As Jesus set out on the road from there, now, a rich man ran up, knelt down, asked Him, and said, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
This man seems very promising outwardly. He runs to Jesus, kneels down, and asks about eternal life. In him there is religious seriousness, moral curiosity, and outward humility. Yet the form of his question also reveals his inner problem: by saying, “What should I do,” he seems to imagine eternal life as an inheritance obtained by works. He still does not understand the depth of grace and the true attachment of his heart. Christ will next reveal that a person can ask spiritual questions, even kneel down, yet still keep inside the idol that prevents him from fully following the Lord.