“Now as Jesus was starting out on his way, someone ran up to him, fell on his knees, and said, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”
The man said to him, “Teacher, I have wholeheartedly obeyed all these laws since my youth.”
As Jesus looked at him, he felt love for him and said, “You lack one thing. Go, sell whatever you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
But at this statement, the man looked sad and went away sorrowful, for he was very rich.”
Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” —Mark 10:17-23
This young man referred to Jesus as “Teacher.” He truly had good intentions. This young man considered Jesus to be a recognized authority. But I think, like many of us, he was looking for a formula to fill, or a task to be done, or a command to be followed! No more worries! We sealed the deal, so to speak. We can accomplish that one task or responsibility on our “list” and then proceed on with living our lives however we please.
Wanting to justify himself by his works this rich young man asks Jesus what must he do to inherit eternal life. Jesus understands what the man is truly seeking. He first lists the commands He knew the young man was already following. And then Jesus, looking at this young man with much love, says, “One thing you lack.” It reminds me of the verse in Daniel 5:
“As for teqel – you are weighed on the balances and found to be lacking.” —Daniel 5:27
The Old Testament tells us that all our righteous acts won’t help us:
“We are all like one who is unclean, all our so-called righteous acts are like a menstrual rag in your sight. We all wither like a leaf; our sins carry us away like the wind.” —Isaiah 64:6
In the New Testament, Paul tells us:
“Just as it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one.” —Romans 3:10
Take It to Heart
I believe Jesus wanted this young man to understand that faith is a heart issue and not a works issue. Our works simply evidence our faith. Christ is desirous of our relationship with Him, not what we do for Him. He tells us that apart from Him we can do nothing, meaning nothing eternal is accomplished apart from Christ. Jesus wants us to follow Him wholeheartedly and unreservedly. He wants to be Lord over our lives.