Knowing The Word in Luke 18:18-30, The Rich Ruler

Only Luke calls the man in this story a ruler, denoting a Roman or Jewish official. We know he is among the ruling class. Matthew calls him young, suggesting not mature in his thinking. He addresses Jesus as “good teacher,” a term not found anywhere in the Talmud for addressing a rabbi, which is purposeful because “good” is an attribute of God and not man. His flattery of Jesus is thoughtless. Jesus invites him to reflect on his own words. What he said has implications for who Jesus is, but the ruler is unaware of his divinity. At a deeper level, Jesus invites him to consider his quest of eternal life in the presence of a perfect, moral God when the ruler is immoral. If he sees himself for who he is, he will cry out for mercy, not just wait for a divine reward. Jesus wants to know if this man really loves God—the first four commandments—more than he loves and covets his own wealth. Why is it harder for the rich to rely on God? Jesus does make this point and we should take it seriously, especially if we are rich. The humorous illustration of the camel is not about some gate in the Jerusalem wall, but about the absurdity of salvation without Jesus. Salvation unto eternal life is always a gift from God and not earned by man. It is through mercy and grace, which is the heart of the gospel.

18 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.”

Prayer: We let the world overcome us; we live too much in continual fear of the chances and changes of mortal life. We let things go too much their own way. We try too much to get what we can by our own selfish wits, without considering our neighbor. We follow too much the ways and fashions of the day, doing and saying and thinking anything that comes uppermost, just because there is so much around us. Free us from our selfish interests, and guide us, good Lord, to see thy way and to do thy will.

Charles Kingsley, 1819-1875