Eternal Inheritance
“What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mk 10:17).
The word ‘inherit’ is defined by the Cambridge dictionary as: ‘to receive money, a house, etc. from someone after they have died.’ The young man in the scripture knew well that eternal life cannot be merited, achieved or conquered. It is not even a reward for a life well lived, but it is a ‘gift’ freely and generously given by God. It is a gift from Abba Father to His loving Children. Eternal life is a property of the Eternal Father gratuitously shared with all of us.
Jesus tells us in John’s Gospel that there are many dwelling places in His Father’s home and that He will prepare a place for us (Jn 14:2). Jesus was telling this to His disciples. Through our baptism, we have become the Children of God, and therefore, we have become not only brothers and sisters of Jesus, but also His disciples. Eternal life, therefore, is our inheritance from God. God, being a good Father, wants all His Children to inherit that Gift.
To inherit the Father’s property, we must always remain as the true children of the Father. Jesus gives us some simple tips to achieve this. His response to the young man is straight forward: “follow the commandments.” Surprisingly, we can see, Jesus does not mention the first three commandments which are in relation to God. To become true children, we have to become like the Father. We must love and care for others who are around us and with whom we share this world.
The young man in the Scripture did very well with everything yet failed in the ultimate test. His attachments did not allow him to go much further in his relationship with God. Attachments to worldly prosperity has proven to be detrimental in our inheriting of life. Such attachments have taken God away from us. When God is taken out of the picture, we become the centre of our own life. Self-centered life is in opposition to the life of God, which is self-giving and -sacrificing.
The answer to the question of the young man is very simple: to inherit eternal life, we must become the children of God.
– Fr. Ranjan D’Sa OCD