jesus about how he may obtain eternal life. Jesus told him to follow the commandments and the young man replied that he had followed all of them. Jesus then told the young man to sell his possessions and to follow Him. But the young man couldn’t do it.
In Matthew chapter 19 verses 16 – 22 we read:
16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
First: notice that Jesus summarized the last six of the Ten Commandments that deal with how we should treat our fellow human beings. Jesus did not mention any of the first four Commandments which tell us how we should be with God, which are:
1) Thou shalt have no other gods before me
2) Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image
3) Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
4) Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy
When the young man told Jesus that he followed the last six Commandments Jesus told him to sell his possessions, which the rich young man could not do. Jesus was showing the young man that he was not following the Commandments that concern our relationship with God. The young man put his wealth and possessions before God, therefore breaking the first and second Commandments, and quite possibly the third and fourth as well. The rich young man was so enamored with his material wealth that he would not give it up even when God in the flesh told him to do so.
Second: many people believe that Jesus was telling everyone, even us today, to give up all of our possessions in order to become followers or disciples of Christ. But look at the context. Jesus was speaking directly to the young man. It was a conversation just between the two of them. Also, Jesus used the pronoun thou when speaking to the young man.
In the King James Bible the pronouns that start with a “T” are singular (thee, thou, thine), and the pronouns that start with “Y” are plural (you, your, ye).
Jesus was speaking directly to the young man in the singular. After the young man left Jesus then spoke to his disciples and used the plural pronoun you to address everyone in verses 23 and 24:
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 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.
Jesus showed the young rich man that he was not following all of the Ten Commandments and that he needed to repent (change his mind) about his worldly wealth by selling his possessions and following Jesus. He was speaking directly to the rich young man and never commanded all of us to sell everything we own.