New Testament Law

Matthew 19:16-26

Matthew 19:16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 19:17 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.

19:18 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, 19:19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

19:20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 19:21 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.

19:22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

19:23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

19:24 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.

19:25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. [KJV]

There are a few possible interpretations of these verses:

1. Jesus was testing the young man to see if he was willing to follow Jesus.
2. Jesus was commanding those commandments which He stated in these verses.
3. Jesus was saying that people should follow the Ten Commandments.

Here is an analysis of these interpretations:

1. The young man came to Jesus and asked Him what he could do to get eternal life. Jesus told him to keep the commandments. Then the young man asked Him which commandments, so Jesus replied with some commandments. The young man said that he had kept all those commandments since he was a child, and still wanted to know what else he could do. Jesus told him to sell everything he owned, give everything to the poor, and follow Jesus. This showed the young man that his treasure was on earth, not in heaven. The young man was too much in love with his riches to follow Jesus. Jesus showed him that his top priority was money and physical wealth. The young man actually preferred to be rich rather than to have eternal life.
2. A literal interpretation of these verses would mean that Jesus commanded people:
   • Thou shalt do no murder
   • Thou shalt not commit adultery
   • Thou shalt not steal
   • Thou shalt not bear false witness
   • Honour thy father and thy mother
   • Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself
   • Sell everything that thou hast
   • Give to the poor
   • Follow Jesus
3. Some people say that Jesus was commanding people to follow the Ten Commandments. There are two problems with this interpretation:
   1. Jesus didn't state all of the Ten Commandments, only five of them. Also, "Love thy neighbour as thyself", "Go and sell that thou hast", "Give to the poor", and "Come and follow Me" are not in the Ten Commandments.
   2. The Old Testament Law has been abolished. It doesn't make sense to say that Jesus was commanding Christians to follow a law that isn't in force any more.

Compare these verses with Luke 18:18-27 and Romans 13:9.