Removing Obstacles to Follow Jesus - Ft. Wayne Service

This powerful message confronts us with one of the most challenging encounters in Scripture: the rich young ruler who walked away from Jesus. At the heart of this teaching is a penetrating question—what are we unwilling to give up for the kingdom of God? The sermon draws from Luke 18:18-30, where a wealthy religious leader asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus lists the commandments, which the man claims to have kept since youth, yet Jesus identifies the one obstacle preventing true discipleship: his wealth. When Jesus invites him to sell everything and follow Him, the man leaves sad, unable to part with his possessions. What's striking is that this wasn't primarily about money—it was about priority, focus, and what truly has our hearts. The message challenges us to examine our own lives through the lens of Hebrews 12:1-3, which calls us to rid ourselves of everything that hinders our race of faith and keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. We're reminded that anything we're unwilling to surrender when God asks becomes a weight, a distraction that keeps us from the abundant life Christ promises. The tragedy of the rich young ruler is that he never stayed long enough to hear Jesus promise that whatever we give up will be repaid many times over in this life. This isn't a call to poverty but to proper priorities—ensuring that nothing, whether money, family commitments, hobbies, or even good things, takes the place that belongs to God alone. When we make Jesus our true treasure, everything else finds its proper place.