What's in it for me?

Matthew 19:16 - And see, a person came up to him (Jesus) and said, "Teacher, what good must I do to have eternal life?"

I read and excellent piece in Commonweal Magazine dealing with just this passage. The author makes the case that Jesus meant what he said in the story that follows. I will go over that as we go along, but for today I want to go through the thinking (the 'deep story') of the man speaking with Jesus

First, this is clearly a selfish question. The man doesn't appear to be concerned about doing good except as it relates to his eternal status. It seems the question uppermost in his mind at anytime might be, "What's in it for me?" It's formulated differently in the story, but I think they are similar. His only thought is for himself.

Second, despite this, he recognizes that in order to get to heaven/hold eternal life, he needs to do something considered good. Eternal life in his thinking is a reward for the good he will do. It reminds me of the people who were interviewed in Strangers in Their own Land. They all imagined they were in line for some reward and their resentment was based on the fact that they didn't consider people like Barack Obama to be ahead of them. They must have cheated. They were doing all the right things - the good in our story - and they hadn't yet received their reward. Quid pro quo. It's essentially a business transaction.

This reminds me of a conversation I had with my mom a while back. We were discussing her employer's hiring decisions. My mom told me that her boss, if given a choice between two equal candidates, one without kids, disabilities and one with kids or disabilities, would choose the one without. I was rightly shocked and hurt. (I have lupus.) My mom said, "Well, that's business." This is such an American idea and it's held up as "common sense." It hurts those who need help the most. "It" being this cost-benefit analysis that refuses to take the welfare of the community into account while making decisions. It's immoral and unethical. In fact, it is the end - the place where thinking of heaven as a reward for good work lands.

I think this was one thing Paul spoke against. This thinking that we get a reward for doing good things on earth - heaven. He was clear: Heaven is not a reward for good behavior. It is not a quid pro quo. We can never be good enough on our own to enter heaven. The good that we do is because Jesus commanded it: Love one another as I have loved you.

The seeker in this verse, and business people everywhere, has missed the most important thing. Love.
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