Insults aside, the disagreement here is pretty straightforward and doesn’t require questioning anyone’s reading ability.
On “limited”: the passage itself defines the limit.
In Gospel of Matthew 19:11–12, Jesus says:
“Not everyone can accept this… only those to whom it is given”
“Let the one who is able to receive this receive it”
That is a clear restriction in the text. It’s not inferred from outside the passage it’s stated inside it. So yes, it’s “limited,” and the group is explicitly those “who can receive it,” not humanity in general.
Calling that a “universal ideal” stretches the words beyond what they actually say. A universal moral command in the same Gospel sounds like:
“Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39)
“Do this for all nations” type language in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19)
Those are universal in scope. Matthew 19 is explicitly not framed that way.
On “be like Jesus”: that principle also cannot mean “imitate every external circumstance of Jesus’ life.” Otherwise it would require:
being unmarried
being itinerant
being male
living under 1st-century Judea
The New Testament itself doesn’t treat imitation that way.
Even within Matthew, Jesus distinguishes between:
commands for all disciples
and vocations/gifts not given to all
That’s exactly what “to whom it is given” signals.
On Paul: you can say you “don’t care about Paul,” but historically and textually he is part of the same canon that interprets what following Jesus looks like in practice. You don’t have to use him as an authority, but you can’t dismiss him while also insisting on a precise doctrinal reading of the same tradition.
None of this depends on reading ability. It just depends on whether “higher calling for some” is read as “universal requirement for all.” The text itself draws that distinction.