Someone came to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to inherit eternal life?”

 

Someone came to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to inherit eternal life?” 17 Jesus answered, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 The man asked, “Which commandments?” Jesus answered, “You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, 19 honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to Jesus, “I have kept all these things. What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he was very rich.

—The Word of the Savior. Reflection The text above presents us with three things that we should think about and make a decision about: the first concerns the question asked by a “someone”: “Good Master, what must I do to gain eternal life?” First of all, it is important to point out that this someone, who has no name, is anyone who has the desire to conquer life according to God; he or she who wants to go further, who feels the desire for God within him or her and sets out on the path, but at the same time needs true guidance. Then, the adjective “good”, applied only to God, because it refers to the very essence of God, which is goodness, truth and life. Things and people can be seen as good, but in relation to the Creator, who is the GOOD and who, for this very reason, makes everything good or very good. Next, the term “master”, used here, with the purpose of revealing the true path to salvation. In this case, by calling Jesus the “Good Master”, the text points to His divine condition. The second point concerns the requirements for becoming a disciple of Jesus. It is necessary to practice the Lord's Commandments. It is interesting because the text does not mention the Commandments related to God, but only to one's neighbor. This does not mean that Jesus is abandoning some commandments; on the contrary, he is acting in such a way as to say that the Commandments related to God can only be lived if His disciples put into practice the good of others, because turning to God constitutes false religion when one despises one's neighbor. Furthermore, disregarding one's neighbor is pure subjectivism, individualism and fanaticism. In loving one's neighbor, we simultaneously reveal love for God. Disciples need to turn to the Lord not only through faith, but also, and precisely, through the exercise of charity and the defense of life. In a whole dedicated life, we find characteristics such as availability, solidarity and fraternity, indispensable virtues in the life of faith. The third point, typical of Mark’s text, which is the basis for the first two, is total detachment. Jesus demands, in addition to an absolute surrender of oneself, a firm and complete decision. Before stating the last requirement, Jesus looks at the person who approaches him, loving him without reservations. The verb “to look at” is the same as looking at the other person attentively, prioritizing him, taking him into account, reading him from within. Jesus loves him, that is to say: he finds in him the right intention, the sincere desire, the opposite of the hypocritical Pharisees, the will to win, but at the same time he perceives his weakness. It is at this moment that Jesus expresses his most profound demand: “Go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me!” What Jesus wants goes beyond the logic of the world, something that does not even seem to be of this world. It is something absolutely unusual in history. How is it possible to give up a lifetime of struggle, personal achievements, one’s dreams, and acquired wealth just to follow a “master,” someone who can not only engage an audience with his ideas, but actually bring down the entire “empire” of the world’s tyrannical logic? Man’s heart breaks when faced with Jesus’ proposal; his heart becomes sad when attached to the material world and, therefore, to himself. Only through great faith, in something extremely superior to everything, when Jesus Christ becomes the best project for life, will man be able to make such a change. Here is the great requirement for those who wish to be disciples: to be able to believe in Jesus not only as a Master, a spiritual Guide, a great man, the greatest of prophets, but, much more than that, it is necessary to believe in Him as Lord, true God and true man, not to replace Him with anything or anyone, believing that He is one with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and seeking to act in His way. Through such faith, it will be possible to be all for the good of others, making visible the passionate gaze towards heaven. A life that has truly found intimacy with the Son of God will never look at this world and its illusions with passion, attachment and reason for being.