“There’s No One Answer”

Luke 10: 25: “And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, ‘Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’” When a rich young ruler asked Jesus this same question some time later (Luke 8: 18-23, Matthew 19: 16-26, Mark 10: 17-27), Jesus gave a totally different answer: “Go and sell everything you have.” And He gave His answer to this lawyer’s question to a totally different question concerning the greatest commandment (Mark 12: 28-34, Matthew 22: 34-40). No, the Evangelists weren’t confused, and it wasn’t a case of situation ethics. Jesus just knew men enough (John 2: 24-25) to know what they were really asking, and knew the answer they needed to hear.