Are you good enough to enter heaven?

`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 neighbor as yourself' (Luke 10:27).

Are you good enough to get into heaven? Let’s take a short quiz and see what we find out.

God says that you should not be jealous of what other people have. He says that you are not allowed to tell lies, steal, or break promises. He says that you may not hurt anyone by what you say or do or fail to do. He demands that you show respect to your parents, your elders, and everyone in a position of authority. So my question to you is this: have you obeyed God in your dealings with others? Have you ever talked back to a teacher? Have you ever spoken a racial slur? Have you ever treated another person as a toy to satisfy your sexual urges? Have you ever cheated on a test? Have you ever been jealous because your best friend got to date the person you were interested in?

How did you do on the first part of our little quiz? But wait, we haven’t done part two yet. God says that you are to make time every week to get closer to Him. He says that you are to use His name respectfully. He demands first place in your heart and life. So my question to you is this: have you honored God with your life? Do you pray to Jesus every day, asking Him to forgive your mistakes, thanking Him for the good things you have, and asking Him to guide your decisions? Do you ever swear or curse using God’s name? Do you get so busy with other things that you forget about obeying God for hours or even days?

Our quiz is finished—so how did you do? My guess is, not so well. God expects a lot for entry into heaven—in fact, He expects perfect behavior. Sadly, perfection is something no one is capable of. None of us are good enough to deserve welcome into paradise. This is why we need Jesus. He forgives us for failing to be perfect. He lived the perfect life needed to enter heaven, and offers us the benefits of His perfect life if we cling to Him and follow Him. He helps us to sort through moral compromises; Jesus shows us what perfection looks like, and He gives us the desire to seek it at His side.

We will never achieve perfection this side of the grave, but when we are pledged to Jesus, He shares His perfection with us, guaranteeing a safe arrival in heaven.