Luke 18:18-4318And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 19And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. 20Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor thy father and thy mother. 21And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up. 22Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 23And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. 24And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 25For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 26And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved? 27And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. 28Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. 29And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, 30Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting. 31Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. 32For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: 33And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 34And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken. 35And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging: 36And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant. 37And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by. 38And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. 39And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. 40And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him, 41Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. 42And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. 43And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God. (Luke 18:18‑43)
Two men wanted to ask something of Jesus when He was passing near: one man was a ruler of a city and very rich; the other was very poor, begging for his food as he was blind. The ruler was a young man, and the beggar may have been ilso, for his father’s name is told (Mark 10:4646And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimeus, the son of Timeus, sat by the highway side begging. (Mark 10:46)).
Both of these men had heard of Jesus and His miracles and wisdom: but the ruler did not think Jesus was sent of God, for he called Him only, “good Master”, which meant, teacher. The blind man thought that One Who could do so great things, was the promised Messiah, for he called Jesus, “Son of David,” which meant, the Messiah King.
The ruler came to ask Jesus what he could do that would be rewarded with eternal life. He said he had always done all as written in God’s law. Jesus told him something to do to prove if he kept those words: to go sell the riches he had, and give to the poor, and to come follow Him.
The young ruler did not want to do that, so he really did not keep the law, which said to love the Lord with all his heart and his neighbor as himself. He wanted his wealth for himself, not to help a poor neighbor; if he had loved God he would have believed His proses of the Holy One to come, and he would have followed Jesus.
The poor blind man knew he was helpless, but he believed from what he had heard that Jesus had power to make him see, and when he learned He was near, he cried out for mercy. When those around him tried to keep him still, he called the more “for mercy,—that meant he knew he did not deserve but he believed Jesus was kind.
When Jesus called for him to be brought to Him, and the blind man heard His voice, he seemed to know Him to be greater than King; he called Him, “Lord.” How kind and willing the Lord Jesus was to do for the poor man, at once He asked him, “What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee?” And spoke the word for the blind man to see.
The answer of the Lord made the rich ruler sad, for he wanted eternal life, but he wanted his wealth more, and returned to it, and did not follow Jesus, nor praise God.
The answer of the Lord made the poor man very happy, he did not return to his ways, but followed Jesus and praised God.
Is there any one who can do such good deeds that he could earn endless life with God? No, that is never said, it can be had only as a gift to those who believe God’s Son. So it is best to feel ourselves helpless, like the poor blind man, and ask the Lord for mercy. He believed the Lord Jesus, obeyed and followed Him, and was happy.
Jesus and those with Him were then nearing the city of Jerusalem, and He told the twelve disciples the wicked, cruel way He would be treated there: He said He would be “delivered to the Gentiles, mocked and spitefully treated, spit on, scourged (whipped) and put to death.” Yet the Lord Jesus kept on His journey to suffer for us all.
ML 10/21/1945