Matthew 19:16-26                                                                  January 1^st 2004

Jesus the Soulwinner 

 

[16] And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? [17] And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. [18] He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, [19] Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. [20] The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? [21] Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. [22] But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. [23] Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. [24] And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. [25] When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? [26] But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

 

What we find in this text is a soulwinning lesson from the Lord Jesus Christ that confounds; The Sword of the Lord, 99% of Independent Baptists and every accredited Christian school in North America. You will not find this plan at an Alpha Course, at a lifestyle evangelism seminar or at a Billy Graham Crusade. You will, however, find it in the pages of the Bible which all of the above profess to follow in all matters of faith and practice but which will deny and reject it when it contradicts the faith and practice of their friends or their school.

 

God Contrasted: (v.16-17) The rich young man has posed a question regarding eternal life that resides in the soul of every son of Adam from Genesis chapter three on. It is a natural question from the carnal mind of an unregenerate sinner. He is as far out in left field, as far as truth is concerned, as a man can be. He does not have the right question because he has the wrong plan of salvation and the wrong God.

In order to be saved we must believe in the God of the Bible. Jesus is not denying here that He is God. On the contrary, He is stimulating this man to think biblically instead of religiously.

Jesus is defining terms. The man is speaking of good in a human sense and Jesus must bring him to understand righteousness in a biblical sense. The Lord does this by challenging his idea of goodness as it relates to God and to the man himself. If Jesus is indeed good He must be God. If only God is good this man is no more good than the man is God!!! Jesus never wastes words. By pointing out that only God is good, He is at once pointing to His deity and the young man’s sinfulness.

Jesus wants to bring him to repentance by seeing the man change his mind about: sin, self and the Saviour.

Jesus brings in the Law to prove the futility of trusting the works of the Law for salvation.

 

Galatians 3:24,

    Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

 

Good Confounded: (v.18-21) Jesus proved something, beyond a shadow of a doubt, to this young man. The man indeed was not truly perfect. The Lord accomplished in a moment of time what this man had not seen his entire life time. The Lord Jesus gives us an iron clad lesson in the necessity of opening the eyes of those that are lost to their reprobate condition. A man can not be saved until he knows he is truly lost!

 

[*ILLUSTRATION: Spurgeon was told by a woman she had never sinned. He replied, “You must be quite proud of that fact, Madame.” “I am,” she said. Spurgeon shot back: “Pride, Madame, is a sin!”]

 

All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?

 

Goals Contradicted: (v.21c-24)

[21] Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven:

 

Covetousness was this man’s sin.

 

 “Follow me” contradicts “he went away”. God’s plan is that all would be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. Man’s way is summed up in this saying: “All we like sheep have gone astray…”  

 

God’s Contract: (v.25-26)

With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

Salvation is not in man or by man it is of the Lord. No one is beyond reach!

 

May we be soulwinners for the Lord this year. May we use the methods of our Lord and be guided by His wisdom.