DOES THE BIBLE REALLY SAY ...

YOU HAVE TO BE GOOD ENOUGH TO GO TO HEAVEN?

Yes. But also no.

No one is personally ‘good enough’, and on that basis no one would be in heaven.

But God has provided a legally valid way by which we sinners are fully accepted by God without being personally ‘good enough’. As Paul wrote in Romans 4:5 ‘God acquits the wicked.’ And that is so incredible a statement that some people, especially those who think they are personally ‘good enough’, are quite offended by it.

The Bible says that we have to keep 100% of God’s law 100% of the time:

‘Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law’ – Galatians 3:10.

When a teacher of the law asked Jesus ‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus affirmed the man’s answer to his own question – that you have to ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and ‘Love your neighbour as yourself’ – Luke 10:25 – 28. Notice again the 100% standard.

Theoretically, if a person actually did that, that person would be qualified to enter heaven – to have eternal life. If a person could be ‘good enough’, that is 100% perfect 100% of the time, God would, in terms of his own justice, accept that person into heaven.

But, in practice, there is no such person. No one is that good; no one is ‘good enough’. No matter how much we strive, no matter how committed we are to being ‘good enough’, we will never, we can never, be declared ‘good enough’ by God, and allowed into heaven.

The Bible makes this very clear. For example:

Psalms 14:1 – 3; 53:1 – 3; Romans 3:10 – 18 – not a single person is good, not a single person is righteous.

Romans 3:20: ‘no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.’

Romans 3:23: ‘all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.’

1John 1:8, 10: ‘If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us... if we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.’

So there we have the plain truth of the matter: that yes, we have to be ‘good enough’ (that is 100% good) to get to heaven, but not one of us actually is that good. And not one of us actually can be that good.

And that’s why God sent Jesus.

Jesus, the eternal Son of God, came from heaven, became a real human being and lived a real human life, as our representative - perfectly. 100%. Jesus, dying our real human death as our substitute, in that death bore fully (100%) our sin and our guilt, along with condemnation, judgement and wrath due to our sins.

For those who believe in him, Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, our sin and guilt were debited to him; he bore our punishment in full, so much so that there is no condemnation left for us. His death as our substitute is reckoned ours. His perfect innocence/righteousness is reckoned ours. Because of Christ, in Christ, God reckons us 100% righteous – qualified to enter ‘heaven’, accepted by God today without limit and without fear of future rejection.

This is why Peter wrote:

‘For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God’ – 1Peter 3:18.

And Paul affirmed:

‘...giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light’ – Colossians 1:12.

‘But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation’ – Colossians 1:22.

So yes.

We do have to be ‘good enough’ to get to heaven. But it is never our personal goodness; it is always the righteousness of Christ graciously credited to us as sheer gift – ‘a righteousness from God, apart from law ...This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus’ – Romans 3:21 – 24.

We get to heaven, we have eternal life, not on the basis of personal merit – not because we are ‘good enough’, but solely because of God’s amazing grace – this gift of the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ.