The Rich Ruler
Luke 18:18-30 ESV
And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” 21 And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 23 But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. 24 Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” 27 But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” 28 And Peter said, “See, we have left our homes and followed you.” 29 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30 who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
- He was given the perfect answer to his question and walked away.
- Has the Lord pointed out something in your life?
- Have your responded in obedience? Or walked away?
Luke 18:18 ESV
And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Mark 10:17 ESV
And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
- What must we do to inherit eternal life?
Luke 18:19 ESV
And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.
- Was this man seeing Jesus for Who He is?
Psalm 34:8
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
Luke 18:20 ESV
You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’”
- Why only mention 5 of the 10 commandments?
- He left out coveting and then addressed his lack.
- If we could keep the Law we would live, but we can’t!
- Yet he has this response:
Luke 18:21 ESV
And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.”
Matthew 19:20 ESV
The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?”
Luke 18:22 ESV
When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
Romans 3:20-25a ESV
For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
Galatians 2:21 ESV
I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.
Mark 10:21 ESV
And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
- Jesus called him to make an eternal investment.
- Jesus invited him into eternal life!
Luke 18:23 ESV
But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich.
- Jesus identified his wealth as his problem and obstacle.
- Holding on to our idols will keep us from following Jesus.
- Have you overestimated the value of money?
- Are you investing it in the right place?
- No one will be saved by giving all their wealth to the poor.
- The point – You can’t serve two masters! He loved his money!
- He did not see his sin and when revealed he rejected repentance.
- The Lord knows the trappings of wealth and all of its deceptions:
Luke 18:24-25 ESV
Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
- This confronted the broken “Blessing Paradigm”
- What is the point of Jesus’ illustration?
Luke 18:26 ESV
Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?”
Luke 18:27 ESV
But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
- It is not possessing riches that keeps from inheriting eternal life it is that they possess us.
- Are you trusting in money?
- Salvation is impossible in our work, we must trust in His!
- Remember it is a GIFT! And the Lord is generous!
Luke 18:28-30 ESV
And Peter said, “See, we have left our homes and followed you.” 29 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30 who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
Mark 10:29-30 ESV
Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.
- The challenge here is to change, turn, repent.
- We don’t get to follow Jesus on our terms but His!
- This is a warning to us all!
- Is the Lord pointing out something that is hindering you from following?
Prayer / Challenge