Matthew 19:16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”
Read: Matthew 19:16-26; Mark 10:17-27; Luke 18:18-27
Setting:
on the road from Jericho area (Mk 10:1, 17) going up to Jerusalem with the Twelve (Mk. 10:32)
probably continually changing crowd of followers, coming and going as interest and other demands allowed
Person(s) asking the question:
Source: The Greek Concept of the “Seven Stages of Life” and Its New Testament Significance; R. Larry Overstreet; Northwest Baptist Seminary, Tacoma, WA. Published in: Bulletin for Biblical Research 19.4 (2009) 537–563
a man who was “young”, νεανισκος, Matt. 19:22; had great wealth (lit. many possessions) Matt. 19:22; Mark 10:22; in a position of authority over others, “ruler”, αρχων, Luke 18:18
Nicodemus a “ruler of the Jews” John 3:1; Jairus a “ruler of the syagogue”; Beelzebub a “ruler of the demons” Matt. 12:24
Question behind the question:
Can you give me some inside help?
It can’t be that simple, just accepting a gift like a child? see Mar 10:15; Luk 18:17
What do I need to do for it to be a sure thing?
Expected response:
some kind of special work or combination of works beyond what typical Jew would/could perform that would move him to the head of the line
perhaps a special pilgrimage: Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles three required yearly pilgrimages — maybe another more involved, one or all of the three with extra requirements
expecting some kind of value judgment about actions that Jesus would deem meritorious
Jesus’ point:
Jesus went several layers deeper – let’s start with your worldview (see Alison Gray quote): why do you call something good? where does your concept of good come from? who defines good for you?
definition of good that applies to this life and the next must be an absolute standard, originating in a transcendent source, iow God
man had some concept of a transcendent Being and an afterlife even though perhaps not fully aware and thought out – Jesus helped him put practical skin on those concepts
if there is a God, has he spoken and what did he say about your question? Jesus answered “yes, read/obey his commandments”.
man was looking for a recipe, Jesus directed him to principles starting with first one: what is your given, your starting place for developing your worldview
Modern Application:
bigger picture here: if there is such a thing as good, there must be at least one thing that is non-good, otherwise “good” is a useless adjective and does not help the question or argument
Jesus was comfortable with the idea of good, must also have been so with evil – if concepts of good and evil exist and are true, where did they come from? Jesus’ answer: God.
notice Gray’s statement: “In postmodern times we no longer trust in meta-narrative” – in reality a restating of Jean-François Lyotard’s claim – is a self-refuting statement of trust in meta-narrative
to extent this is true, spiritual questions from unbeliever need careful answers – cannot count on questioner using a Judeo-Christian dictionary… will likely have their own dictionary, will consequently misunderstand our answer
Maria, Sound of Music: Let’s start at the very beginning / A very good place to start / When you read you begin with A-B-C / When you sing you begin with do-re-mi
When you answer begin with G – O – D / The first three letters just happen to be / G – O – D
don’t be afraid to challenge competing worldviews, especially about origins and givens – if those are wrong, conclusions drawn from them will also be wrong
Reformanda 