GETTING IN (5): WHATS WRONG WITH GOOD INTENTIONS?

(Luke 18:18-23)
October 2, 2016
Read Lu 18:18-23 A man was pulling a small boy out of a hole in a frozen
river. He asked, How did you come to fall in? The boy replied, I didnt
come to fall in. I came to skate. Illustrating that good intentions do not keep
disaster from striking. Supposedly it was St. Bernard of Clairvaux who said,
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Thats our theme for today.
Jesus just said, 17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom
of God like a child shall not enter it. Luke follows with a man who looked
like a cinch to get in. But he did not. Luke calls him a rich ruler. Matt 19:20
adds that he was young (24-40). He asks, What must I do to inherit eternal
life? A lawyer had the same question in Luke 10:25. That man was trying to
trap Jesus. Not this one. He is absolutely genuine in his request. No tricks. He
is well-intentioned in his desire to know how to get in.
And he does a lot of things right. First, he sees his need. Hes good, but is he
good enough? Second, he seeks help. Urgently. Heedless of reputation or
dignity, Mark 10:17 tells us he ran up and knelt before him. He wont miss
this opportunity. And third, hes come to the right place -- to Jesus. Further,
Jesus loved him (Mrk 10:21). Now, Jesus loved everyone including enemies.
But Mark indicates Jesus had a particular fondness for this man. No one ever
had a better opportunity than him. Hes sincere; hes well-intentioned and he
is right where he needs to be. Yet in one of the saddest conclusions in the
Bible, he goes away empty -- as lost in leaving as he was when he came.
How could that happen? With all of his good intentions, how could he still be
on the road to hell? Luke shows 3 things good intentions couldnt overcome.
I.

He Got Jesus Wrong (Thought he was good, not God)

This is the most tragic mistake of all. You see, Folks, you cant get Jesus
wrong and still get to heaven. You just cant. If he had gotten Jesus right, he
never would have walked away, but he got it wrong.
He didnt miss by much. He was oh, so close. V. 18: And a ruler asked him,
Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Good teacher - just a
complimentary greeting to us. But not then. In all of Jewish religious literature
there is no record of any rabbi being called Good teacher It just wasnt done.
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Why? The rabbis often said, There is nothing good but the law. That
doesnt mean there werent people who thought they were good enough. All
the Pharisees did. But to outright call someone good was to give reverence
that was extraordinary. This man had Jesus on a very high pedestal. He was
good himself, but thought Jesus better yet and he wanted what Jesus had. He
no doubt thought Jesus was the best and greatest man he had ever known. But
he was thinking only in moral terms, so Jesus tries to bring him that last step.
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And Jesus said to him, Why do you call me good? No one is good except
God alone. Fascinating! Many have misunderstood Jesus, thinking He is
declaring His own sinfulness. But that cannot be. II Cor 5:21 assures Jesus
knew no sin. Heb 4:15 declares He in every respect has been tempted as
we are, yet without sin. To be the lamb of God demanded perfection. Jesus
isnt declaring himself sinful. Just the opposite. In declaring, No one is good
except God alone, he is trying to get his man to consider the ramifications of
what he has said when he called Jesus good. If Jesus is good in the ultimate
sense -- and only God is good, -- then Jesus must be God. Thats where Jesus
wants him to go. It is where he must go for eternal life. Tragically he never
quite gets there. He doesnt see the implications of his own statement.
Jesus is also inviting Him to consider the fact that He has much too low a view
of goodness. We use the term good in a relative way. Some people are
relatively better than others. But its a fatal mistake not to realize our
goodness will ultimately be judged not by run-of-the-mill human morality.
The ultimate standard is Gods goodness, and that is a fearsome prospect. Heb
12:29 informs us our God is a consuming fire. This man is about to declare
himself good. But compared to the consuming goodness of God, he, like all of
us, is condemned without hope. Thats what Jesus is trying to get him to see.
But the main issue here is who is Jesus? By his question Jesus is urging him:
Think, man! If I am good, and if only God is good, then who am I, and
what am I doing? Think! But in the end, it is to no avail. He continues to
see Jesus as good, but not as God. Seeing Jesus as the best man who ever
lived isnt good enough. Failure to bow to Jesus as God is fatal. If you dont
know who Jesus is, youll never get why He came. This man saw Jesus at the
top of the morality ladder. He thought Jesus was there to teach him to be
good. He was wrong. Jesus was there to save him because he wasnt good.
Hed have known that if he had seen Him for who He was God in the flesh.

In President Reagans farewell address to the nation as he left office in 1989,

he told the true story from the early 1980s at the height of the boat people
people fleeing for their lives from Indochina in any little water craft they
could find. The carrier Midway was patrolling the South China Sea when an
observant sailor spotted a leaky, little boat on the horizon crammed with
refugees hoping to get to America somehow. The Midway sent a launch to
bring them to the safety of the ship. As the refugees made their way through
the choppy ocean, one spied the sailor standing on deck. He stood up and
called out to him, Hello, American sailor. Hello, freedom man!
Thats Jesus to every sinner. Hes the freedom God/man. He did not come to
burden us with further rules; He came to free us from the sin that separates us
from God. Hes not a moralist; Hes a Savior. This young man never got that;
it made all the difference. Had he realized he was face-to-face with God in the
flesh, hed have obeyed. But he got Jesus wrong, and left as lost as he came.
II.

He Got the Question Wrong (Asked what he could do, not what
Christ could do)
What must I do to inherit eternal life? Its the wrong question. It assumes
eternal life is a matter of doing something. Its the wrong question! Better he
had asked, How can I get eternal life? But he asked, What must I do?
So Jesus, like usual, went along with his assumption. You want to do? Okay.
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You know the commandments: Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do
not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother. Hows
that going for you? Are you keeping the law? And the guy was ready for
that question! Probably hoped for it. 21 And he said, All these I have kept
from my youth. I have my act together, Jesus. I have never violated even one
of those. Impressive! Some fault him as a hypocrite, saying no one is that
perfect. But I think he really meant it. He had done all of these outwardly!
But he had a tolerant view of sin. He was looking outside, forgetting God
looks on the heart. Jesus could have argued that point! But He doesnt go
there. He just says, Okay. Lets assume you really have kept all of these
commandments. But you still feel lost. Youve asked what further you must
do to be saved by doing. So let me tell you. One thing you still lack. Sell all
that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven;
and come, follow me. See, theres one last commandment relating to people.
Thou shalt not covet. Heres your test on that one. Sell all you have and give
it to the poor. If you want to be saved by doing, thats next on the list.
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Dead silence! There was no argument. No disagreement. No theological

discussion. Just dead silence. 23 But when he heard these things, he became
very sad, for he was extremely rich. You want to be saved by doing then
do. Jesus knew he couldnt do it. He knew he couldnt do it and thats
exactly where Jesus wanted him to be. You want to be saved by doing
something. So do this. I know you cant and you know you cant. So confess
it. Throw yourself on Gods mercy. Its not what you can do for God; its
what He is going to do for you thru Me. Youve asked the wrong question.
Its not what you can do for Me. Its what I can do for you. Thats what
Jesus was trying to get him to see. But He never got that. He still wanted to do
something. And when he couldnt do what was required, he went away
heartbroken but not repentant. So close yet so far.
Philip DeCourcy told of his pastor in NI who knew a young sailor who had
been at sea for the first time for many months. He missed family desperately.
So on the day they arrived he couldnt wait for the ship to dock. When it got
close enough, he jumped toward the dock. But just as he leaped an outgoing
wave moved the ship and his jump was short. He grabbed the dock, but just
then an incoming wave pushed the huge ship against him and he was crushed
between ship and dock. When they told his mother she began to weep softly:
So near, and yet so far. Thats the rich young ruler. So near yet so far. Right
place, right person, right message yet he turned away from grace.
This is where moralism always leads. Anyone trying to be good enough for
God is doomed. It cant be done. The gospel is good news, not good works.
Someone asked Martin Luther what we contribute to our salvation. Luther
replied, Sin and resistance! Sin and resistance! All the goodness we could
ever muster amounts in the end to nothing but sin and resistance. This man
was so close, but in the end, he resisted the grace of God in favor of what he
could do and went away more lost than when he came.
III.

He Got the Answer Wrong (Followed his idol, not Christ)

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When Jesus heard this, he said to him, One thing you still lack. Sell all that
you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and
come, follow me. Before we look at this, let me ask you, what would you do
if Jesus asked you to do this? Your answer is a gigantic clue to whether you
are really a Christian or not. A professor or a true possessor of eternal life.
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What is Jesus doing here? Is poverty the one thing this man lacks? Is that what
would give him eternal life? Dont think so. Money, in and of itself does not
keep people from Christ. Abraham was rich but saved. David was rich, but a
man after Gods own heart. Joseph of Arimathea was wealthy, but a disciple.
Ananias was free to do what he wanted with his money; problem was, he lied.
Zacchaeus voluntarily gave half of his goods to the poor, and Jesus said,
Today salvation has come to this house (Lu 19:9). Jesus does not routinely
tell people Get rid of all your money. So why with this young man?
It was a test -- a hard test, but a revealing test. This mans problem is not his
money; it was his love of money. Jesus knew that. And he desperately wanted
this young man to see that. It wasnt his money, it was his love of money that
was the problem. Money was what he lived for. It was what made life
worthwhile. It was what gave him value. Its what he worshipped -- which
means money was his idol. He was trying to have Jesus and money, too.
Two gods for the price of one, and it wont do. It never has and never will.
Remember how the Israelites used to hang onto Jehovah, but they also
worshipped Baal? Elijah forced a great contest see which God can bring fire
down from heaven. Which God can really save. Its all there in I Kings 18.
The prophets of Baal tried everything prayed, cried, cut themselves but no
fire! Elijah mocked from the sideline. Louder, guys! Maybe hes sleeping, or
maybe hes watching television. Maybe hes gone to the bathroom. Louder.
But there was no fire until Elijah prayed a simple 2-verse prayer and fire fell
on a water-soaked altar and consumed it. And Elijah said, How long will you
go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him;
but if Baal, then follow him. You gotta choose, Folks. You cant have it
both ways. Is it Baal or is it God?
Jesus said the same thing in Mt 6:24 No one can serve two masters, for either
he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and
despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. For your sake, there
can only be one Top Dog in your life. Is it God, or Baal? Is it money, or Me?
You cant have it both ways. You cant hang on to Me with one hand and
money with the other. I wont go there. I dont do equal time with idols!
Jesus is bringing this man face-to-face with reality we must all face sooner or
later. Is it your idol, or is it Jesus? Look how Jesus urges him, Give up your
idol and come, follow me. Please choose me. But faced with this eternityaltering decision, Mark 10:22 gives the tragic outcome: 22 Disheartened by
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the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. He went
away.
Of course everyone always wants to know, would Jesus have really made him
sell everything? You know what? It doesnt matter. He had to be willing and
he was not. Jesus test showed his real heart, and he had an idol. He wasnt as
good as he thought. In fact he wasnt good at all. Claiming he kept the law
perfectly he was not only in violation of the last commandment, You shall
not covet, he was in violation of the very first commandment: You shall
have no other gods before me (Exod 20:3). He loved money more than God.
Thus he got the answer wrong. He followed his idol instead of Jesus.
And, as always, his idol destroyed him. Idols look so good whether its a
relationship, money, ambition, achievement, miracles if it comes before God
it always destroys. This guy completely short-changed himself. You say,
Well, he did get to enjoy his money for a few years. Right. Far as we know,
he did. But is that what you want? Look what he missed. Jesus always gives
more than He asks. Look whats hidden right in the middle of v. 22: Sell all
that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in
heaven. This guy would have had to give up a fortune here but in return
hed have gotten treasure in heaven forever. Remember this was a real
person. Perhaps he enjoyed his wealth for the next 40 years. But think on this
hes now been 2,000 years and counting outside the presence of God, with
nothing. He gave up forever to get now. He got the answer wrong, Beloved.
Conc So, do you have good intentions this morning? Great. But the road to
hell is paved with good intentions. The question is, do you have Jesus? Let
me close with a modern version of his story.
Derek Thomas is a pastor who met a girl while they were going to a university
together. She became attracted to the lives and witness of some Christians on
campus, began to investigate the claims of Christ and eventually made a
profession of faith. Good intentions abounded. She saw her need, sought help,
came to Christ, accepted Him as God and prayed to accept Him. Then she
went home for break. Her family was appalled by her decision. They argued
most of the time she was home. As a last resort, her father pulled her aside and
said, Honey, youre about to graduate. You put aside all this fanatic
religious stuff and Ill buy you a house. Wow! What would you do? She
took the house. She traded treasure in heaven for a house. Did she lose her
salvation? No she never had it. So close, yet so far. All her fathers offer did
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was reveal the idol that had always been there. And Jesus doesnt do double
occupancy, Beloved. Let me urge you, forget good intentions get Jesus. Lets
pray.