Mark 10:17-20 17And as he was setting out on the road, one man running up and kneeling before him, was asking him, “Good Teacher, what must I do in order to inherit eternal life?” 18And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not give false testimony, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ” 20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.”
Jesus’ trip to Jerusalem was interrupted again by someone seeking his help. Jesus had the words of life. The unnamed man in this story saw Jesus as the source of information about eternal life. His kneeling before Jesus acknowledged Jesus’ authority as a good teacher. Did this man see something greater in Jesus than simply a teacher? The man needed to take the next step and acknowledge him as Lord and Savior, and this would require the type of faith Jesus illustrated in the previous stories of this chapter. All the events from 8:34 onward reflect the call to follow the way of the cross in submission to Jesus’ supremacy and example. This man wanted eternal life, but was he willing to walk the path to the cross with Jesus?
Verse 18 raises difficult questions. Of course, Jesus was good, sinless, and the incarnation Son of God, so his statement in this verse should be interpreted from its literary context. Jesus refocuses the attention of the man from himself to God the Father. The man had religious piety in his obedience to the law but lacked deep faith in God. His idea of being good was based only on doing and not being. He had made it only to a certain point of spiritual growth and needed to cross the line of heart commitment.
Jesus acknowledged the man’s piety by listing typical commands for a Jew to keep. All the commands are part of the Ten Commandments except Do not defraud. The idea of honesty is found throughout the laws taught by Moses in the Old Testament and was foundational for a just society. Jesus may have added this particular command because it addressed an issue in the man’s life. In the social concept of limited goods, wealth is often gained through taking from the poor. There is only so much to go around. The man confirmed that he had followed the law since he was young. Following the law does not necessarily mean one’s heart is right. Jesus would get deeper into this issue in the following verses. The law is an important guide, but obedience to it without faith cannot bring eternal life. This man was missing something and knew it.
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