“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
EARNING ONE’S PLACE IN HEAVEN
I was watching the well-known preacher, Charles Stanley, on TV.
And he made such a good point about salvation I just had to share it with you.
It centered around earning one’s place in Heaven versus accepting God’s free gift through Jesus Christ.
And I never quite heard it put this way.
But he talked about the whole “works” mentality.
That’s where men and women try to be good enough by doing things like following the Ten Commandments, being nice to people, never hurting anybody, obeying the law, etc., etc.
These types believe they don’t need a Savior since they do just fine on their own.
How could they not be accepted in Heaven?
SO WHY DID JESUS HAVE TO DIE ON THE CROSS?
That’s where Stanley pointed something out that I just thought was so cool.
He said (my paraphrase), “So why did Jesus have to die on the cross then if it could be done another way?”
He went on, “And if it could be done another way, then God the Father is some brute treating His Son like that and making Him go through such humiliation.”
Makes sense.
If salvation could be attained through “works,” then what Jesus did was a waste.
It wasn’t needed.
It wasn’t worth anything.
CALLING GOD A LIAR
Furthermore, Stanley would add how people who think they can gain a place in Heaven on their own, they’re in essence calling God a liar for saying that it can only be done through Christ.
Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me,” but He’s really just fibbing since there’s another way to get to Him by “works.”
And so God’s a liar and a brute now! – along with Jesus really didn’t need to die after all.
THE HEIGHT OF ARROGANCE
And so we find that thinking you can be good enough on your own to be saved is really nothing short of the height of arrogance.
I’m sorry to say that the only Heaven these who think like this will find themselves in after this life is through is the one where there is no God or Christ.
(Icon of the Crucifixion, showing all of the Five Holy Wounds picture file above is in the public domain: click here.)
You might also be interested in:
- Father,forgive them;for they do not know what they are doing (Last Sayings of Jesus – Part 1)
- My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? (Last Sayings of Jesus – Part 4)
About Pastor Mike
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