In the story of the Rich Y oung Ruler, Y eshua instructed him concerning the true source of eternal life. This story is found in Matthew 19:16-22; Mark 10:17-31; and Luke 18:18-30. In the Mark account, chapter 10:17 we read: And as he was going forth into the way, there ran one to him, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? As Jesus came to another town, suddenly a rich young ruler, meaning he was the ruler of a local synagogue, ran to Yeshua. His running shows a sense of urgency. He knelt before Jesus, showing a posture of respect, and addressed Him. The fact that this man was rich meant that, according to Pharisaism, he had eternal life. However, it is obvious that this wealthy young ruler did not feel satisfied with that teaching. Although he had been taught that the very presence of his wealth was evidence that he had eternal life, he did not feel that he really had it. He came to Yeshua and said, “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?”
Jesus responded to him by asking a question of His own in verse 18: And Jesus said unto him, Why call you me good? none is good save one, even God. Critics of the New Testament and those cults that teach that Yeshua was not God, will often turn to Mark 10:18 to show that Jesus never claimed to be God. However, they are missing the point of the passage. A common rabbinic title for God was “the Good One.” Jesus had been claiming to be the Messiah, the Son of God, thereby claiming to be intrinsically good.
Yeshua was asking the ruler a question. If the ruler had answered, “I am calling you good because you are God,” then he would have answered his own question, “How does one receive eternal life?” One receives eternal life by owning Jesus as God.
But the ruler did not answer the question of Yeshua, instead he remained silent. And because the ruler failed to answer the question, Jesus proceeded to turn the man to the Law, as verse 19 states: You know the commandments, Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother. Since the man would not, at that point, own Yeshua as God, Jesus then turned him to the Mosaic Law and quoted some of the Ten Commandments. But Yeshua was selective as to which of these Ten Commandments he chose to quote. He quoted only those commandments which concerned a man's relationship to other men.
Concerning these commandments the ruler said in verse 20: And he said unto him, Teacher, all these things have I observed from my youth. Insofar as the commandments which dealt with human relationships were concerned, the man said that he had kept those commandments very well.
But then, according to Matthew 19:20, he said, “... what lack I yet?”
He still felt there was something lacking. What was lacking was the other set of commandmentsæthe commandments that concerned a man's relationship to God.
So Mark 10:21 states: And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto him, One thing you lack: go, sell whatsoever you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. At this point, we come to the root of the problem of this rich young ruler. The reason he did not have eternal life was because he was unable to keep the commandments that controlled a man's relationship to God. The one thing that kept him from trusting God for his salvation was his wealth. Because he had been brought up to believe that wealth was a sign of divine favor, he was trusting his wealth rather than God. And because he was trusting his wealth rather than God, he failed to keep the commandments that controlled a man's relationship to God. Jesus said he had to remove the one thing that was a stumbling-block to him. That one thing, which was keeping him from trusting God, was his wealth.
The principle being taught here is not that every rich man must dispense of his wealth to be saved, this would mean that salvation is by works. The principle being taught here is that you must not trust your wealth as a sign of divine favor. If you are trusting your wealth as a sign of divine favoræif that is the object of your trustæthen that wealth must be disposed of so that you can learn to trust God, and God alone.
This was something the rich man could not do and walked away sadly, as verse 22 states: But his countenance fell at the saying, and he went away sorrowful: for he was one that had great possessions.
Yeshua responded in verses 23-24: And Jesus looked round about, and said unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus answers again, and said unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!
Again, Pharisaism taught that wealth was a sign of divine favor. Unfortunately, people who are following the teaching of positive confession are also teaching that wealth is a sign of divine favor. As a result, wealthy men trusted their riches as a sign of already having eternal life. The problem was not their wealth; the problem was their trust in that wealth, because trusting their wealth, as a sign of divine favor, kept them from trusting God.
Then in verse 25, Yeshua said: It is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. Matthew and Mark both use the Greek word that means a “sewing
needle.” Luke, however, uses a different Greek word which means a “surgeon's needle,” reflecting his own medical background. But all the Gospels point out that the disciples were astonished at what Jesus said, because it went contrary to the common teachings of that day.
In Matthew's account, chapter 19:25 points out: And when the disciples heard it, they were astonished exceedingly, saying, Who then can be saved? The disciples said, “If the rich can not make it, what chance do we have?”
But Yeshua responded in verse 26: And Jesus looking upon them said to them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. What may be impossible with men and what may be the teachings of men are not necessarily the teachings of Yeshua the Messiah, the teachings of God the Father, or the teachings of the Holy Spirit.
Yeshua pointed out that God could save in any situation whether a man is poor or rich, because that which will save any man is trusting the Lord Jesus the Messiah for their salvation. To trust the Messiah for salvation is to personally believe that Jesus died for our sins; that He was buried; and that He rose again on the third day. If we believe this and accept it, whether we are rich or poor, this is how we have eternal life.