Scriptures: Matthew 19:16-22; Mark 10:17-22; Luke 18:18-23

1.  He was driven to establish his righteousness

q       The approach – a typical for a man of his position and resource.  Jesus did not have the respect of the religious elite.  The people who were his peers would have been somewhat ashamed of his conduct.  In a manner of speaking he was driven by something strong enough that he was willing to disregard the social consequence of this display.

q       The address – He referred to Jesus as “Good Teacher”.  He was addressing Jesus from his own frame of reference.  When we as human beings label something as good, we speak from a personal context.  That title confers nothing on the person to which it applies.  All that it does is to tell others a little bit about the value system of the person who uses the address.

q       The account – He had been involved in the spiritual accounting process ever since he was a boy.

When we are driven, we are driven by something.  Good or bad, there is a driving force.  What was the driving force for this young man?

Some here today are driven by force of habit.  You have always gone to church – even as a young person and you perpetuate the habit.

He asked Jesus, the giver of life what he needed to do to get eternal life.  We talk about people coming to God

2.  He was dissatisfied with his efforts to reach his goal

He had it all and it didn’t seem to satisfy him.

q       Youth

q       Wealth

q       Position

Is this a familiar picture or what?  How many times do people reach their goals only to discover that it isn’t what they were anticipating.  Inside they are not required to change and so they experience the same dissatisfaction that drove them here in the first place.  I am convinced that the underlying desire that we have is for spiritual vitality and connection with God.  We might never realize it and yet it is what we are trying to fill.  We will try to fill it with anything else but God.

3.  He was depressed with the eventual realization

I think he was depressed because he knew all along what the real problem was.  He was just looking for an alternate route.  Another preferable option that would leave his world intact.  How many weak-kneed Christians are in the same place?  Most of us know very well what our problem is because God does not play games with us.  If He has something that he wants you to change, you already know about it.  You don’t need to ask someone else what your problem is.  If there is something that is standing between you and God, an estrangement then he will show you what that is. (Ill. Preach about “hell” more)

A person who is not prepared to discover the truth about themselves should never come to Jesus.

Synœceiosis; or, Cohabitation

The Repetition of the same Word in the same Sentence with an Extended Meaning

Syn´-œ-cei-o´-sis from σύν (sun), together with, and οἰκείωσις (oikeiōsis), dwelling in the same house.

This figure is so called because two words are used, and in the general sense, but with a different and more extended signification. They dwell together as it were in the same house; and yet, while one speaker takes up the word and uses it in the same sense, he yet means a different thing.

The Latins called it COHABITATIO, cohabitation, a dwelling together.

Matt. 5:19.—“Whosoever … shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.”

In the former place, the allusion is to the distinction which the Pharisees made between different commandments (just as Rome has since made the distinction between “venial” and “mortal” sins). There is no such distinction, and therefore, when in the latter place Christ says “he shall be called the least,” He means that he will not be there at all, for there will be no such distinction there. There is no least in either case.

Matt. 18:1.—“Who, in that case, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” In verse 4 Christ answers, “Whosoever shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

In the former place the disciples use the word in its ordinary sense of pre-eminence. But in the latter place Christ (alluding to the former sense) means that no one except Himself has ever humbled Himself thus: and who is to dispute that He must be greatest in that kingdom. The occasion also is important; compare verse 1 with 17:24–27.

Matt. 19:16, 17.—“And behold one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? And He said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is God.”

In the former case, the young man uses the word “good” of mere creature goodness, such as he supposed Christ to have; while in the latter case, the Lord alludes to the first, using the word in the same sense, but not in the same way; thus teaching that there is no real “good” apart from God—no “good” except that which comes from God and returns to Him.

John 6:28, 29.—“What shall we do that we might work the works* of God? Jesus answered … them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent.”

In the former case, the word “works” is used by the Jews in its proper acceptation: it is repeated by Christ in the same sense, but with another meaning altogether, as He goes on to explain.[1]

10.  instruction concerning riches (19:16-26) (mark 10:17-31; luke 18:18-30).

19:16-22. A man who was young (v. 20), wealthy (v. 22) and a ruler (Luke 18:18; perhaps of the Sanhedrin) came and asked Jesus, Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life? This ruler was not asking how he could earn salvation. Instead, he wondered how he could be assured of entering Messiah’s kingdom. He wanted to know what “good thing” (work) would demonstrate that he was righteous and therefore qualified for the kingdom. Jesus replied, There is only One who is good, namely, God. Perfection is required (Matt. 5:48; cf. 19:21); therefore one must be as good as God. He must have God’s righteousness, which comes through faith in Him (Rom. 4:5). Perhaps Jesus then waited for a response from the ruler to see if he would affirm his belief that Jesus is God, that Jesus, being one with the Father, is good (agathos, “intrinsically good”).

When the man did not reply, Jesus indicated that life (i.e., life in God’s kingdom) can be entered only if one gives evidence that he is righteous. Since the official standard of righteousness was the Law of Moses, Jesus told the man to obey the commandments. The ruler was perceptive for he immediately asked, Which ones? Other standards of righteousness were being promoted by the Pharisees, who had added to Moses’ commandments far beyond God’s intention. The young man was in effect asking Jesus, “Must I keep all the Pharisees’ commandments?” Jesus replied by repeating several of the commandments from the second table of the Law, the 5th through the 9th commandments forbidding murder . . . adultery, stealing, giving false testimony, and also the positive command to honor one’s parents (Ex. 20:12-16). Jesus did not mention the 10th commandment (Ex. 20:17) concerning coveting, but He did add the summary statement, Love your neighbor as yourself (cf. Lev. 19:18; Matt. 22:39; Rom. 13:9; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8).

The young man affirmed he had kept all these things, but he still sensed a lack (Matt. 19:20). Whether he had truly kept these commands, only God knows. The young man believed he had and yet he knew something was missing in his life. Jesus put His finger on his problem when He told him to go, sell all his possessions and give to the poor, and he would then have treasure in heaven. Such mercy toward the poor would demonstrate inner righteousness. If he were righteous (based on faith in Jesus as God), he should have given his wealth to the poor and followed Jesus. But instead, the man . . . went away sad (lypoumenos, “grieved or sad to the point of distress”; cf. 14:9; 18:31) for he had great wealth. His unwillingness to relinquish his wealth showed he did not love his neighbor as himself. Thus he had not kept all the commandments, and he lacked salvation. Nothing more was written about this young man; probably he never left all and followed Jesus. He loved his money more than God, and thus he violated even the first commandment (Ex. 20:3).[2]

Can a man who wants only eternal life, really find it?  I remember wanting to avoid hell.  I asked Christ’s forgiveness feeling that this was what I needed to go to heaven.  I was definitely averse to eternal damnation but I was unprepared to live as a disciple here and now as well.  Do we have eternal life because we find Jesus?

A person doesn’t have to repent to find eternal life.  It’s just something else to gain.  A person must repent if they are to find Christ.  Because of who he is we are convicted of who we are.

What are you looking for?

q       Alternatives

q       Affirmation

q       Absolution

q        

Like a man with a remote.  A man is not interested in what is on television but what else is on television.

I always knew where I was going.  (The Holy Spirit came to convict the world of sin in regard to judgment because the prince of this world now stands condemned.) There was no doubt in my mind.  Some advocate that we need more preaching about hell as though this would cause people to come to Christ.  In my mind hell causes people to do one thing, to make them desire to avoid hell and thus they accept Christ because he is the only way out.

Are we coming to Christ to find the way to God or are we looking for another way.  People who have non-negotiables in their lives will go to other extremes to try to validate their own righteousness and their willingness.  He went overboard to compensate for his hidden treasure.  He’d have done anything to save his life and his riches . . . anything except to forsake his weaalth.

He was “missing something”.  Otherwise he never would have come to Jesus.  Looking for something to gain without considering that he might need to lose something.  He was rich and unhappy.  He was young and unhappy.  He was religious and unhappy.  He was powerful and unhappy.  His blessing was his curse.  Anything that keeps a man or woman from God is a curse.  God knows our hearts friends and he will never give us something that we cannot handle.  Many can fathom the depths of adversity, few are able to keep their heads with the seductions of success and acclaim.

He had a high degree of dissatisfaction.

He was obsessed with proper conduct

He was distressed with

He was depressed by prosperous conditions.  I think he’d been here before. He just hoped that this trip around the barn would produce a different reality.  Same trip – same answers.

It’s sometimes difficult to get away from your blessing.  The church doesn’t need your money so much as you need to learn to take your hands off what you have been blessed with.  Not to track what you give as an investment.

Come to God saying that we are looking for help and guidance but what we really want is a hip-pocket deity who will provide affirmation to us.  Sort of like a device with a limited number of prerecorded blessings.  We want God to “fit” into our ideas of what is right and wrong, our concepts of life.

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* See Polyptoton.

[1]Bullinger, E. W. (1898). Figures of speech used in the Bible (Page 294). London; New York: Eyre & Spottiswoode; E. & J. B. Young & Co.

v. verse

cf. confer, compare

i.e. id est, that is

[2]Walvoord, J. F., Zuck, R. B., & Dallas Theological Seminary. (1983-c1985). The Bible knowledge commentary : An exposition of the scriptures (Mt 19:16). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.