V. 18. And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou Me good? There is none good but One, that is, God. V. 19. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witnesss, Defraud not, Honor thy father and mother. V. 20. And he answered and said unto Him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.
Jesus does not answer his question directly, but by skilful catechizing tries to lead him to the right understanding of his petition and its fulfillment. Taking up the man's address first, He asks him why he applies the attribute "good" to Him. Far from rejecting the appellation, Jesus accepts it at once, but He wants the young man to understand the full import of the word. In calling Jesus good, he attributed to Him a quality of God Himself, he placed Him on a level with God, all of which is right and good. God is good; Jesus is good : they are on the same level. Now as for his question, Jesus reminds him of the fulfillment of the Law, since the perfect keeping of God's commandments, as the ruler had learned, would give him the assurance of heaven.
The Lord mentions a few of the precepts of the Moral Law, those against adultery, against murder, against theft and robbery, against false witness, against fraud, and that demanding obedience to the parents.
Note: The sequence of the commandments is immaterial. Jesus mentions only such as pertain to the second table, since these are of such a nature that a person ought to be able to note his transgressions of them very readily. It takes comparatively little spiritual knowledge and understanding to note the faults in thoughts, words, and deeds that are committed against one's neighbor. Jesus had noted at once that this young man was fully satisfied with an external probity before men. People of his stamp must always be referred to the total keeping of the Law of God, when they live so securely in their self-righteousness. If this method works a proper knowledge of sin, then there will also be opportunity for the knowledge of Jesus as the Savior of sinners, and for faith in Him.
In this case. the man coolly stated that he had kept all these commandments from his youth. He was still so thoroughly bound in spiritual blindness that he supposed an outward abstaining from the deeds of wickedness and darkness constituted the. fulfillment of the Law. Here was true pharisaic conceit. It is the same experience which believers will have in their dealings with the self-righteous hypocrites of this 'World. If they live an outwardly moral life, then they believe they have fulfilled God will, and think they will be acceptable on the last day. And they have never examined their heart to see the mass of filth and transgression to be found there.