Critical Analysis of "The Rich Young Man"
Uploaded by srheric on Apr 23, 2007
Critical Analysis of "The Rich Young Man"
The Rich Young Man is a story about a young man who is attempting to reach the kingdom of God. The young man asks Jesus what he needs to do in order to gain eternal life. Jesus simply tells him to follow the Commandments. They are you shall not kill, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, you shall not defraud and honor your father and your mother. The young man, being a virtuous man, states he in fact has followed these laws since he was young. In that Jesus turns to the young man and tells him that there is one thing he is missing in order to gain eternal happiness. Jesus tells him that he must give away all his worldly possessions to the poor and follow him. With this the young man grows sad because he is very rich and has much to give up. With this Jesus turns to his disciples and says, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” He then continues and states, “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” At the end of the passage Jesus says something very important which is restated many times throughout the gospels. He says, “But many that are first will be last, and the last will be first.
In the gospel story according to Mark, the rich man calls Jesus “good teacher.” Jesus responds to this reference by asking the man why he refers to him as good because in fact only God is good. There is a similar passage located in the book of Matthew 19, 16-17. In it the same rich man asks Jesus what good he must do in order to gain eternal life. Jesus tells him, “Why do you ask me about the good? There is only One who is good.” Both passages show that God is the only one who is good. It is not capable for humans to achieve salvation but it is up to the goodness of God to present us with the gift of everlasting life. Without the...