Wealthy Christians: How do you go about threading a camel through the eye of a needle?

Question

Edit: Skooz--I thought you were supposed to explain scripture to those of us who don't understand... I think Jesus would expect you to. But hey, go ahead and don't answer me.

Answer 1

The needle that Jesus refered to was a gate in the walls of Jerusalem which was just wide enough to get an unladened camel through,if the camel was loaded down with merchandise it could not get through,therefore Jesus was trying to draw attention to the fact that love of possessions including money was actually an unneeded burden which made it very hard for people to turn away from for the sake of the kingdom.

Answer 2

Place the camel close to the event horizon of a singularity, the bottom of the camel will be closer to the event horizon than the top of the camel. Tidal forces will draw the camel into a thread as it pulls it in towards the event horizon. Place the eye of the needle in such as fashion that the onrushing thread will go through it.

Answer 3

Don't know, I am not a wealthy Christian (by American standards). And I give about 15-20% of my income to cahritable organizations.

Answer 4

Only poor xtians say that!

They also like to say 'blessed are the poor"
(because the bible says so! even if the mortgage company says 'get out'!)

I've addressed this here in the past and received over 50 non-answers.

Answer 5

The truth is when you consider the broader world $30,000 USD is extremely wealthy. So, even where the US marks its poverty line is rich by comparison to many countries.

It can be a sticky issue to think about.

Answer 6

It doesn't really mean "wealthy"...

I think "greedy" would have been a better word. If someone has 60 million bucks as his saturday pocketmoney and theres a bunch of poor people, and he doesn't care for the poor...

meh?

Answer 7

Right after that... it is written:

The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, "Who then can be saved?"

Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God."

Answer 8

Should the Followers of Jesus Accumulate Material Wealth?


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"Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God…Woe to you who are rich, For you have received your consolation"; and,"Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. "Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."; and, "Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys." (Luke 6:20, 24; Matt. 19:23-24; Luke 12:33)


For the vast, vast majority of people who are part of what calls itself the church in the United States, the words of Jesus above, spoken in the context of material wealth, will immediately draw an emotionally defensive response. Why? What does it mean when someone is defensive at the suggestion of living a sacrificial life for Jesus? What does it mean when people get defensive when it is suggested they do with fewer material things or 'not-as-nice' material things? Well, it probably means they are either in bondage to, or struggling with, the sin of covetousness. What is the definition of "covet"? It is to consistently desire more material things than what you presently have. It means to focus on getting more money/things as opposed to giving them away in serving the Lord. What does it mean to be in bondage to the sin of covetousness? It means one is not willing to try and follow Messiah Jesus. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Answer 9

Defender speaks directly to this question. Nicely done.

Answer 10

Anti-Christian bigots attempting to interpret Scripture for Christians are as hilarious as me trying to explain string theory to a physicist.