And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Luke 18:9
The Bible says in Romans 3:23,
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
Sin is the “transgression” or breaking of God’s law. The Bible declares that we are “all under sin” and that “there is none righteous, no, not one:” In fact, Jesus Christ said “there is none good but one, that is, God:” Our human “good” isn’t good enough.
The Bible says in Romans 6:23,
“For the wages of sin is death;”
The “wages” or payment for our sin is death: God’s justice demands a payment for sin.
We may desire Heaven but we deserve Hell.
The Bible says in Revelation 21:8,
“and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
In our flesh, we stand “guilty before God” and condemned “under sin.” Thankfully, God himself provides the way of salvation for the sinner.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
The Bible says in Romans 5:8,
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
God sent his only begotten Son Jesus Christ to be born of a virgin, live a sinless life, die on the cross for our sins, be buried and rise again from the dead. This is the good news!
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 says,
For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
The Lord Jesus Christ is God manifest in the flesh and He paid for all of your sins. He shed his blood on the cross as a payment for the sins of the world.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says,
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Notice, the Bible says that salvation is “not of yourselves” but rather it is “the gift of God”. Meaning, It’s God’s gift to give, not our reward to earn.
If I told you that I’m going to Heaven because “I’m a good person,” would you say that I’m trusting in Jesus or myself?
If I said that I’m going to Heaven because “I’ve been baptized” or “I go to Church”, would you say that I’m trusting in Jesus or myself?
What if I thought that I was going to Heaven because “I try to obey the commandments”, who am I trusting in?
The obvious answer is, MYSELF! I’m trusting in THE SINNER rather than THE SAVIOR.
The question was put forth in Acts 16:30, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” and the answer was “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved,”.
The one and only condition for salvation is faith in Christ:
That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:15
He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: John 3:36
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. John 6:47
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: John 11:25
And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? John 11:26
A sinner must trust in Jesus Christ and what He did ALONE to be saved. They must rely and depend upon His works to be saved, not their own.
Unfortunately, many trust in their own behavior rather than The Savior.
The Bible says in John 3:16,
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
The moment an individual places their faith in Christ to save them, they have “everlasting life”. They are eternally secure in the hand of God and can never lose their salvation.
John 10:28-29 says,
And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
If you come to God as a Hell bound sinner and believe on Christ, you’ll become a Heaven bound son!
John 1:12 says,
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
Friend, if you’re trusting in yourself, you’re trusting in a sinner who deserves Hell. What are you waiting for? You can receive eternal life right now, decide in your heart to trust Jesus Christ alone. Stop relying on what you do and place all of your faith on what he did.
If you’ve trusted in Jesus Christ, you can now confidently declare “I’m saved and on my way to Heaven”. Take a moment to thank God for giving you eternal life!
