How Good is Good Enough?
Do you consider yourself to be a
good person? Most people do. However, most of us differ as to the
definition of "good." The Bible says that God is good, and the Ten
Commandments are His standard of goodness. So, we will look at God's Law
. With a tender conscience; ask yourself if you have obeyed the
following:
1. You shall have no other gods
before Me. (Have you always loved God above all else?)
2. You shall not make yourself an
idol. (Have you made a god in your mind that you're more comfortable
with, a god to suit yourself?)
3. You shall not take God's name in
vain. (Have you ever used God's holy Name as a cuss word?)
4. Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep
it holy.
5. Honour your father and mother.
6. You shall not murder. (God
considers hatred to be as murder).
7. You shall not commit adultery.
("Whoever looks upon a woman to lust after her has committed adultery
with her already in his heart" — Matthew 5:27-28;).
8. You shall not steal. (Have you
ever stolen anything? — the value of the item is irrelevant).
9. You shall not lie. (Have you lied
even once? Including answering these questions).
10. You shall not covet. (Have you
ever jealously desired what belongs to others?)
Do you know the ultimate purpose of God's law? Jesus
Christ defined the purpose of God's law as teaching us how to apply the
two great principles of loving God and loving each other. He made this
clear when someone asked Him, "Teacher, which is the greatest
commandment in the law?" How did Jesus respond? "'You shall love the
LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your
mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like
it: 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two
commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:35-40).
God Himself made a way where His
justice and His goodness could meet. We broke the Law, but He became a
man to pay the fine. Jesus suffered and died on the cross to satisfy the
Law. God can forgive us and grant us the gift of everlasting life! But
you may still think that you can (from now on) keep the Ten
Commandments. But isn't it true that the best of us have lied, stolen,
lusted, hated, failed to love God above all else, and failed to love our
neighbour as ourselves?
Jesus Christ offers a cure for us.
Forgiveness of sins and eternal life. But if we don't know we are
sinners, we can't appreciate or accept the cure. In the Bible, in the
book of Romans Paul tells us, "There is none righteous, not even one:
there is no one that understands, no one who seeks God" (3: 10-11 ).
The only thing we can do is humble
ourselves, repent of our sins, and receive the gift of salvation by
trusting Jesus Christ alone. Almighty God demonstrated how much He loves
you when Jesus suffered for you on the cross. If you want to trust in
your own goodness, then you are saying His agonizing death on the cross
was in vain. The Bible says, "For by grace are you saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God." You cannot earn a
gift.
That
brings us to a decision about what to do with the good news? "God commended His love toward us, in that,
while we were yet sinners Christ died for us." Jesus Christ took your
punishment, then He rose from the dead and defeated the grave. That’s
good news because if you repent and trust Him, God will forgive you and
grant you everlasting life. What better news could there be!!
If you would like to accept the invitation to receive Jesus Christ as
your Saviour, Pray this pray: "I repent Lord Jesus I know that I am a
sinner. I believe that You died on the cross and shed Your blood to pay
the penalty for my sins. Please forgive me and come into my life. I
confess that you are my Saviour and Lord."
Chaplain Mike
