Did Jesus deny His deity in Matthew 19:17?

16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”

17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

Jesus was not denying His deity during his discourse with the rich young ruler (Matthew 19:16-22) but Jesus provided the rich young ruler an opportunity to receive eternal life by faith in Jesus as Messiah (Matthew 16:19-22). The young man approached Jesus asking what he “must do” to inherit eternal life and politely referred to Messiah Jesus as “good Teacher” (a Rabbi)…Jesus used this opportunity to provide the only true Path to Eternal LIFE which is belief-faith that Jesus is indeed Messiah – God – Elohim – our Creator. Jesus essentially asked the young if he was calling Jesus Deity…Elohim…Messiah…did the young man see and acknowledge the Truth of Messiah standing before him…did the young man know Jesus as the Christ just as Peter had confessed Jesus as the Messiah (Matthew 16:13-20)?

The young man did not acknowledge Jesus as Messiah; therefore, Jesus offered the young man what was and continues to this day as a prevailing false ideology relevant to earning one’s salvation through works of the flesh e.g. “keep the Commandments.” The young man insisted that he had indeed kept the Commandments at which time Jesus proceeded to prove to the young man that he had failed to keep the Greatest Commandments by offering the young man another opportunity to receive eternal life by “faith” as Jesus commanded the young man to sell all that he had, distribute his wealth to the poor, come and “Follow ME!” Unfortunately, the young man loved his wealth more than Elohim as the young man walked away sad having made an idol out of his wealth thereby violating the greatest Commandments to honor no god but Elohim; to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind; to eschew the worship of idols; to love your neighbor as yourself.

Jesus was NOT denying His deity before the young rich ruler but Jesus offered the young man no less than two opportunities to receive eternal life by “faith” in Jesus as his Messiah. No one inherits eternal life through works of the law or striving in self-righteousness; this truism was first demonstrated for humanity in Genesis 3:21 as Elohim rejected Adam’s attempt to cover his sin and shame with fig leaves (the works of his hands) yet Elohim shed innocent blood, Himself, and clothed Adam and Eve in an imputed-gifted robe of righteousness; Jesus did this very thing for all of humanity at Golgotha and that imputed robe of righteousness is received by faith, not works (2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 2:16).