Throwing Down Your Strength

There's a story in the gospels of a man who asked Jesus a very important question, "What do I have to do to get to heaven?" ¹ This man was young, rich, and a ruler - living the dream you could say. But something panged his heart, something caused him to think about that all important question, "What happens to me when I die?" Not everyone takes the time to think about life's final act, especially if we are living in the strength of our youth, finding provision in the fruit of our labors, and think ourselves in charge of our own destiny.

But this young man did consider his future after death. What about you?

Before He was to die, Jesus made a journey to Jerusalem, sometimes called the "Triumphal Entry," before the hails of a great crowd. He came as a humble king, riding a donkey, travelling through loud "Hosannas!", pleas from the onlookers for salvation. You may be familiar with this story as it is often read during "Palm Sunday" referring to the palm branches that were laid on the seat of Jesus' donkey and on the road before Him. But palms were not the only thing laid down before the king.

People laid down their cloaks as well.

This act was symbolic - it signified submission to a coming ruler. ² The cloak was a symbol of strength and covering, and by laying it down one would be saying, "My strength, my covering, my stature, all come under you, my king." - just as we see in the story of Ruth and Boaz in the book of Ruth. In this story, Ruth comes upon her kinsman redeemer Boaz, the one who would take responsibility for her, providing, protecting, and caring for her. Ruth's husband had died and now she lived as a widow dependent upon a helping hand. But she would soon find her needs met Boaz, who would take responsibility for her as her kinsman redeemer.

In what amounted to a marriage proposal, Ruth would ask Boaz to cover her with his cloak and assume responsibility for redeeming her from her life of poverty.

Boaz would come to agree to this. But on this night, before he sent Ruth off and until arrangements could be made, he requested an odd thing - "Bring me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out." ⁴ Boaz proceeded to take her empty garment and fill it with a good provision of barley. At this point, may I draw a parallel? Can I say that when we lay our strength, our self-provision, our I'm-good-enough before the Redeemer, when we humbly admit that our vigor, our supply, our control, will never get us eternal life, when we admit that we need Jesus to save us, he will make a great exchange with us: our filthy rags for his perfect righteousness? ⁵

Our lack for His provision.

The gospel is this. It is that we can never be good enough, do enough, rise high enough, to earn eternal life. No man, no woman, is justified by works of the law. All of us have sinned and fall short of heaven. God's grace offers free salvation to all who believe in Jesus. ⁶ Jesus lived the perfect life that we could never have lived and paid the perfect price of atonement with His own life that we could never have paid. He is the Redeemer of the one who believes.

This offer remains on the table for you as well.

References

¹ This story is accounted in the gospels - Mark 10:17, Matthew 19:16, Luke 18:18

² We find a precedent for this in 2 Kings 9:13, "They quickly took their cloaks and spread them under him on the bare steps. Then they blew the trumpet and shouted, 'Jehu is king!'"

³ Ruth 3:8-15

⁴ Ruth 3:15 - He also said, "Bring me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out." When she did so, he poured into it six measures of barley and placed the bundle on her. Then he went back to town.

⁵ Isaiah 64:6 - All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

⁶ Romans 3:22 - This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile,