I've Kept All These Laws - Luke 18:21

The beloved physician Luke wrote how, “a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why do you call me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. You know the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and your mother”, and in chapter eighteen and verse twenty-one of his book Luke wrote how the ruler tells Jesus, “all these I kept from my youth up” where we read:

And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.

The verse reads, “And he said, ...” Luke began with the words, “and he” or “and the ruler” “said” which means “uttered, declared and proclaimed” the following words. Luke shared how the “certain ruler” began to respond to Jesus' statement concerning the “commandments”.

The verse continues, “... All these have I kept from my youth up.” Luke added the words, “all these” or “each, every, the whole and everyone of the commandments listed by Jesus” “have I kept” which means “have I, the certain ruler, guarded, kept watch over, protected and observed” “from my youth up” or “from the time when the certain ruler was a child until the current time”. Luke shared how the “certain ruler” claimed that he had observed every one of the laws listed by Jesus from the time he was a child to the present time.

When we meditate upon Luke's words in this verse, we learn how the “certain ruler” believed he had “kept and watched over” the laws listed by Jesus from the time he was a child. There are many people who believe themselves to have “kept God's commandments” relating to other people, and therefore, they have no need for God's Son Jesus to be their “Savior and Lord”. Jesus will respond to this “ruler” in our next verse, but suffice it for now to have every person reading these words examine themselves to discover whether they have truly “kept and watched over” the “commandments” of God. When they look both physically and spiritually at their words, actions and attitudes, they shall indeed discover their need for salvation from Jesus.

Next time Luke shares how Jesus tells the ruler, “yet lack you one thing: sell all that you have, and distribute unto the poor”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".