The bulk of the camel prevents it going through the needle’s eye, and there is a great deal of bulk that we carry with us, that we are not prepared to do without. We consider it to be of the essence of what we are. Actually, the soul can fit through that gate if only it is willing to shed these things, but that is a cost which is too high.
But the choice of a camel in the illustration not only tells us the impossibility of conversion for the natural man, it also illustrates what happens when someone tries to propel us through gateway into the kingdom. The preacher may do his best. He may press upon the unbeliever all sorts of considerations about his danger, the undeniability of his sin, his nakedness before God and inability of conceal anything from him, God’s inflexible justice, the wonders of salvation and free forgiveness, the willingness of Christ to receive all who come to him, and the awful regret that will envelop the lost in hell if they do not come. These are all telling reasons to plead with God for forgiveness, and yet they are not enough. The one who loves this world will twist and turn in his mind, and do anything he can to avoid going through that gateway, because he knows that if he goes he cannot take his riches with him. His focus is entirely on what he will lose, and not on what he will gain.
The mind of the would-be convert starts to work overtime. This is illustrated by the camel’s bad temper and intransigence. ‘Shall I go to Christ for forgiveness? That would mean leaving my sin forever. That would mean becoming a new person, someone I do not want to be. That would mean my friends would look at me in a different way. The things they admire me for would be gone. They would be ashamed to associate with me. I would be a dampening influence on what they enjoy doing. I could not longer go with them. They would start to look at me as they look at others that they and I have despised together in the past, as we shared the same contempt for religious people. Heaven may be good, but it is far off. What matters is what is immediate. What am I going to experience tomorrow? I will not go ahead with this.’