Ask most people whether they think they’ll go to heaven, and you’ll typically hear some version of, “I hope I’m good enough to make it!”
But if we’re really serious about getting there, then wouldn’t it be helpful to discover exactly how good “good enough” actually is? I mean, this is eternal heaven and hell we’re talking about – it’s the last thing we should leave up to “guess work,” right?
So, how good did Jesus say one had to be to enter heaven?
In Matthew 5:48, He said, be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
In I Peter 1:16, God says, Be ye holy, for I am holy.
Wait a minute – the only folks going to heaven are those as infinitely holy as God the Father Himself? But who could ever be that good?
Even the apostles were confused over that one! Later when Jesus described salvation, they asked, who then can be saved? And Jesus frankly told them, With men, this is impossible.
Even Moses, holy as he was, could not survive one look upon God’s unveiled face. The intensity of infinite holiness would consume any sinful mortal.
Men like Job, Isaiah and John, some of the holiest people in the Bible, fell terrified before His presence. They knew they were not infinitely holy before Him.
So how terrified should the rest of us be? Being as holy as God Himself is an all or nothing thing. “God doesn’t grade on a curve.”
And that’s why Jesus said that for men to live holy enough for heaven is impossible.
But then He added, with God, all things are possible.
Because if you can’t live as infinitely holy as God the Father yourself, then your only other option is to find someone who could live as infinitely holy as God Himself, and then switch places with Him!
And that is exactly what Jesus entered this world and went to the cross to do. He Who knew no sin, became sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him – II Corinthians 5:21.
At Calvary, Jesus took all of our sin and its infinite penalty, and He offers to give you all of His righteousness and its infinite blessings. He offers you a “cosmic exchange.” Have you accepted the deal?
The bumper sticker is right – “God doesn’t grade on a curve... but on a cross.”
If you’ve never trusted Christ’s death to pay for your sins, and His resurrection to raise you to new life as well, then why not just bow your heart before God right now and tell Him something like this:
“God, be merciful to me, a sinner. I believe Christ died for my sins on the cross; I believe He rose to give me victory over death; I trust His sacrifice to pay for my pardon; I repent of my sins; I receive Your forgiveness by faith. I trust Your grace to deliver my soul on the Judgment Day.
Amen!
James Lyons is the pastor of Camp Creek Baptist Church in Cornelia.