"On a certain occasion a rich young man approached Jesus and said to Him: 'Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?' Jesus declined the title 'Good Master' because it would have put Him in the same class with the self-righteous young man, who considered himself a 'good master.' That rich young man was not sincere in addressing the Lord thus. If he had regarded Christ as the Son of God and the Savior of the world, if he had believed in Christ and for that reason had called Him 'Good Master,' it would have been quite proper. But because he merely meant to offer the Lord a bit of flattery, Christ declined the title and turned to the young man with the challenge: 'Keep the commandments.' When the young man asked, 'Which?' Jesus said, 'Thou shalt do not murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honor thy father and thy mother, and Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.' The young man replied: 'All these things have I kept from my youth up; what lack I yet?' He meant to say: 'If Thou hast no other teachings to propose, Thou art not such a wise man as some consider Thee to be. What Thou hast told me I have known for a long time.' How does Christ answer the young man's last question? Does He say, 'You lack faith?' By no means; since He is dealing with a miserable, secure and self-righteous person, He does not preach one word of Gospel to him. Though knowing in advance, by reason of His omniscience, that all His efforts would be in vain, He felt that He must first bring him to a realization of his spiritual misery. God, in His love, does many things that to us may seem useless in order that on Judgment Day no man may have an excuse for not coming to faith in Christ. God will say to many: 'This and that I did for you, but you spurned Me.' Jesus, accordingly, said to the rich young man: '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.' Now the record states: 'When the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions.' He departed with an accusing conscience which, no doubt, told him: 'That is indeed a different doctrine from the one I used to hear. What He tells me I cannot do. I have become too greatly attached to my possessions. I would rather forfeit my fellowship with Him than do what He says. I am not going to roam the country with Him like a beggar.' Probably his conscience also testified to him that according to the teaching of Christ he was damned, that hell was his goal. That was the effect which the Lord had intended to produce in dealing with this young man. Whether he was converted later, we do not know, nor is it of any consequence here. The point is that in this episode we have an example to guide us when we are dealing with such as are still secure and self-righteous. True, we cannot issue orders such as Christ, the Lord of lords, issued. But there are enough questions that we can ask to make a person of this kind realize that he is still deeply steeped in sins and a lost creature. "
- C.F.W. Walther, The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel
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