The way Jesus did evangelism seems diametrically opposed to the way we do it today. In this message we learn how to lead lost people into God’s kingdom by using the Law to expose their sin, and then calling for radical surrender to His Lordship, and a living faith in following Him daily.
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How to Obtain Eternal Life
Luke 18:18-27
We have before us this morning, the real and true account of a man who came to Jesus earnestly seeking eternal life. Luke calls him a ruler, probably a ruler of a Jewish synagogue. He, thus, would be a prominent and influential person in his community. You didn’t just make anybody the ruler of the synagogue. You looked for the most religious and moral person in the synagogue. My hunch, is that this man was head and shoulders above and beyond the rest in his synagogue. He had his act pretty well together, by the standards of those who knew him. However, he knew he lacked something.
Matthew refers to him as a “young man” in Mt. 19:20,22. In the Jewish culture, a person would be considered a young man if he was under 40 years old. That makes his accomplishments in life all the more impressive.
All three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) refer to him as being rich. Luke tells us he was extremely rich. He owned much property. This man, no doubt, owned a lot of land, and cattle, and sheep and goats, and camels, so that he could live the life that everyone else just dreamed about. No doubt he had many servants rushing to do his every whim. He’s rich, he’s young, and he’s a ruler. He is a powerful, prominent, popular, and influential person. He has made his fortune and become a powerful individual as a young man. It seems he had it all! However, deep down in his heart, he knew that he lacked the most important thing – eternal life.
Notice that this passage begins and ends with “eternal life.” The passage opens with this young man asking Jesus, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Then, notice how the passage ends in verse 30 where Jesus says that some will receive eternal life in the age to come. “Eternal Life” is the bookends for this story. This story is all about what must happen for a person to obtain eternal life.
Now, let’s be very clear. The issue in this passage is salvation. Notice the very words of the text:
Luke 18:18 – “what shall I do to inherit eternal life.”
Luke 18:24 – “And Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Luke 18:26 – “They who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?”
The issue at stake here is obtaining or missing eternal life. It is entering or failing to enter the kingdom of God. It is being saved or being lost.
When this ruler came to Jesus and asked what he needed to do to inherit eternal life, what was he asking about? What did he mean by “eternal life”? He was talking not only about the duration of life, but the quality of life. Eternal life is the kind of life that God possesses. Only God has always been alive and will always be alive. To inherit eternal life is to have the kind of life that God has. Jesus said in John 17:3, “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” John writes in 1 John 5:11-12, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.” Eternal life is something a person receives by being vitally united to Jesus Christ. This rich young ruler wanted eternal life, but he didn’t understand that the only way he could have it was by being attached to a Person, not doing a particular deed or performing some religious ceremony.
So, this morning, let’s see if we can find the answer to how a person can obtain eternal life. As we study through this passage, I want to focus first on what this man did right in pursuing eternal life, then what he did wrong in pursuing eternal life. Finally, we will look at what he needed in order to gain eternal life.
1. What This Man Did Right In Pursuing Eternal Life
He Asked The Right Question. Notice the question he asked – “what shall I do to inherit eternal life.” He was absorbed with the only truly important question. He didn’t come asking Jesus how he could fix his loneliness, or how he could feel better about himself, or how he could have a better marriage, or how he could cope with his physical illness. He wasn’t absorbed in those lesser issues. He was completely engrossed in the thing that really matters – eternal life!
Oh, how hard it is to find anyone who is really concerned about that question! We have talked to hundreds of people door to door, and it is super rare to find someone with that kind of soul concern. It’s almost non-existent. This man was anxious about his soul. He knew that he didn’t have eternal life, and he desperately needed it. He’s asking the right question!
He Came To The Right Person. He came to Jesus Christ, the very One who possessed this life, and could give it to him. No one else on the planet was able to give him eternal life but Christ. He could have gone to the Jewish rabbis, or to the high priest, or to the Greek philosophers to ask his question. However, he came to the right person.
Today, sadly, most people under soul concern go to the wrong Source to try to find an answer to their spiritual questions. They seek out the answers that false religious systems give. They go to the New Age answers. They look in the writings of the cults. They ask their friends what they think. They Google their questions. Oh, how precious it is when someone is asking the right question, and going to the right Source to get their answers!
He Came The Right Way. We don’t see this in Luke’s gospel, but if we turn to Mark 10:17 – “As He was setting out on a journey, a man ran up to Him and knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” This man ran up to Him! Now, that’s saying something for a rich ruler! Jewish men didn’t just go around running all over the place. This ruler was so eager to find the answer to his question, that he ran to Jesus. He wasn’t nonchalant about it. He didn’t just amble up to Jesus slowly, and out of the corner of his mouth whisper his question. He was in earnest!
He also knelt before Jesus! This man is on his face, in the dust, before the Lord! He has taken a humble, mean position before Him. He isn’t taking an arrogant position, bossing Jesus around. Instead, he is taking the position of a learner at His feet.
Notice also that he asks a question that makes him very vulnerable before others. Here is this very moral and religious man who is probably a ruler of a synagogue, admitting to everyone publicly that he doesn’t have eternal life! Talk about spilling your guts. It would take a lot of humility to do what he did. And notice he didn’t say, “what should we do to inherit eternal life?” He makes it very personal. By saying “what shall I do…?” he is admitting he’s not there. When everyone else around him assumed he was whole and complete and “with it”, he’s confessing publicly that he doesn’t have it. He’s not trying to protect his reputation. He’s got a huge hole in his life, and he is completely baffled about what to do to fill it. He figures he’s just about as moral, and religious, and good as he can get, and he still doesn’t have eternal life.
2. What This Man Did Wrong In Pursing Eternal Life
He Did Not Have A True Understanding of Who Jesus Was. He addressed Jesus as “Good Teacher.” That’s who Jesus was to this man – a good teacher. Do you realize that most people in the world today believe that Jesus is a good teacher? The Muslims believe that. The Hindus believe that. The cultists believe that. Most people will acknowledge that Jesus is a good teacher, a great religious leader, who taught some wonderful things. And, yes, Jesus was a good teacher. But He was and is far more than that! I believe that’s why Jesus turned around and didn’t answer his question at first about eternal life. Instead he asked him a different question – “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.” Now, I think that a lot of people have misunderstood Jesus here. Many people think Jesus is saying to this man, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You shouldn’t be calling me good, because I’m not God.” Now, I don’t believe Jesus is saying that, because it would contradict many other places in the gospels where He expressly affirms His deity, by direct claims, or by accepting worship from people. Rather, I think Jesus was saying, “You call me ‘Good Teacher’, but why? Do you really understand who I am? Only God is good. Do you recognize that I have come from God?” In questioning this rich young ruler, Jesus was trying to cause him to question his shallow understanding of who He was. He needed to begin to think about the nature and character of Christ. Who was this Man who taught like no on ever taught, and performed miracles that only God could do?
Many people make this same mistake today. They are troubled about their relationship with God and their eternal future. However, they have a wrong view of Jesus. They believe he is a good man, or a great religious leader, but that’s as far as their view of Him goes. If you want to obtain eternal life, you need a biblical understanding of Jesus Christ. You must understand that He is God in human flesh. He is the second person of the Trinity, co-equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He possesses the same attributes of Deity as they do. He is the Son of God and God the Son. He is Almighty God, Jehovah, the King of kings and Lord of lords. You will never obtain eternal life until you embrace the real Jesus of the Bible.
He Had Too High Of An Opinion of Himself.
No, rather than talking about God’s love and grace, Jesus brought up the Law – specifically the 2nd table of the Law that points out our duty toward our fellow man. He runs through five of the commandments: don’t commit adultery, don’t murder, don’t steal, don’t bear false witness, and honor your father and your mother. And what is the young man’s response? “All these things I have kept from my youth.” J. C. Ryle writes, “An answer more full of darkness and self-ignorance it is impossible to conceive! He who made it could have known nothing rightly, either about himself, or God, or God’s law.” This young man had a vaunted and elevated esteem of his own morality and law-keeping. I think he really thought that he had not broken God’s laws! But he had deceived his own heart.
He Had Too Low An Opinion of God’s Law. There is no way this young man could really think that he had never broken God’s Laws unless he had a low opinion of them. Any person who says that he has kept all of God’s laws from his youth is self-deceived. He doesn’t understand the strictness and spirituality of God’s law. He doesn’t understand that the command not to commit adultery also condemns looking on a woman to lust for her. He doesn’t understand that the law against murder also condemns the person who hates his brother without a cause. He doesn’t understand that you can break God’s commandments, not just by your outward actions, but also by your inner attitudes and thoughts.
Now, why would Jesus tell this young man to keep the 10 Commandments in order to inherit eternal life? Well, on the one hand, it is true that if a person perfectly kept God’s Laws, he would earn life. Leviticus 18:5 says, “So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them; I am the Lord.” Paul says in Galatians 3:10 “For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them.” Yes, it is true that if you perfectly keep God’s law, you can earn eternal life. However, it is also true that if you break God’s Law even once, you are cursed! I believe Jesus directed this young man to God’s Law to kill any thought that he could earn eternal life by his works. Paul says in Romans 7:9, “I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died.” By directing him to the Law, Jesus was helping him to see his sin, and his need to look outside of himself for his salvation. At this point this young man is trusting in himself for salvation. Jesus directs him to the Law so that he will stop trusting in himself, and begin trusting in God’s promise.
He Was Unwilling To Give Up His Riches. After this young ruler said he had kept all God’s commandments from his youth up, Jesus said, “One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when he had heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich” (18:21-23). Jesus deliberately brought this man to a crisis. He could sell all his possessions and follow Christ, or he could give up on his hope to inherit eternal life. The man would have to choose.
After Jesus has not been able to kill this man’s hopes of self-salvation by giving him the 2nd table of the Law, He turns around and gives him the first table of the Law. The very first commandment was “You shall have no other gods before Me.” Jesus was bringing this young man to see that he had broken the very first commandment over and over and over his entire life. This young man needed to see that money was his god. He needed to admit that he loved it more than he loved God. Not only that, but he had broken the commandment to “love your neighbor as you love yourself.” This young ruler didn’t love his neighbor as much as he loved himself, because he was unwilling to give up his wealth to help his neighbor. Jesus is killing his hopes of self-salvation through law-keeping, by forcing him to see that he was a law-breaker. He had violated God’s holy law over and over, and only deserved eternal condemnation.
He Was Unwilling To Follow Christ. Most people, when they read this story, put all the emphasis on selling all his possessions and giving them to the poor. I don’t think that is the true emphasis here. I believe the real emphasis in this story is “Come, follow Me.” You see, selling all his possessions is only incidental to following Christ. This young man could never follow Jesus until he had given up his riches. Jesus was offering Himself to this man. Jesus, Himself is eternal life. The man wants eternal life. Jesus offers Himself, the true life, to Him. But in order to reach out and take Christ, he has to let go of all the money he is clutching. In order to attach himself to Jesus, he must separate himself from his riches. It’s like the guy who offers the 5 year old a $100 bill, but the little boy is clutching a handful of candy. The man says if you will come and take it, I’ll give you this $100. The little boy won’t do it, because if he reaches out and takes the $100 he will lose all his candy. This young ruler’s riches are like a few lolipops and M&M’s! Jesus is the real treasure, and he is unwilling to let go of his petty trinkets in order to receive everlasting riches. In order to follow Me, you must remove those things from your life that keep you from following Me – like your attachment to your possessions. Your possessions have your heart. I must have your heart if you would inherit eternal life. Your riches are blocking your ability to follow Me. You treasure your riches, and you don’t treasure Me.
If this man is to inherit eternal life, he must see that Jesus Christ is the Sovereign Lord, and he must follow Him wherever He leads. His word is law! It doesn’t matter what He commands you to do. If you are unwilling to surrender to Him, you don’t understand who He is, and can’t be saved.
This man wanted to know what he had to do to inherit eternal life. The answer? Follow Me! Jesus knew he couldn’t follow Him until he gave up his money, because his love of money would forever compete for his love for Christ. So, Jesus calls him to follow Him, by giving up his money. Jesus must be first! His word must be law in our hearts! He is the Sovereign Lord. You will not inherit eternal life unless you are willing to surrender to Him as Lord, and turn away
from those things that come between you and Him.
3. What This Man Needed In Order To Gain Eternal Life
Luke 18:24-27 says, “And Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” They who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But He said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.” Jesus said it was hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. How hard Jesus? Oh, very hard. In fact it is harder for a rich man to get into the kingdom of heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Some people have tried to say that there was a gate in Jerusalem that was very difficult for a camel to go through. The camel would have to get down on its knees, and all its pack would have to be taken off, and then only with difficulty could it get through this gate. They say this gate was called “The Eye of the Needle.” Folks, there is absolutely no evidence that any such gate ever existed. Also, even if it did, Jesus couldn’t have been talking about that, because in verse 27 Jesus said it was impossible with people to be saved. It was not impossible for the camel to get through the gate. The illustration Jesus gives in verse 25 must match the truth He shares in verse 27. Jesus’ point is not that it is hard for a rich man to get into the kingdom. His point is that it is impossible! In fact, He’s not just talking about rich people. In verse 26 the disciples ask, “Then who can be saved?” They were astonished. They all believed that a man’s riches were evidence of God’s blessing on his life. If even the rich couldn’t be saved, then could anybody be saved? Notice Jesus’ response. “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.” It is impossible with people to be saved.
Now, why is it impossible with people to be saved? Think of the little boy again clutching his candy. He has no ability to understand the value of money compared to the value of candy. Man in his fallen condition, can not understand and see and appreciate the value and worth and beauty of Jesus Christ. The natural man values things like money and power and prestige and sex and pleasure. But he has no capacity to value God’s infinitely beautiful Son. Paul says in 1 Cor. 2:14, “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” You understand what an appraiser is, right? He’s the guy who goes out and looks at your home, and compares it to other homes selling in your neighborhood, and then assigns a value to it. Paul says the natural man is unable to assign the correct value to Jesus Christ. He is natural, not spiritual. The things of the Spirit are only spiritually appraised. Jesus said in John 3:3, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” By nature we are blind to the glory of Christ. We are blind to the kingdom of God. Until we are born again, we can’t see these things.
In 2 Cor. 4:4 Paul says “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” Well, if that is true, then how does anyone ever see Christ’s glory? Look at 2 Cor. 4:6, “For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” That’s how it happens! God must shine in our hearts! God must open the eyes of our hearts! God must give us a heart transplant! God must regenerate us so we can see His beauty and value His worth. And, my friends, unless God does that, it is impossible for you to be saved! Those are not my words. They are Jesus’ words. With people it is impossible! He didn’t say it was hard, but if you give it your best effort, you can do it. He said with people it is impossible!
Paul said in Romans 8:5, “the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
The lost person can’t save himself or contribute towards his salvation. A person who loves money can’t not love money. A person who sees something as ugly, can’t see it as beautiful. This rich man couldn’t just decide not to love his riches. In other words, he can’t not love what he loves, and he can’t love what he doesn’t love. He can’t choose to give up what he supremely values in order to gain what he doesn’t value. The leopard can’t change his spots, and the Ethiopian can’t change the color of his skin, and the sinner can’t change the affections of his heart through will power. The person himself must be entirely changed, and that’s what God promises to do in the New Birth.
Does Jesus’ teaching here fit with the popular view of conversion? Most people assume that Christ has done everything He could by dying on the cross for all the sins of the world, and now it is up to man if he is to be saved. He must exercise his free will, and make the right choice. He must choose Christ. He must repent of his sin. He must turn away from anything and everything that competes with Jesus Christ. The popular view is that man has the deciding factor in whether he will be saved. However, Jesus says here that it is impossible for man to do what is necessary to be saved. But all things are possible with God!!! With man it is impossible to be saved. But with God all things are possible. God is able to save any person anywhere at any time! And He does it by sending His Spirit into their hearts to regenerate them and make them alive together with Christ.
Application
I think now we can answer this rich man’s question. What must a person do to inherit eternal life? 1) He must come to understand the Jesus of the Bible. He must see that He is God, the Sovereign ruler of the universe. 2) He must come to understand his own sin and rebellion to God. He must understand that the only thing he deserves is hell. 3) He must come to surrender to Jesus Christ as Lord. Whatever Jesus says goes, has got to go. He is determined not to allow anything to keep him from his Lord. This is repentance. When Jesus called the man to sell his possessions, He was calling him to repent and turn away from that which would destroy him. 4) He must follow Jesus. Jesus must become his new god. Everything in his life must now revolve around Him. He must understand who Jesus is, understand who he is, surrender to Christ and follow Christ. It’s really that simple. However this young man failed in all four points.
Not only does this passage teach us what we must do to inherit eternal life, but it also instructs us in how to bring others into the kingdom of God. This young man asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. What a prime opportunity for Jesus to bring him into the kingdom! This guy believes in God, in the Scriptures, and in Judgment. He’s not an atheist or an agnostic. On top of that he is zealously pursuing a moral lifestyle. He recognizes he doesn’t have eternal life and wants it. He comes to Jesus, and He comes earnestly and humbly. What more could you want?! I mean, if Jesus doesn’t get this guy into the kingdom, something’s wrong. In the average church today, if a guy like that came into the service, he would be rushed into a quick decision and a sinner’s prayer. We would pronounce him eternally saved, and tell him he should never question his salvation again. But Jesus doesn’t do that. Jesus never led anyone through a sinner’s prayer. He never rushed them into a quick decision. He didn’t gloss over sin. He didn’t make it easy for people to be saved. He made it very hard. Rather, He made it impossible. Jesus definitely did not use easy believism methods in evangelizing people! If Jesus were attending our churches, He would definitely flunk Evangelism 101! I think we do people a grave injustice when we assure them they are eternally saved when they raise a hand or walk an aisle or say a prayer. We don’t know if they have been saved. The only way to know is to wait and see if the fruits of true repentance and regeneration display themselves in the person’s life. It is not our job to give people assurance of salvation. It’s the Spirit’s job. The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are children of God. If God saves a man, He will assure them of it. Let’s take our cues on evangelism, not from the 4 Spiritual Laws, or 4 Steps to Peace with God, or Evangelism Explosion. Let’s take our cues from Jesus Christ. Let’s follow Him and does as He did as we help people to enter the kingdom.
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