The question is, can you see why I do?
I don't know.
Do you believe this man, had he permanently maintained the course he was then on, would have received eternal life? I do not. Why? Because he did not love God enough to receive eternal life. I understand that love toward God is best expressed through keeping his commandments in spirit and in truth. So IF (big if) the Restored Gospel is what it purports to be (which restoration is a revealtion of commandments) can a Christian reject it and still say he FULLY loves God? (Please don't interpret this question as some kind of challenge to evoke an endorsement or rejection of Mormonism... it is asked in an attempt to reconcile, if possible, what to me appears to be a significant difference of understanding between us, which reconciliation I understand may not occur at this time)
I'm sorry, somehow I missed seeing your post earlier.
I'm not sure that we can assume that if this man stayed on his present course, that everthing else would stay the same. I think that it is important in answering this to consider that in the account of this parable in the Gospel of Mark, chapter 10, that the following is included:
27Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God."
At this point in time Jesus had not yet suffered, died for our sins, and rose from the dead. That does matter.
It is also worth noting that although the man did not sell his property, he also did not heed Christ's invitation to, "Come and follow me."
21Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
I'm not sure that I would say that he failed to inherit eternal life because he did not love God enough, rather than he failed to follow Christ. I confess that I have failed to love God with all of heart, all of my soul, all of my heart, and all of my strength. I fall short. We all do. But if we put our faith in Christ, repent, and follow Him, He will forgive us, and we will inherit eternal life.
There are Christians who have rejected the LDS gospel who love God. Their love for God is not less because they are not LDS. I think that one way that we show God that we love Him is by loving others. And that transcends religious denominations.
1 John 4
7Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.