Why can't 'good' people get themselves to Heaven?
God is a loving God, surely he wouldn’t see someone who has been kind to their neighbours, brought up polite children and dunna lotta work for charidee sent to Hell?
Heaven is God’s home, and just like your home, there are rules. Love his son Jesus, repent of your sins, live your life as best you can to honour Him. Not too hard is it, even if you screw up the living to homour Him bit, he will forgive you! And you may enter His house.
But what about the type of ‘good’ person I mentioned earlier? I have a friend who won’t let anybody enter her house with their shoes on, (She’s a clean freak). I love her dearly but, her house, her rules. Think of the ‘nicest, goodest, sqeakiest, cleanest’ person you know, who you suspect may not be a Christian yet – if they went to the door of my friends house, they would have to remove their shoes, a really simple rule to enter her house.
Same person almost perfect, but as far as you’re aware they haven’t yet accepted Christ as their personal Saviour. They get to the door of Heaven, is God going to let them in? That will depend on their heart. God’s house, God’s rules. You say “oh they’ve definitely got a good heart, remember they do all the charidee work etc.”
Oh yes, who’s that glorifying? God? Or perhaps it is for their own glory, or for their organisation, or the charity they work for.
We are clearly told in Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast.
Seems unfair doesn’t it. God may turn you away from His house, because you didn’t accept His gift to you, you didn’t accept his grace and forgiveness. The easiest thing in the world for anybody to do, you were such a ‘good guy’ as well, what a waste.
If you agree it seems unfair, think about your own house, your own life, your own rules. It’s up to you who enters, and guaranteed there will be someone, somewhere, you wouldn’t admit to your house, so why should it be a free for all in God’s?
Of course it is free………… for all who are prepared to accept Him in their lives.
I must say Amen to that =)
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading!
ReplyDeleteSo true. We always have a hard time going by someone else's rules. But if you think about it, it's so amazing that God doesn't stand at the door of heaven like a bouncer and let us in based on an appearance of a good life. You can do a million good things and your heart still be far from God. But thankfully he looks at the heart.
ReplyDeleteWe often prefer a set of "good person" rules so that we don't have to risk the real relationship with Jesus. However we'll never live up to even our own standards- and then shame enters. God is actually saving us from ourselves.
Amen to that.
So true. We always have a hard time going by someone else's rules. But if you think about it, it's so amazing that God doesn't stand at the door of heaven like a bouncer and let us in based on an appearance of a good life. You can do a million good things and your heart still be far from God. But thankfully he looks at the heart.
ReplyDeleteWe often prefer a set of "good person" rules so that we don't have to risk the real relationship with Jesus. However we'll never live up to even our own standards- and then shame enters. God is actually saving us from ourselves.
Amen to that.
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