Sell that ye have?

Luke 12;32, ". . . Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. . . ."
Being born again we are already part of the kingdom.
Read what His new church tried at the its beginning.
Acts of the Apostles 4:31-37. . . . How is this to be done the New Testament letters? See 2 Corinthains 5:7. What Ananias, and Sapphira failed to do.

2 Corinthians 9:7 not because one thinks one has to do this or that! Remember Matthew 11:28-30.

Please brother, do not cause yourself a burden where God does not require one.
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Be convinced in your own mind. Sell it all, or don’t. But don’t worry about it. Your salvation is not at stake.

Jesus brings us peace, not anxiety.

If your continuously fret about such things, you should seek professional counseling as your condition may be phycological, not spiritual.

peace to you

 

How do we understand this verse? Does it say sell "all" that you possess, or we should sell some of what we possess?
And who decides where we draw the line between what we keep for ourselves and our loved ones and our worldly obligations, and what we give to the Lord?

Those that give a significant portion of their income to the Lord, end up with less in worldly possessions that those that keep it all.

But that reality is insignificant compared to living a life that treasures God, Christ, and holy living. I am convinced the very best way to play the cards we are dealt is to pick up our cross and follow Christ.

 

1. He told one person to sell all.

2. Zaccheus was commended for giving away half.
“‘Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham’” (Luke 19:8–9)

3. Barnabas gave away one field and was commended.
“Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet” (Acts 4:36–37).

4. Paul told the Corinthians to give something and they would be ok.

“Now concerning the collection for the saints: as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do. On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come” (1 Corinthians 16:1–2).

5. Paul said to work and provide for yourself.

“Aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one”(1 Thessalonians 4:11–12).

My point is, Jesus and Paul, inspired apostle, tell different people different things.

 

That was my point. Even though he told them to sell all, other places say other things, so you need to pray and ask God what he wants you to do.

 

Piper made some excellent points here. You would do well to re-read his post several times. CanadyJD and 37818 also give some great advice. If you are fretting about it, that is damaging to your Christ-walk. He invites us to carry His burden, which is light, and gives rest from our cares and fretting (Matthew 11:28-30).

Now, theologically this is at a point of dispensational change. Christ is speaking of the Kingdom He was offering to the Jews at this point in His ministry. He was not giving some kind of new law that his disciples had to follow: "Thou shalt not own anything." In order to follow Him in that time period, it was necessary to give up everything. However, the Jews rejected the kingdom of Christ, and therefore the teaching in this passage.

In the church age, I apply this as an invitation to follow Christ. There is a sense in which we must be willing to abandon everything for Christ. He is worth it! With some people He does require abandoning everything one owns, such as with missionaries. When we became missionaries to Japan in 1981. we left behind car (a junker anyway!), land (sold it), many goods of various kinds, three ministry job offers, etc. About all we shipped over were books and clothes.

We had absolutely no regrets about that! God was so good to us, and we never lacked a thing for 33 years as a missionary. We often lived in tiny Japanese apartments, and always drove old cars. Now that I teach in the US, for the first time in our lives we actually own our own home, a very nice condo. I often thank the Lord for this place and our ministry here; He is so good to us.

Try the path of giving thanks for all you have, and see if that helps your fretting soul. "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thess. 5:18).