“THE ONLY ONE WHO IS GOOD”

17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.”

Matthew 19:17

Despite the Bible's clarity on salvation by faith in Christ alone, millions of people still think that they can work their way into heaven. In fact, Jesus Himself was approached by a man carrying the same thought.

We’re back to our study of Matthew 19, where Jesus is having a discussion with a rich, young ruler inquiring about having eternal life. Jesus’ conflict with the Jewish religious leaders is getting more and more serious. So, the Lord drives His point home by revealing who He is and why He came to Earth.

In today’s verse, Jesus seems to challenge the man’s understanding of what it means to be good. In a parallel account in Mark 10:17, the man calls Jesus “good.” Therefore, Jesus asked him, “Why do you call me good?”

The man’s question likely comes from a place of self-asserting righteousness, showing how far he is from the kind of faith that God seeks in His people. The young ruler wants to earn eternal life, thinking that doing enough “good” will give him a place in Heaven.

Jesus declares that only God is good (Mark 10:18) without denying His own deity. The man fails to understand Jesus’ point—since Jesus is good (like God), He is God.

Jesus’ question can be paraphrased in a series of questions:

• Do you believe that I am good?
• Do you believe that there is no evil in me?
• Do you believe that everything I do is good?
• Do you believe that every good thing comes from me?
• Do you believe that in my goodness, I forgive sinners?
• Do you believe that I am good, and therefore I am God?

How is God good?

God is good, which means there is no evil in Him (1 John 1:5). Everything He does is right, fair, and good (Psalm 119:68). Every good thing comes from Him (James 1:7). He forgives sins (Mark 11:25). He can do and give what is good because He is good—in every sense of the word. With these descriptions, we can conclude that only God is good.

Since Jesus has declared that only God possesses the title “good,” He now waits for the man to respond. It appears that the man did not answer back. So, Jesus brings up the commandments. If the man desires to enter eternal life, he must perfectly observe the commandments. Despite saying this, Jesus does not imply salvation by law-keeping. Rather, He uses the law to help the man reach the point of repentance.

No amount of humanitarian work or personal claim to righteousness can make one deserving of God’s forgiveness.  The earlier we get this, the better for us. Jesus had to come because we couldn’t save ourselves.

Let me leave you with a thought to keep in mind.

Salvation is never earned; it is received. It is an amazingly free gift offered by our good God.

Pursue the Savior today!

Photo by Cody Nottingham on Unsplash