Matthew 19:16-26
Sometimes people read Yeshua’s response to the rich young ruler and act like Yeshua was telling him to do something impossible to inherit eternal life, so that the young man would just “look to Yeshua and be saved.” This is called reading much later Protestant-development in doctrine back into the text of the Matthew’s gospel; it’s an anachronism.
The young man asked about inheriting eternal life. Yeshua gave him a point-blank answer: keep the commandments. The understanding is that in order to enter into life (eternal) you must live a faithful life. The word “keep” in “keep the commandments” doesn’t mean sinless perfection, but a guarding, protecting, and loving of the commandments.
It’s similar to how a good husband and wife know each other will not be flawless, but they still expect each other to be faithful. There’s a lot of mercy and forgiveness even in a great marriage… but, if both parties are set on doing their duties, the marriage will last. If, however, someone constantly and unrepentantly disrespects their spouse, or decides, “I’m done with this marriage, I want to do my own thing” the marriage ends; there is a tipping point. The Greek word for a certificate of divorce is apostation, which is related to and where we get the word apostasy (variations are used in Acts 21:21 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3). A person can depart from the faith just like a person can get divorced from a marriage.
So long as we walk with Yahweh in penitent faithfulness, He understands we are but dust (Psalm 103). He forgives us when we approach Him in humility, asking for forgiveness, but He is not obligated to forgive you when you walk away from Him and continue in sin with no remorse. That’s not guarding or loving His commandments, that’s ignoring His commandments.
The rich, young ruler’s problem? He lacked one commandment (Matthew 19:20-21 compared with the parallel in Mark 10:21). He had a problem giving to the poor which is a weighty command in Torah. Yeshua loved this young man (Mk. 10:21), so he told him to sell his possessions and give to the poor (following Yeshua’s example). Exodus 22:22-24 says Yahweh’s anger burns against a person who neglects a widow or fatherless child, so much so that Yahweh would turn around and kill a person who did such. Giving to the poor is also seen in Exodus 22:25-27 and Deuteronomy 15:1-18. Contrast this with the response Zaccheus gave to Yeshua in Luke 19:8, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor, and if I have extorted anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.” Did Jesus look at him and say, “You legalist, why are you trusting in your own works?” No, Yeshua looked at him and said, “Today salvation has come to this house.”