When I was a toddler, I had extremely curly hair. It was hard to brush or style. My mother frequently quoted this rhyme to me: “There once was a little girl who had a curl in the middle of her forehead. When she was good, she was very, very good. When she was bad, she was horridâ€.
I wanted to be very, very good. I worked to earn my parent’s love. Of course, I didn’t need to try to earn something that was always mine. And, I often failed in my efforts to be good, anyway.
I believe that this same principle applies in our relationship with God. I often find myself trying to earn God’s love by being “good enoughâ€. Jesus said in Luke 18:19: “So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, Godâ€. And, in Romans 3:23: “for all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of Godâ€.
When people are asked if they think they will go to Heaven when they die, they frequently answer that they think they will if they are good enough. I have heard people reply that they think they have done enough good things to outweigh the bad things.
There is no way we can be “good†enough to earn our Salvation! Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.â€
Jesus gave His life, shed His blood on Calvary, rose on the third day, and sits on the right hand of God, interceding for us. That is the only way that we can get into Heaven. We need to accept Him and the gift He offers us. There is only one way to Heaven and that is through Jesus Christ. We can’t buy our way in, we can’t work our way in, and we can’t earn our way in by being “good enoughâ€.
I pray that you have found the way to Eternal Life. It is only by accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord. If you haven’t done it yet, do it right this minute!