Do you know that good people don’t go to Heaven? Most people think if they live a good life, and do more good things than bad, they’ve got a pretty good chance of God giving them the nod and letting them in. But that’s not the way God works. God doesn’t let good people in. He only cares about one thing: What do you believe about Jesus?
Most everyone will agree that Jesus was a good person. Some believe He was a prophet. Others admit He was a compassionate teacher. But only those who trust in Him and believe He is God’s Son are going to Heaven.
Yes, that’s narrow-minded, but Jesus Himself said:
“You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose the easy way.” (Matt 7:13 NLT)
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6 NLT)
“Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved.” (John 10:9 NLT)
Before anyone can go into the presence of God, He requires a perfect sacrifice be made to take away that person’s sin. The nation of Israel sacrificed animals in their Temple for hundreds of years. But then Jesus came, and God’s plan changed.
Now instead of animals, Jesus is the sacrifice. He is the only person in history Who lived up to God’s perfect standard of living, and He died as the sacrifice to forgive every wrong thing we’ve ever done. Believing THIS is what God cares about.
Does it mean that your life won’t have problems? Definitely NOT. The world can be crazy and hard and bad, and things happen every single day that make us scratch our heads and wonder where in the world God could possibly BE in such a mess. Even though we can’t figure out what He’s doing, we can be sure that He’s doing something, and He will make sense of it all someday. We just have to trust Him and believe.
The prayer is easy:
Lord, I know I’m a sinner and will never have a perfect sacrifice. I can’t even do enough good things to balance the bad things. But I believe you sent Jesus to live the perfect life You require, and He sacrificed that perfect life so that I could be forgiven. I believe He died on the cross, rose from the grave and is sitting with You in Heaven right now.
Please forgive me for every wrong thing I’ve ever done, and help me to stop living to please ME and start living to please YOU.
Jesus died so we could live, and THAT is good news
(Thanks, Susan Stilwell)
