Matthew 19:16-19 (ESV)
"And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
SDA Argument:
- You shall not murder.
- You shall not commit adultery.
- You shall not steal.
- You shall not bear false witness.
- Honor your father and mother.
Answer:
The question of the rich young man to Jesus reveals his lack of knowledge about Jesus’ true identity and the correct way to salvation. He referred to Jesus as a “Teacher,” implying that he considered Him on the same level as other great individuals. He emphasized eternal life as a reward rather than a gift. However, the Lord’s teaching makes it clear that salvation is a gift, not a reward, as stated in Ephesians 2:8-9.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NLT) "God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it."
Similarly, this is the testimony of Romans 4:4-5:
Romans 4:4-5 (NLT) "When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners."
To test the rich young man on the path of salvation, Jesus said, “If you want to enter life, follow the commandments.” However, Jesus did not mean that a person could be saved by merely obeying the commandments. Instead, He used the commandments to convict the rich young man’s conscience and imply that he needed to repent because he couldn’t perfectly keep the commandments. Thus, he was a sinner in need of a Savior. Despite this, the rich young man clung to his mistaken belief that he could inherit eternal life through obedience to the commandments (Matt. 19:20).
The Purpose of the Old Covenat Law
The true purpose of the law is to declare and emphasize that humans are sinners and have not reached God’s high standard set by the law (Romans 3:23). This is evidenced by Romans 3:20.
Romans 3:20 (TLB) Now do you see it? No one can ever be made right in God’s sight by doing what the law commands. For the more we know of God’s laws, the clearer it becomes that we aren’t obeying them; his laws serve only to make us see that we are sinners.
Because the purpose of the law is merely to show us that we are sinners, the belief of the rich young man that he can attain eternal life by obeying the commandments is indeed mistaken. The error of the rich young man is similar to the mistake made by many SDAs today who continue to use Matthew 19:17 to argue that keeping the Ten Commandments is necessary for obtaining eternal life. However, according to 2 Corinthians 3:6, striving to keep the Ten Commandments for salvation will lead to death rather than salvation.
2 Corinthians 3:6 (TLB) "He is the one who has helped us tell others about his new agreement to save them. We do not tell them that they must obey every law of God or die, but we tell them there is life for them from the Holy Spirit. The old way, trying to be saved by keeping the Ten Commandments, ends in death; in the new way, the Holy Spirit gives them life."
Even the SDA Bible Commentary agrees that the rich young ruler’s belief regarding salvation through the works of the law is truly mistaken. Here is the Commentary’s statement regarding the question in verse 17:
"What good thing? This question reflects the typical Pharisaical concept of righteousness by works as a passport to “eternal life” [1]
If SDAs persist in insisting that according to Matthew 19:17, the Ten Commandments must be obeyed to inherit eternal life, it implies that their doctrine aligns with that of the Pharisees, who taught “righteousness by works” rather than “righteousness by faith.” In doing so, SDAs inadvertently side with false teachers, akin to the Pharisees, rather than with the Lord Jesus. Jesus issued a warning to SDAs who also believe in the righteousness of the Pharisees:
Matthew 5:20 (NLT) “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!
It is also important to remember that this event occurred during a time when the efficacy of the Old Covenant Law was still in force, and Christ had not yet died on the cross to redeem us from under the law (Galatians 4:4-5). This context helps us understand why Jesus responded as He did. As mentioned earlier, Jesus did not mean that salvation could be achieved through strict adherence to the commandments, as that would contradict passages like Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 3:20, and Romans 4:4-5, as well as the overall message of the Bible that eternal life is received solely through God’s grace, by faith alone in Christ alone, and not by following the Ten Commandments or keep the law to maintain our righteousness in Christ.
Conclusion:
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