Are You Good Enough?

I have entitled our message this morning “Are You Good Enough?” And the question for us to consider today is this: “Is anyone good enough to go to heaven?” An article from the Los Angeles Times says, “An overwhelming majority of Americans continue to believe that there is life after death and that heaven and hell exist . . . [and] nearly two-thirds think they are heaven-bound. On the other hand, only one-half of one percent said they were hell-bound.”(1) You see, most people believe they are going to heaven when they die, and they base their conclusion on being a morally good person.

One time when I was trying to witness to a non-Christian, he said, “I know I’m going to heaven when I die. I’m a good person. I would give you the shirt off my back if you needed it,” and there is no doubt in my mind that he would; but would that really get him to heaven? I once sat in the home of an elderly church member and listened to her tell me, “All that really matters is that you have a sincere heart in whatever religion you worship, and that you do good things for others. I go to church and help people in need, so I know I’m going to heaven when I die.” But, let me ask you again, “Is anyone really good enough to go to heaven?” Well, let’s look at the Bible and find out!

Are We Really Good Enough? (vv. 16-17a)

16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” 17(a) So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.”

We see here “what seemed to be an earnest young man who came running to [Jesus]. The man humbly knelt down, complemented Jesus on being ‘good,’ and asked how he could obtain everlasting life,”(2) obviously thinking eternal life must be related to someone being good. So, let me ask you something? “Would you consider yourself to be a good person?” I think most of us would, and there are a lot of people who believe they will go to heaven simply by being good. In verse 16, the young man asked Jesus, “What good thing shall I do?” When we consider ourselves, by whose standard are we measuring our goodness? Are we good enough, and are we willing to bet our life on it?

Notice that Jesus corrected this young man concerning the word “good.” He said, “No one is good but One, that is, God” (v. 17). His reply seems kind of strange, because if anyone were good it was certainly Jesus. He was the incarnation of God Himself (John 1:1, 14), and He was perfect and lived a sinless life. Hebrews 4:15 says that Jesus “was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” Jesus later died on the cross as a sacrifice, as the perfect Lamb of God, to pay the penalty for the sins of all mankind. He could do this because He was without sin. I don’t know about you, but it seems to me that being without sin would certainly make Jesus a good person.

We need to keep in mind, however, that Jesus was more than good; He was righteous. Perhaps, because righteousness seems akin to goodness, Jesus could have let this man’s acknowledgement slide without getting technical; but Jesus didn’t want the young man to relate salvation and eternal life to one’s goodness. He didn’t want him to be fooled and led astray, and so He began shifting his focus toward the truth. The truth is that no one is good enough, and no one can make it to heaven through their own goodness; and we will discover this truth as we continue along in the Scripture.

The True Standard is the Law (vv. 17b-20)

17(b) “But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18 He said to Him, “Which ones?” Jesus said, “You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, 19 honor your father and your mother, and,you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?”

This young man’s “earnest and humble heart would seem to make him a prime candidate as a potential convert. Modern evangelism would give this man the message of God’s love and have him pray a ‘sinner’s prayer’ . . . [but that is] not what Jesus did in such a case. He didn’t [immediately] share the message of God’s grace. Instead, He reproved the man’s understanding of the word ‘good’ by opening up God’s standard of goodness,”(3) and God’s standard of goodness is the Law; or simply put, the Ten Commandments.