The gospel according to Jesus as understood by MacArthur and Chantry, as well as a host of other commentators, is that Jesus framed the gospel message in a call for committed discipleship, surrender to the Lordship of Christ, and repentance of (turning from) sin. Only on these terms do I offer any salvation or life. Bow your will to my commandments for I am your King. Submit your mind to my teachings for I am the Great Prophet. I will give you eternal life is you come and follow me. Chantry sees the account of the right young ruler as “a vivid instance of the elements essential to Gospel preaching which are found everywhere in the New Testament.” 7 He goes on to paraphrase Jesus’ challenge to the young man: Salvation is only for those who are willing to give Christ first place in their lives. No matter what points of doctrine he might affirm, because he was unwilling to turn from what else he loved most, he could not be a disciple of Christ. He had to choose between his possessions and Jesus Christ. If we could condense the truth of this entire passage into a single statement, it would be Luke 14:33: “So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.” MacArthur’s understanding of the gospel according to Jesus is as follows: If there was ever a place to look for a straightforward presentation of the gospel according to Jesus, we would expect it here. There we read of a young man who asks in the clearest possible terms how he can lay hold of eternal life. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come, follow Me.

One thing you lack…Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.

If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven and come, follow me. The View that Jesus Presented the Gospel to the Rich Young RulerĪ number of writers and commentators particularly identify the following words as a clear presentation of the gospel by Jesus which, if followed, will result in the hearer obtaining eternal life.Hence, he is typically referred to as the Rich Young Ruler. Matthew alone mentions him as young only Luke states that he was a ruler 4 but all three Synoptic Gospels recognize that he was wealthy. Both actions speak readily of his enthusiasm and sincerity. 3 A man ran to Jesus and knelt before Him (Mark 10:17). This presentation is based primarily on parallel accounts in the Synoptic Gospels of a certain incident that took place as Jesus was entering Judea for the last time and heading towards the cross (Matt 19:16-26 Mark 10:17-22 and Luke 18:18-27). This article will also explore two alternative interpretations: that Jesus was merely demanding proof from the young man that he was truly saved, 1 or that Jesus showed the RYR that he fell short of God’s standard and that He showed the disciples that sacrificial discipleship results in eternal rewards. Jesus’ encounter with the rich young ruler was used prominently by the author in defense of his thesis that to be saved one must yield everything to the Lord Jesus.ĭid the rich young ruler (RYR) hear the gospel according to Jesus? Did he hear the “good news” of the gospel, or did he receive nothing but “bad news”? Did he hear the message of grace, or did Jesus minister the law to him so that he might be prepared to receive the message of grace at a future date? A book by that name was published a decade ago. The gospel according to Jesus has been a hot topic since the first century (cf.

Rich young ruler