All Good People Go to Hell

If the TV show, Family Feud had a question, "What do you have to do to get to heaven?", undoubtedly, the number one answer would be, 'you have to be a good person.' While giving that answer would mean that you were in agreement with most other people, you'd still be wrong.

Good people don't go to heaven. All of your 'good' friends, are headed for hell, unless you join the war and do something about it. Our misguided culture wants people to believe that if they are good, then they will go to heaven. Most people will tell you that good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell. That is what the devil wants us to believe. If we believe it is that simple, then we will rest on that principal and reject the truth.

Let's dissect that argument shall we. First, when we say 'good' people go to heaven, whose definition of 'good' are we using? People have different measures of good depending on their perspective. I'm sure some slave owners were thought of as 'good' people, by other slave owners. Maybe, someone should've asked the slaves. I'm sure some Nazi's were considered really 'good' guys, by other Nazi's. Maybe, someone should have asked a Jew. You understand my point. 'Good' is a very relative term, subject to very much interpretation, if you leave it up to us.

Then we should consider heaven. Who made it? Who does it belong to? Who decides who gets in? God, right? So if God decides who gets in, isn't he the one who sets the admission fee? You can believe it costs a dollar to get into Disney World all you want, but if that's all you have when you arrive at the gate, guess what?

So if God owns heaven, and he decides who gets in, what does he have to say about it? Don't think in human terms, because God is not human. First of all- God's definition of good is perfection, because he is perfect. Read the scriptures below:

Romans 3:10, “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.”
Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

Do all 'good' people go to heaven? Yes, if they are 'good' by God's standard. Who is good by God's standard? No one! Not I, not you, no one! Luckily, God made a way. Read the scriptures below.

John 11:25, “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 14:6, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
John 6:40, “And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

Since we are not good (God's standard) and can never make it to heaven on our own esteem, God made a way for us to get there anyway. Even though we don't deserve it, we cannot buy it, nor repay it, Jesus paid our admission fee.

But I am getting ahead of myself. By our human standards which are abysmally low, 'good' people should go to heaven. God says, no one is good. We have to look at ourselves through God's eyes and see ourselves as the wretched people we are. We have to humble ourselves and first understand our need to be redeemed before a God who demands perfection. When we can really see ourselves as the horrible, filthy, sinners we are, then we can accept the gift of salvation, through Jesus Christ.

If you ask someone if they are a 'good' person, and they say yes, chances are that person needs to meet Jesus. Christians know we are not good, not according to the standard that matters.

Brothers and sisters, if you are in the faith, then this is not news to you. But I promise, someone on your job, someone in your family needs to recognize their need for salvation. Some 'good' person out there will go to hell unless you share the good news with them.

Testing you own forgiveness

So I was flipping through channels....never a good thing.....and I hear someone on the TV say, "Hookers for Jesus." What?!! Who has the audacity to blaspheme the name of God? I had to find out.

It turned out, that "Hookers for Jesus" is the name of a ministry in Las Vegas that attempts to lead prostitutes to Christ by rescuing them from their lives and putting them in a a sort of halfway house. In this place they are protected, cared for, and exposed to the word of God. It is an utterly horrid name for a ministry, but I applaud the efforts of the ministry leader.

There was a young lady on the show who was attempting to reconnect to a boyfriend she had before becoming a prostitute. As she confessed to him what she had done, there was no anger on his face. There was no evidence of resentment, nor a loss of respect for her. He instantly forgave her. He stated on camera that he was considering marrying this young lady, even after the confession.

I am not sure if the young man was a Christian. It was never mentioned on the program. What I saw was a person who did an extremely Christ-like thing. He forgave her for what most men would consider an unforgivable act (or several unforgivable acts). I wondered at that point would most Christians be able to be that forgiving? Would I be able to be that forgiving?

Earlier the same day, my 5 year old son came to me out of the blue and apologized to me for being a little too loud. Then he asked me if I would forgive him. Of course I told him that I forgave him already, and I would always forgive him---but not to let it happen again (I had to add that part). He looked as if a weight was lifted from his shoulders, and I felt as if a weight was lifted from mine. Forgiveness seems to do that for us. My son was relieved, just like the young lady on the television. It does not matter the severity of the sin, forgiveness is necessary for healthy relationships.



Jesus has forgiven us all for our transgressions. He took the punishment we all deserve upon himself so that we can be in a righteous relationship with God. Jesus came because He understood that there can be no good relationship without true forgiveness. I am so thankful that I have been forgiven both by man and God. My transgressions are great and exceedingly abundant. The forgiveness I have received from God allows me to forgive others.

My earthly father would not be considered a very good one by any standards. It was a hard thing to forgive him for being absent from my life and present in the lives of other half-siblings. It was difficult to understand why he would choose them over me. By the grace of God I was able to cast that care upon the cross and leave it there. Some actions lead us closer to God. By forgiving others, I am able to grasp the awesome news that I have been forgiven. When I forgave and understood how hard it is to do so; I was able to gain insight into God's mercy---how great it is!

Brothers and Sisters, it is not too late right now, but one day it will be. One day you will be in eternity. You decide where you will spend it. Pray to God for forgiveness. Repent of your sins and learn from the master how to forgive others. It is an unfathomable experience.

Death of a Friendship

Brothers and Sisters, our friends are important to us. They are our support system, our confidants, our counselors, our partners against a hard cruel world. We love our friends, and we long to spend time with them. A good friend is a blessing. A true friend is more precious than gold.

Why then, should we consider ending any friendships? Because, brothers and sisters, sometimes we outgrow our friends. Sometimes, our relationships with our friends are poisonous to our own ascension into a more perfect life. Have you ever had a friend like that? Have you ever had a friend that you simply outgrew?

This culture was my friend for many years. I loved the music, the television, the movies, the parties, the self-worship, the idol worship, the clothes, the cars, the sports, the shopping, the over indulgence, the video games, the lewd books, the drama, the violence, and anything else I could use to entertain myself. Brothers and sisters, I was a friend to this world, this culture, for the entirety of my childhood, and many years of my adult life.

I was like most of the people around me, shallow, selfish, clueless, wicked, and bound for hell. My friend, this world, not only sanctioned my pitiable state, but encouraged it. My friend, whom I loved, wanted me to burn, and I was too blinded by the shine to see the truth.

When I got serious about Jesus Christ, and began to really search the scriptures, I came across the following in James:

Ye adulterers and adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
James 4:4 (KJV)

When I understood this, I knew that it was time to say goodbye to my friend. It was much easier said than done. I do not believe it is a process that will ever end. It is like Paul said; I must die daily to myself and to this world. Thank God for the strength to do so, every day.

What I now understand is that the things in this world are mere substitutes for the real things which are in heaven. I know this because when I was in the world, I could not do a thing and obtain satisfaction. I would have to repeatedly do that thing, and no matter how many times I did it, it never really satisfied. This is because the real desire is not to hear the song, but to have a relationship with the musician. The song is a mere substitute. The real desire is not the physical act of intimacy, but a relationship (connection) to the object of desire. The real desire is not for the water, but to have our thirst quenched. Are you unsatisfied with your life? Do the things you do always leave you wanting more?



Jesus said that He gives living water that eternally quenches our thirst.
Jesus is the real thing. His love, His mercy, His kindness, His power is authentic and it is the only thing that truly satisfies. Brothers and Sisters put away this childish world. Stop drinking the sand of the world that only increases your thirst. Go to the well of living water and be satisfied. Trust Jesus, taste and see that He is good.

Facebook and Covetousness

Todd Friel did a segment about this on his show, WretchedTV. It really made me examine myself.


It's in the 10 commandments, and just good common sense. When we are constantly bombarded with other's updates about 'how cool' their lives are, and the 'awesome' things they are doing; it causes us to compare our lives to others. Many times we seem to think the grass is just greener anywhere we are not.

I have always believed that reality shows that feature rich housewives that have very little talent, and even less morality are dangerous. They tend to glamorize things and people that have very little redeeming qualities. Somehow looking at those lives makes us think less of our own.

A new study at Stanford shows that people who use facebook may face feelings of depression more often because they covet what others are doing more often. They may not call it call it coveting, but that is what the Bible calls it. Read the article, and form your own opinion.

http://uwire.com/2011/02/08/new-study-shows-facebook-updates-may-lead-to-depression/

Just a thought. Maybe, we need to spend more time thanking God for all that we have, and using what he gave us to help others. Perhaps, giving to others, and praising Him for His goodness would allow us to bring things into a more perfect perspective.