I may be carbon dating myself, but some of you seniors may also remember the song "The Look of Love," written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. This 1967 hit tune was sung by English pop singer Dusty Springfield. One day while I was thinking about the first line of this song, "The look of love is in your eyes," I was prompted to jot down some thoughts about Jesus. What's the common link between this song and our faith?
Recall the parable of the rich man in Mark 10:17-31:
"As He was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before Him, and asked Him, 'Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?' Jesus answered him, 'Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: "You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother."'
"He replied and said to him, 'Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.' Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, 'You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.' At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, 'How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!'
"The disciples were amazed at His words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, 'Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.'
"They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, 'Then who can be saved?' Jesus looked at them and said, 'For human beings it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.' Peter began to say to him, 'We have given up everything and followed you.'
"Jesus said, 'Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come. But many that are first will be last, and the last will be first.'"
These verses traditionally reflect on the obsession of possessions which can lead to materialism. Our society has the need to feed greed. Everyone wants the biggest and the best. The rich young man knew what to do, but his riches got in the way. In other words, he couldn't hand over the goods to the poor and follow Jesus.
But just as importantly in these verses, Jesus describes what love is and what love does. The text states that Jesus looked on the young man, and He loved him. This was a deep love, a love that required action. After His look of love, Jesus told the young man what he lacked. Jesus could have given the man a pat on the back and sent him on his way with a warm, fuzzy feeling. Instead, Jesus told him exactly what he needed to do, with no sugar coating of the truth.
To love someone isn't always easy. When a family member, relative, friend, neighbor or acquaintance questions how they can have the hope of eternal life, we must tell them what they lack. As it says in Romans 1:16: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel. It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: for Jew first, and then Greek."
Barbara Case Speers is a writer who lives in Hickory.