And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
A sincere young ruler, moved by Christ's welcome of the children, ran to Him, knelt, and earnestly asked what he must do to inherit eternal life. He believed he had kept the commandments from his youth and was defective in nothing, yet he was not satisfied and felt he lacked something he did not possess. He honored Jesus as Good Master without recognizing Him as the Son of God, so Christ's reply about who is good tested his sincerity and called him to recognize who Jesus truly was. Jesus answered that entering life requires keeping the commandments, and thereby exposed that beneath outward obedience the ruler lacked unselfish love for God and neighbor because love of wealth kept him from loving his neighbor as himself. Christ required him to sell what he owned, give to the poor, and follow Him, but he valued riches more than heavenly treasure and went away very sorrowful, showing that eternal life is received through grace and complete surrender, not earned by works.
The Ruler's Earnest Question
A sincere young ruler, wealthy yet earnest in concern for his soul, was moved by Christ's tender welcome and care for the little children, and love for Jesus was stirred within him with a desire to become His disciple. He ran after Jesus as He was going on His way, knelt reverently before Him, and asked with deep earnestness what he must do to inherit eternal life. It was the question that mattered most to him, and it matters to every person.
He held a high view of his own righteousness, believed he had kept God's commandments from his youth, and did not really think he was defective in anything. Yet he was not fully satisfied, for he felt the lack of something he did not possess and longed for Jesus to bless him and satisfy his soul need as He had blessed the children. So after professing his obedience he asked what he still lacked and how he might obtain eternal life.
He addressed Jesus as Good Master, honoring Him as a respected teacher but without recognizing Him as the Son of God. Jesus answered, Why callest thou Me good, and the question tested his sincerity to draw out how he regarded Jesus, whether he realized to whom he was speaking, and what the true sentiment of his heart was. There is none good but God, and the reply pointed to God as the one who is good while calling the ruler to recognize Jesus as God's Son and representative.
The question expresses the longing awakened when attention turns from the world to eternity, a longing for eternal life that leads seekers to Christ, who offers a new heart and a new life inspired by Him. It is a matter of life and death that must be considered carefully and understood clearly by every soul without mistake, for eternal life is a life that measures with the life of God. The great sacrifice made for humanity must therefore be presented rightly, including in the home, so that parents do not by their words turn their children against the plan of salvation but guide their households toward God and set an example of what it means to seek eternal life.
Those convicted of their danger ask what they must do to have eternal life. Satan worked to obstruct Christ's answer and saving work by stirring priests and rulers to oppose Him, but Christ proved superior to Satan and freed those who had been bound by his power.
Christ's Answer Exposes Heart
To enter life the answer given was to keep the commandments, with the commandments named being those that concern duties toward other people. God's character is expressed in His law, whose principles are to guide every action. Giving one's powers to God does not unfit for earthly life, but devotion to God and knowing Jesus enable showing Christ's love to sinners and blessing those nearby. The question itself reflects the idea that eternal life is a reward earned by human works, yet the event prepares the way to teach the right principles of God's free grace, that eternal life is received through grace and not earned.
Jesus exposed the selfishness hidden beneath outward obedience, for though the ruler professed to keep the commandments he lacked their central principle of unselfish love for God and other people. His love of self and worldly gain made the world his god and left him out of harmony with heaven's principles, without what is needed to enter God's kingdom. Outward obedience was not enough while his heart remained devoted to earthly riches, and the call to give to the poor, take up the cross, and follow exposed what he lacked, a love for God and others strong enough to loosen his hold on wealth. Eternal life and treasure in heaven require choosing the self-denying way over earthly possessions. His confidence that he had kept the commandments did not mean he had the heart devotion and Christian goodness he needed, and he needed to recognize this lack, become humble and contrite, give God supreme love, and trust in Christ's perfection to cover what was lacking in him.
His claim to have kept them was flawed because his love of wealth kept him from loving his neighbor as himself. The command to sell what he owned, give to the poor, store treasure in heaven, and follow exposed his selfish attachment, not a requirement beyond the example lived out before him. His sorrow shows that riches can hold a person back from heaven, because worldly treasure draws the affections away from God and makes generosity harder. Strict attention to small matters can coexist with neglect of weightier duties, and true sacrifice must not be replaced by meanness or by a rigid personal standard imposed on others. His sorrowful departure showed he would not make this sacrifice of selling his possessions, giving to the poor, and gaining treasure in heaven as the one thing he lacked.
Christ's conditions were the only way for him to perfect Christian character, and accepting and obeying them was his only hope of salvation. His position and possessions subtly drew his affections from God, and keeping anything back from God, whether little or much, weakened his moral strength and efficiency, for cherished worldly things can become all-absorbing. The obedience required is not merely outward obedience to the law but obedience that shapes the life and character, with willingness to give Christ all one has and is and to work with Him. Accepting that work is part of the way He saves, for He offers to use the means entrusted to people in carrying forward God's work. Complete discipleship and self-surrender are central, and those with great possessions and positions of trust must be willing to give them up to follow Christ, giving up what would corrupt character, since nothing harmful can be held on to in place of following Him. Jesus saw him as sincere and capable of becoming a powerful force for good if placed under His guidance, loved him and wanted him to work alongside Him, grow in His presence, and reflect God's likeness, so his future could have been different if he had given himself. His response shows that he would not accept Jesus as leader when following meant giving up what he valued, but chose the world instead.
The Wealth Test Today
Jesus set before him a direct choice between holding his possessions and receiving eternal life or letting them go and following Christ by selling what he owned, giving to the poor, laying up treasure in heaven, and taking up the cross. He professed willingness to keep the commandments yet wanted eternal life while loving his possessions more, for he still lacked this one surrender. The demand chilled his desire because he prized his riches and standing above heavenly treasure, and he went away very sorrowful. In renouncing immortal life for love of money and power he made a miserable exchange, and the same choice and danger confronts many who profess to keep all of God's commandments while clinging to wealth.
His wealth was entrusted and lent to him by God to be used in relieving human need, and refusing that stewardship made him unfaithful and cost him heaven's treasure and eternal life. People are stewards of what God lends them, and following Christ requires self-denial and using those possessions to help others, while clinging selfishly to earthly treasure shows unfitness for the eternal riches and for God's kingdom. His position and possessions subtly drew his affections from God, and keeping anything back from God, whether little or much, weakened his moral strength and efficiency. Cherished worldly things become all-absorbing, draw the affections away from God and make generosity harder, so that riches can hold a person back from heaven. The command to sell and give exposed his selfish attachment rather than imposing anything beyond the example Christ Himself lived.
His attachment to wealth proved stronger than his desire for the heavenly inheritance and kept him from following Jesus, revealing that he loved his riches more than God and his fellow beings. His great possessions were his idol: he wanted eternal life but could not surrender what he valued most. A person may sincerely desire eternal life yet turn away when following Christ requires surrendering earthly wealth and other attachments. Inheriting eternal life and receiving the crown of life require willingness to give up all rather than cling to earthly treasures, in complete surrender of all one has and is.
The question of what to do to inherit eternal life means bringing eternity into reckoning in practical life and giving. It calls for counting the cost of bringing people into the gospel and acting on it with greater strength, by letting Christ use entrusted means to carry forward God's work and accepting that work as part of the way He saves. This is done by helping advance God's work with personal means, by supporting missionaries in many places and in foreign fields where people have never heard the truth, and by sustaining medical missionary work united with the gospel as Christ united them. The question calls for a clear answer that awakens duty and directs toward the saving of souls, not commercial gain through health-food production. Those who grasp the cost of Christ's sacrifice and the plan of redemption will surrender all they are and possess to Him and make doing His word their highest aim, willing to give Christ all they have and are and to work with Him.
A sincere young ruler, moved by Christ's welcome of the children, ran to Him, knelt, and earnestly asked what he must do to inherit eternal life. He believed he had kept the commandments from his youth and was defective in nothing, yet he was not satisfied and felt he lacked something he did not possess. He honored Jesus as Good Master without recognizing Him as the Son of God, so Christ's reply about who is good tested his sincerity and called him to recognize who Jesus truly was. Jesus answered that entering life requires keeping the commandments, and thereby exposed that beneath outward obedience the ruler lacked unselfish love for God and neighbor because love of wealth kept him from loving his neighbor as himself. Christ required him to sell what he owned, give to the poor, and follow Him, but he valued riches more than heavenly treasure and went away very sorrowful, showing that eternal life is received through grace and complete surrender, not earned by works.
The Ruler's Earnest Question
A sincere young ruler, wealthy yet earnest in concern for his soul, was moved by Christ's tender welcome and care for the little children, and love for Jesus was stirred within him with a desire to become His disciple. He ran after Jesus as He was going on His way, knelt reverently before Him, and asked with deep earnestness what he must do to inherit eternal life. It was the question that mattered most to him, and it matters to every person.
He held a high view of his own righteousness, believed he had kept God's commandments from his youth, and did not really think he was defective in anything. Yet he was not fully satisfied, for he felt the lack of something he did not possess and longed for Jesus to bless him and satisfy his soul need as He had blessed the children. So after professing his obedience he asked what he still lacked and how he might obtain eternal life.
He addressed Jesus as Good Master, honoring Him as a respected teacher but without recognizing Him as the Son of God. Jesus answered, Why callest thou Me good, and the question tested his sincerity to draw out how he regarded Jesus, whether he realized to whom he was speaking, and what the true sentiment of his heart was. There is none good but God, and the reply pointed to God as the one who is good while calling the ruler to recognize Jesus as God's Son and representative.
The question expresses the longing awakened when attention turns from the world to eternity, a longing for eternal life that leads seekers to Christ, who offers a new heart and a new life inspired by Him. It is a matter of life and death that must be considered carefully and understood clearly by every soul without mistake, for eternal life is a life that measures with the life of God. The great sacrifice made for humanity must therefore be presented rightly, including in the home, so that parents do not by their words turn their children against the plan of salvation but guide their households toward God and set an example of what it means to seek eternal life.
Those convicted of their danger ask what they must do to have eternal life. Satan worked to obstruct Christ's answer and saving work by stirring priests and rulers to oppose Him, but Christ proved superior to Satan and freed those who had been bound by his power.
Christ's Answer Exposes Heart
To enter life the answer given was to keep the commandments, with the commandments named being those that concern duties toward other people. God's character is expressed in His law, whose principles are to guide every action. Giving one's powers to God does not unfit for earthly life, but devotion to God and knowing Jesus enable showing Christ's love to sinners and blessing those nearby. The question itself reflects the idea that eternal life is a reward earned by human works, yet the event prepares the way to teach the right principles of God's free grace, that eternal life is received through grace and not earned.
Jesus exposed the selfishness hidden beneath outward obedience, for though the ruler professed to keep the commandments he lacked their central principle of unselfish love for God and other people. His love of self and worldly gain made the world his god and left him out of harmony with heaven's principles, without what is needed to enter God's kingdom. Outward obedience was not enough while his heart remained devoted to earthly riches, and the call to give to the poor, take up the cross, and follow exposed what he lacked, a love for God and others strong enough to loosen his hold on wealth. Eternal life and treasure in heaven require choosing the self-denying way over earthly possessions. His confidence that he had kept the commandments did not mean he had the heart devotion and Christian goodness he needed, and he needed to recognize this lack, become humble and contrite, give God supreme love, and trust in Christ's perfection to cover what was lacking in him.
His claim to have kept them was flawed because his love of wealth kept him from loving his neighbor as himself. The command to sell what he owned, give to the poor, store treasure in heaven, and follow exposed his selfish attachment, not a requirement beyond the example lived out before him. His sorrow shows that riches can hold a person back from heaven, because worldly treasure draws the affections away from God and makes generosity harder. Strict attention to small matters can coexist with neglect of weightier duties, and true sacrifice must not be replaced by meanness or by a rigid personal standard imposed on others. His sorrowful departure showed he would not make this sacrifice of selling his possessions, giving to the poor, and gaining treasure in heaven as the one thing he lacked.
Christ's conditions were the only way for him to perfect Christian character, and accepting and obeying them was his only hope of salvation. His position and possessions subtly drew his affections from God, and keeping anything back from God, whether little or much, weakened his moral strength and efficiency, for cherished worldly things can become all-absorbing. The obedience required is not merely outward obedience to the law but obedience that shapes the life and character, with willingness to give Christ all one has and is and to work with Him. Accepting that work is part of the way He saves, for He offers to use the means entrusted to people in carrying forward God's work. Complete discipleship and self-surrender are central, and those with great possessions and positions of trust must be willing to give them up to follow Christ, giving up what would corrupt character, since nothing harmful can be held on to in place of following Him. Jesus saw him as sincere and capable of becoming a powerful force for good if placed under His guidance, loved him and wanted him to work alongside Him, grow in His presence, and reflect God's likeness, so his future could have been different if he had given himself. His response shows that he would not accept Jesus as leader when following meant giving up what he valued, but chose the world instead.
The Wealth Test Today
Jesus set before him a direct choice between holding his possessions and receiving eternal life or letting them go and following Christ by selling what he owned, giving to the poor, laying up treasure in heaven, and taking up the cross. He professed willingness to keep the commandments yet wanted eternal life while loving his possessions more, for he still lacked this one surrender. The demand chilled his desire because he prized his riches and standing above heavenly treasure, and he went away very sorrowful. In renouncing immortal life for love of money and power he made a miserable exchange, and the same choice and danger confronts many who profess to keep all of God's commandments while clinging to wealth.
His wealth was entrusted and lent to him by God to be used in relieving human need, and refusing that stewardship made him unfaithful and cost him heaven's treasure and eternal life. People are stewards of what God lends them, and following Christ requires self-denial and using those possessions to help others, while clinging selfishly to earthly treasure shows unfitness for the eternal riches and for God's kingdom. His position and possessions subtly drew his affections from God, and keeping anything back from God, whether little or much, weakened his moral strength and efficiency. Cherished worldly things become all-absorbing, draw the affections away from God and make generosity harder, so that riches can hold a person back from heaven. The command to sell and give exposed his selfish attachment rather than imposing anything beyond the example Christ Himself lived.
His attachment to wealth proved stronger than his desire for the heavenly inheritance and kept him from following Jesus, revealing that he loved his riches more than God and his fellow beings. His great possessions were his idol: he wanted eternal life but could not surrender what he valued most. A person may sincerely desire eternal life yet turn away when following Christ requires surrendering earthly wealth and other attachments. Inheriting eternal life and receiving the crown of life require willingness to give up all rather than cling to earthly treasures, in complete surrender of all one has and is.
The question of what to do to inherit eternal life means bringing eternity into reckoning in practical life and giving. It calls for counting the cost of bringing people into the gospel and acting on it with greater strength, by letting Christ use entrusted means to carry forward God's work and accepting that work as part of the way He saves. This is done by helping advance God's work with personal means, by supporting missionaries in many places and in foreign fields where people have never heard the truth, and by sustaining medical missionary work united with the gospel as Christ united them. The question calls for a clear answer that awakens duty and directs toward the saving of souls, not commercial gain through health-food production. Those who grasp the cost of Christ's sacrifice and the plan of redemption will surrender all they are and possess to Him and make doing His word their highest aim, willing to give Christ all they have and are and to work with Him.