(Matt. 19:16-3016And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19Honor thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 20The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 21Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. 22But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. 23Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. 24And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 25When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? 26But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. 27Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 28And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 30But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first. (Matthew 19:16‑30).)
THERE are four most important questions in this scripture. We hear the first questioner described as a “young man.” Another scripture says he was a “ruler” (Luke 18:1818And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? (Luke 18:18)), and yet another says that “Jesus beholding him, loved him” (Mark 10:2121Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. (Mark 10:21)). There was something in him which drew out the Lord’s love in a special way, but, nevertheless, all that he had of mere nature, the Lord shows us, was as nothing when weighed in the balances of the sanctuary.
He comes to Jesus saying, “What good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?” Are you, my reader, in that same line of things, desiring to regulate your life so that you may win eternal life? But when you think of what is eternal, perhaps you have some misgivings as to whether you can get it. This young ruler wanted eternal life, and what a wonderful thing that is. “This is life eternal, that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17). It is all that is connected with Christ, and to have it is to put the soul into a new place, in relationship with, and knowledge of God. The object of the visit of the Son of God to this earth was to put us in possession of eternal life. I do not think this young man meant what was heavenly by eternal life. To this Jew it was continuance of life on earth, but he came to Him who was Himself eternal life, and did not know either Him or it. Peter knew better when he said, “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life” (John 6:6868Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. (John 6:68)). He had the consciousness in his heart that in this One was wrapped up eternal life.
The Lord’s reply to this young man was, “There is none good but one, that is God; but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” The point is, the Lord always took up men on the ground they came on. The man came to Him on the ground of his own good doings, his own righteousness. The Lord took him up on that ground, and put him to the test as to his reality. Now, I ask you, Do you want eternal life? Are you in real earnest about it? If so, you will get it. Why did not this young man get it? He was not really in earnest, ―if he had been, he would have attached himself to Christ; and if you too would get it, you must attach yourself to Christ.
The Lord takes up, in His answer, not the first table of the law―his duty to God―but the second table, his duty to his neighbor. The young man replies, “All these things have I kept from my youth up; what lack I yet?” A bold statement, and a momentous question truly! Do you think he had loved his neighbor as himself? I don’t think so, and if any of us are trying to get into heaven by loving our neighbors as ourselves, not one will ever get there, we may accept as an assured fact.
Now, ponder his second query, ― “What lack I yet?” He lacked everything, for he had not Christ. Have you? You may have everything that commends you in the eyes of men; you may be rich, polished, educated, refined, but if you have not Christ, that which you have is utterly worthless. “What lack I yet?” You lack Christ if you have never been born of God, if you have never come to Him for salvation.
Really what the Lord says to this religious young ruler is, You have not yet begun. “Yet lackest thou one thing,” and that one thing is everything. He had not Christ, and to lack Him was to lack all. Just as if I were to tell you that estates, money, everything this world could afford, belonged to a person, and you say, “Oh, how happy he must be.” No, the man is dead; it is all worthless to him. He lacks one thing― life, to enjoy it; and, lacking that, lacks everything. And this young man lacked one thing―Christ. What was between his soul and Christ. His riches; for Jesus said unto him, “If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come and follow me.” What follows? “But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.” Eternal life and treasure in heaven were not to him what his earthly possessions were. “I have,” he as it were says, “a place in the world, and money gives it to me. If I were poor, I should lose it tomorrow;” and he made his choice―treasure on earth, rather than Christ, and treasure in heaven. A poor choice indeed.
The Lord thereon turns to His disciples and says, “Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven;” and again, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God,” because there are a thousand things in the heart of a man which hinder him. It really needs Divine interposition for a man to get saved. It is very simple. You and I have the flesh in us, and the flesh will hinder and oppose a man, and the devil will use it to this end. This young man’s flesh worked through his riches. You may say, “I am not rich.” True, but Satan knows how to use your flesh as a hindrance in some other way.
Now comes the third question. “Who then can be saved?” the disciples ask of the Lord. Ah! that’s a grand question. You cannot be saved on legal lines. If you look at Galatians 2:1616Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (Galatians 2:16), you will see this, “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”
Righteousness comes on the principle of faith, not doing. Wherever there is faith there is blessing.
This young man was under the curse, and did not know it. The Lord proposed to him to get rid of the thing that was a hindrance to him, and he could not bear the test. Salvation is the fruit of God’s grace, it is all by faith, grace working by faith. To be saved, you must drop all works of your own, and turn to Christ. Well may the disciples ask, “Who then can be saved?” If a man cannot be saved by his own works, and his riches are a hindrance to him, who then can be saved? “With man this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” How do men get saved then? They are saved by the grace of God,―by accepting the gift His sovereign grace gives, and then following the Lord Jesus.
Now comes the fourth query. “Then answered Peter, and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all and followed thee: what shall we have therefore?” The Lord replies, as it were, “You have followed me in my rejection during my earthly pathway; you shall share, therefore, with me in my earthly glory, when that day comes;” and the principle is the same for us in this day, “for every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundred-fold, and shall inherit everlasting life,” is part of the Lord’s answer. I maintain that the Christian has the best of it, both here and hereafter. There may be persecution. All the better if there be, and we are told of the early Christians “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name” (Acts 5:4141And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. (Acts 5:41)). If you come to Christ, you will lose your sins, get your soul saved, get eternal life, and get into relationship with God. Oh, think of it, ―of all that you get, ―and don’t let this question of loss or shame, dear reader, delay your decision for another moment.
Possibly to this late hour in 1889, you have not been fully on the Lord’s side. Now, as the year fades away, let me most earnestly urge you to get this matter of your eternal destiny once and forever finally settled. A simple apprehension of the four questions that have been before us will settle the matter if you only are simple. Let me then recapitulate them: ―
1. “What good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?” Answer―Nothing; for “not of works” is God’s verdict (Eph. 2:99Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:9)).
2. “What lack I yet?” Answer―Everything, if you have not Christ.
3. “Who, then, can be saved?” Answer—You, for God says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:3131And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. (Acts 16:31)).
4. “What shall we have therefore?” Answer―All that God’s love and wisdom can furnish us with for time, and for eternity― “life everlasting,” for “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things” (Rom. 8:3232He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:32)).
Reader, decide for Christ, I pray you.
W. T. P. W.