How good?

"How good is Good Enough?" Can a man or woman be "good enough" to enter heaven? This is a legitimate question, is it not? Certainly someone who minds his own business, does his own work, helps the seniors on his block, gives to charity on a regular basis, works in his community lodge, and attends church on Christmas and Easter is going to get into heaven. Right? No, it's impossible to get into heaven on good works alone. The problem is this. When does one know that one has reached the acceptable "good works" standard for heaven? And is it ever possible in this life to know what "good" is? I don't think so. "Good works" are relative and not an absolute assurance of entry into heaven. Listen to this. Jesus had a conversation with a wealthy young man one-day who wanted to know if he could get into heaven by keeping the 10 Commandments. It seemed that the young man was sincere. But actually he was more interested in boasting his behavior, rather then seeking heaven's entrance. The Bible story concludes by saying that the young man left sorrowful and sad. Jesus presented a penetrating question to the young man. The question exposed the young man's heart. Jesus told him to give up his wealth and give his money away to the poor. The man left sad because he couldn't let go of his wealth. That's really the essence of getting into heaven. It's not what we do to get into heaven; it's what we refuse to give up that keeps us from getting there. Jesus said that unless a man (or woman) denied himself, he could not get into heaven. He could not receive eternal life. You see the Bible teaches that no person is "good." No one is good enough to appease the demands of a Holy God and obtain His salvation from eternal death (second death). That's why the Bible says that God sent His only begotten Son, the God-man to stand in place for sinful man. Jesus paid the penalty for man's relative goodness, which falls short of God's glory. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice for sin. Jesus appeased the demands of the Father by His death. If one wants to enter heaven, one must come to Jesus. Jesus is more that a historical figure. He's a living person. If you call on him, he will make you right for salvation. He will save your soul. He will get you into heaven. I'm banking on this. How about you? Keep the faith. Stay the course. Jesus is coming soon! Pastor T.