I am a word guy.
I appreciate language—not simply as a basic means of communication, but for its nuance, texture, precision, and power. Words can be wonderfully simple and straightforward: one word, one syllable, unmistakable and unambiguous. Stop! Go!They can also become elaborate word salads, carefully constructed to obscure rather than clarify.
Words matter. And word choices matter.
Recently, I was half-listening to a news report from a European station while attempting to concentrate on something else. The monotone, matter-of-fact delivery continued for perhaps thirty minutes. The news was, for the most part, depressing, which made it relatively easy to ignore.
But then the anchor concluded the newscast with a statement that caught my attention:
“That’s it. You’re up to date.”
What?
That’s it? I’m up to date?
Perhaps it was the audacity of the declaration—that in thirty minutes I had been exposed to all, or at least the most important, things happening in the world. As determined by…whom? Or perhaps it was simply the finality of the statement:
That’s it.
Whatever the cerebral reason I stopped to listen, I had to chuckle—and then reflect. Remember what I said about my appreciation for language? Surely there was a teachable moment here.
I began thinking about how often we can be equally matter-of-fact about things for which we have little basis for certainty. We can become so sure that what we think, feel, or believe is right that we leave no room for humility. No room for reconsideration. No room for the possibility that we might—just might—be wrong.
Two millennia ago, a man approached Jesus with what was less a question than a statement disguised as one. He already knew the answer—or at least he thought he did.
“Good Teacher, what must I do to deserve eternal life?”
—Luke 18:18, MSG
On the surface, it sounds like a sincere question. But there is something beneath it. The man seems to be seeking confirmation of a conclusion he has already reached: You seem like a good man. I am certain that I am a good man. Let’s agree on that, and then determine what small detail might still be necessary.
Perhaps just a dotting of an “i” or crossing of a “t.”
That’s it. You’re up to date.
Jesus—Emmanuel, God with us—knew the end before there was a beginning. Yet rather than simply giving the man an answer, Jesus gave him an opportunity to examine his own assumptions.
“Why are you calling me good? No one is good—only God. You know the commandments, don’t you? No illicit sex, no killing, no stealing, no lying, honor your father and mother.”
—Luke 18:19–20, MSG
And without missing a self-assured beat, the man responded:
“I’ve kept them all for as long as I can remember.”
—Luke 18:21, MSG
That’s it. You’re up to date.
The man had his answer. His righteousness was settled. His record was clean. His assumptions were intact.
But Jesus, in His loving and long-suffering mercy, pressed deeper.
“Then there’s only one thing left to do: Sell everything you own and give it away to the poor. You will have riches in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
—Luke 18:22, MSG
This was the last thing the official expected to hear.
He was very rich. And suddenly, the certainty of his self-assessment collided with the reality of his heart. He became terribly sad because he was holding tightly to a lot of things—and he was not about to let them go.
I find it profoundly sad that when confronted with the reality that his righteous presuppositions were wrong, he did not pause to reconsider. He did not reflect on what Jesus had said. He did not ask another question.
He simply walked away.
He had arrived with what he believed was the final, definitive, up-to-date answer.
That’s it.
And he was not prepared to be dissuaded.
Seeing his reaction, Jesus said:
“Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who have it all to enter God’s kingdom? I’d say it’s easier to thread a camel through a needle’s eye than get a rich person into God’s kingdom.”
—Luke 18:24–25, MSG
Indeed, it is difficult for people who have it all to enter the kingdom of God.
And “having it all” is not limited to material wealth.
Sometimes what we hold most tightly is not what we own, but what we know.
Our opinions.
Our assumptions.
Our experiences.
Our interpretations.
Our theology.
Our certainty that we have it figured out.
Knowledge can become its own kind of wealth—something we accumulate, protect, and trust. And like material wealth, it can give us a false sense of security.
The danger is not in knowing. The danger is in believing that we know enough—that we have arrived at the final answer, that nothing more needs to be examined, challenged, or surrendered.
That’s it. You’re up to date.
But the kingdom of God continually invites us beyond our certainty and into discipleship.
Jesus does not merely ask us to possess the right answers. He calls us to follow Him.
And following requires humility.
It requires the willingness to say, Maybe I don’t have this completely figured out. Maybe there is something in me that Jesus still needs to reveal. Maybe what I am holding onto is keeping me from fully following Him.
The rich official was certain he was up to date.
Jesus knew he wasn’t.
And perhaps that is the question worth asking ourselves:
Where have I decided, “That’s it. I’m up to date,” when Jesus is still inviting me to go deeper?
Because the Christian life is not a declaration that we have arrived.
It is a lifelong journey of following Jesus—learning, growing, surrendering, and becoming more like Him.
There is always more grace to receive, more truth to discover, more surrender to make, and more of Jesus to follow.
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Pastor Mark
Mark, the eighth of nine children born to Reuben and Henrietta Meeks—dedicated church planters with nearly 30 congregations established across California’s Central Valley—is a preacher's kid who grew up immersed in faith and service. With over forty years of experience teaching, discipling, and ministering to communities, including the hospitalized and incarcerated, Mark responded to God's call to pastoral ministry. He holds degrees in civil engineering and public administration, as well as a Master’s in Theology from Fuller Seminary, equipping him to serve with both practical insight and spiritual depth.
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