Mt 19:16-22
16Someone approached [Jesus] and said, “Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?” 17He answered him, “Why do you ask me about the good? There is only One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18He asked him, “Which ones?” And Jesus replied, “ ‘You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; 19honor your father and your mother’; and ‘you shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 20The young man said to him, “All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?”
21Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to [the] poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
If You Wish to be Perfect... Jesus initially meets the inquirer on his Jewish self-righteous terms. The young man proudly claims that he has kept the commandments concerning morality and just conduct with fellow human beings. He considers these as basics which must be surpassed and thinks there is still something to gain. Jesus drops a bombshell on him. If there is such a thing as perfection or apex of maturity as regards religion, then it involves renunciation of property and wholehearted acceptance of Jesus’ radical lifestyle. From the terms of gaining, Jesus shifts the emphasis on not gaining material possessions in view of the evangelical demands.
To enter into life, that is, to be on perfect terms with God, the disciple must be on right terms with Jesus and his gospel. One should concern oneself not with strict observance of Judaism’s commandments but with existential relations with Jesus. The young man who claims to have observed the commandments is exposed as one who has no heart for the essential commandment of loving God wholeheartedly.