Mark 10:28  Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.
29  And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s,
30  But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.
31  But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.

There is a cost to serving the Lord. Salvation is a gift of God. Salvation cost Jesus His blood and His life. He left Heaven’s glory to come to this earth and take upon Himself flesh. He was willing to be abused and mocked and falsely accused. He was willing to take upon Himself the sins of the world. He offers forgiveness of sins and salvation to anyone who will humble themselves and turn to God in repentance and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. The Creator of heaven and earth did all this for us.
When we keep this in mind, it will give us a much different perspective on life than the question Peter was asking here. In this passage, Peter speaks on behalf of men. We tend to think we are giving up so much to serve the Lord. We become very attached to this world, which is passing away. We need our eyes open to the facts.
Peter thought he had left all, but the nature of his statement tells us that he had not really left all. He was still learning the meaning of that statement. His outlook after Acts 2 would be much different than it was when he spoke these words.
Jesus assured Peter that he was not losing anything of value in following the Lord Jesus Christ. The things that Jesus mentioned are important to us on this earth. They are also God’s design for us on this earth.
Houses are necessary for us in this fallen world. Adam and Eve did not need a house in the Garden. The climate was suitable for man and animals. There was no death and no cold and no extreme heat. Everything changed with the fall of man. The climate changed after the flood. The world is a different place. Houses are necessary for us whether we know the Lord and follow Him or whether a person is lost and serving self.
The perspective on housing changes for those who truly know the Lord and submit to His calling.
Families are God’s design. He commanded Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply. God made man to become attached to family. It is part of our emotional makeup. We are also drawn to a person of the opposite gender at a certain point in life. That is also God’s design for man. It is essential that we know the true God from an early age to avoid the many pitfalls that are on the broad way. We need to get off of the broad way quickly and get onto the narrow way. Good teaching is so very important.
We often fail to see true value until we have messed things up first. The things that Jesus mentioned are all important, but the end of verse 29 contrasts true value from all the rest.
“For my sake and the gospel’s”. That is what truly matters. Jesus left heaven’s glory and set aside the fulness of His glory in order to become a man so that He could go to the cross and shed His blood and die there for us. He did not lose anything in coming to this earth. He set aside His glory. He received it back after His death and burial. He is today seated on the right hand of His Father, interceding for us.
In verse 30 we are told of the blessing of following Jesus and proclaiming the Gospel. There is such a richness in the family of God. There is a bonding there that the natural family does not have. We tend to be very opinionated. Even among brothers and sisters, we differ in our thoughts and plans. Some are more business minded and others are hard workers but do not seem to get ahead that much. Some are lazy and try to get what they can without too much effort. They tend to think others owe them a living.
When we turn to God in repentance and are saved, we gain a completely different perspective on life. We can then see true value. We see people in a different light as well. We are not looking to take advantage of others. We want to see others become what God wants for them. We have a genuine care for others. We grieve when we see people chasing after a false religion. We long to see others know the peace and joy of the Lord. God blesses us with a family of people who are born again and desire to know the true God better, as we do.
As we follow the Lord, we are also reminded there will be persecutions. The self-centredness of man stands in the way of receiving the Gospel. The Holy Spirit is at work to help the lost to see their way is wrong, but the pride of man rises up against that truth. A few will be broken and saved. Many will fight to the death against the truth. Families become divided due to the truth being received by some and rejected by others. The solution is not to avoid the truth. The solution is to embrace the truth.
Earlier in this passage Jesus addressed the false perception of the disciples regarding children and Jesus. The disciples had determined that Jesus was too tired to deal with parents and children. Jesus showed them that they needed to become as little children to be able to appreciate the blessings of knowing the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord.
In verse 31 Jesus warned of the futility of striving to be first. From our childhood we are taught the importance of climbing the corporate ladder. We are taught the importance of pursuing some earthly career. We are told of the importance of things over souls.
Jesus warned of the loss involved in striving to be first. The person who is not pre-occupied with this world but rather chooses to know and follow the Lord will be far better off than the one who gets a large bank account and many earthly possessions but does not know the Lord.
The apostle Paul wrote of those who will be saved though as by fire. It is possible to be saved but still very carnal. It is so important for us to get a truly Biblical perspective on life. Heaven is a place of peace and joy. We are warned that there will be a ranking in heaven. We are not given all the details of how that will be played out. We are told that we do not change that ranking once we get to heaven. The time to know the Lord is now. The time to surrender our wills to God is now. We need to look beyond this world’s meagre offerings to see real blessings. It does not matter how much a person has here. What matters is what do you have in heaven?
From birth, we have nothing in heaven. For the few who get saved, we have a home in heaven. After salvation we choose what our place in heaven will be. We do not improve our place in heaven by self-effort. We improve that place by submission to God’s will. It is a contrast to the world’s philosophy. It is God’s way and it works. Jesus knows what He is talking about. Peter and the other true apostles would learn this. They had no regrets when their end came on this earth. They had discovered the source of true blessings and even though they faced persecution, they also faced Jesus’ well done at death. That is worth more than all the treasures of this earth. That is worth more than family ties with loved ones who despise the Lord.
Trust in the Lord and begin to enjoy the blessings that are found in His family.
Pastor Bartel