How Good Is Good Enough for God?
Almost every world religion offers a pathway to heaven through good works and personal efforts. Some even include a list of sacraments: Holy rituals by which a person can merit salvation. But Christianity is different. According to the Bible, there’s only one way to know if you’re good enough for God, and it has nothing to do with what you can do.
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Before we look at what the Bible says, let’s do a quick survey of a few popular world religions…
Hinduism: Hinduism does not have a singular concept of salvation but rather multiple paths (yogas) that lead to spiritual liberation (moksha) from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth (samsara). These paths include devotion (bhakti), knowledge (jnana), and selfless action (karma yoga), among others. Salvation is achieved when an individual realizes their true self (atman) as one with the ultimate reality (Brahman). (Liberation depends on YOU.)
Buddhism: Salvation in Buddhism is the cessation of suffering and the cycle of rebirth, achieved through the elimination of desire and ignorance. In Buddhism, the goal is to attain enlightenment (nirvana) by following the Noble Eightfold Path, which includes principles such as right understanding, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. (Nirvana depends on YOU.)
Islam: In Islam, the plan of salvation involves belief in the oneness of God (Allah) and the prophethood of Muhammad. Muslims believe in living a righteous life according to the teachings of the Quran and the Hadith (sayings of Muhammad). Salvation is achieved through faith, repentance, and good deeds, with the ultimate reward being entry into paradise. Salvation in Islam is not guaranteed solely by faith or deeds but is ultimately dependent on the mercy and judgment of Allah. Muslims strive to live a life that is pleasing to Allah and to follow the teachings of Islam in the hope of attaining salvation in the afterlife. (Paradise depends on YOU.)
(Note: similarity with Mormonism. “Saved by grace after all we can do.”) - Don’t include this in sermon!
TRANS: So what does Christianity teach? To find that answer we need to look at one more world religion: Judaism. Jesus was Jewish. Christianity came out of Judaism. Understanding the link between those two religions, and specifically the key difference between them, will give us the insight we need to answer our question today. Let’s start with the words of Jesus from his famous Sermon on the Mount:
Perfection
Matthew 5:17 (NLT) “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.”
When Jesus talks about “the law and the prophets” he’s referring to Judaism. Here’s Judaism in a nutshell:
- God chose Abraham and made him some promises (Gen 12)
- God gave the 10 commandments to Moses - rules to live by in the land of promise they were about to enter.
- The people kept breaking the laws and failing to live right.
- Judges 21:25 (NLT) In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
In Mt 5 Jesus is basically saying: “There’s nothing wrong with the law; there’s something wrong with the people.” That’s why he said this:
Matthew 5:20 (NLT) “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”
Jesus goes on in the sermon to list examples in every area of life:
- You’ve heard “don’t murder,” but I say anger = murder in your heart
- You’ve heard “don’t adulterate,” but I say lust = adultery in your heart
- You’ve heard “the punishment must match the crime,” but I say turn the other cheek
- You’ve heard “love your neighbor,” but I say “love your enemy”
Then Jesus finishes the section with this crazy statement:
Matthew 5:48 (NLT) But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.
- So, how good is good enough? Perfection. Anything less won’t work.
The Pickle
This leaves us in a pickle. God requires perfection, but people are far from it. The Apostle Paul explained this clearly in his letter to the Romans:
Romans 3:20 (NLT) For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.
This is crazy: Paul used to be a Pharisee! He was one of those guys from the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus was talking about. He was trying to get to God through his own works. Here’s how Paul himself explained it:
Philippians 3:5-6 (NLT) I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
This next verse I want to use the NIV, because it helps us to calculate what Paul is trying to say:
Philippians 3:7 (NIV) But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
- (Pillar New Testament Commentary) The shift from plural gains to singular loss indicates that Paul is not giving different values to each of his assets, discounting them at different rates: some are marked down 50%; others down 90%. Because of Christ, Paul has counted up all of his assets and considered them to be one huge liability. After his conversion to Christ, Paul recalculates the value of all of the advantages of his family and his accomplishments, his social class and his moral achievements, and then he enters the new bottom line: they all add up to one overwhelming disadvantage, one huge loss.
- Paul was in the red… and then he met Christ
- Famous Mormon example of a dad buying bike for his kid?
The Gift
Here’s how Paul explained the math to the Ephesians:
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NLT) God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.
Think about the word “gift”. How much do you pay for it? Exactly nothing. Once you pay for it, it’s no longer a gift!
- Ex: Ross at the summer outreach event. Guy trying to pay for water bottle.
Two things about a gift:
- “None of us can boast about it.” - religious boasting
- We don’t have to wonder if we’ve done enough.
- Contrast with Islam: “Salvation in Islam is not guaranteed solely by faith or deeds…. Muslims strive to live a life that is pleasing to Allah and to follow the teachings of Islam in the hope of attaining salvation in the afterlife.”
- But they’ll never know for sure!!
Back to Romans for two more verses:
Romans 3:21-22 (NLT) But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law…. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.
So the Bible’s answer to the question “How good is good enough for God?” reveals the difference between Christianity and every other religion.
- Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam are all “works-based”– It’s about what YOU can do to reach enlightenment, earn nirvanah, become righteous.
- Christianity has a different message: YOU can’t do anything to save yourself. People have tried, and they’ve always failed!
- You’ll need the perfection of Jesus. You’ll only get that by faith.
