God doesn’t grade on a sliding scale for His entrance exam into heaven. It’s only pass or fail—and in order to pass, you need to get 100% right, 100% of the time. If you’re wrong even once, you fail and fall short of God’s standard.
What is God’s standard? We can look at just ten of God’s commandments to test ourselves:
Have you ever…
…loved anything more than God?
…given more devotion to something?
…used God's name as cuss word?
…worked all seven days in a week?
…treated your parents poorly?
…harbored hatred for someone?
…looked on another with lust?
…stolen—anything?
…lied?
…wanted something that wasn't yours?
Well, how’d you do? Did you pass or fail? Remember, there’s no sliding scale. You either keep and fulfill God’s law completely your whole life, or you have broken God’s law at some point in your life. And if you have broken His law, you’re guilty.
Religious rites, rituals, or ceremony cannot deal with that guilt. To say that any religious rite saves or even contributes one bit to your salvation is to say that Jesus’ sacrifice was insufficient.
But there is hope! It’s not found in religion—it’s only found it Jesus. Only Jesus through His finished work on the cross saves. Come to Him and acknowledge that you have broken His perfect law. Be willing to turn from your sins, then believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross and rose from the grave.
You can ask Jesus to become the Lord of your life by praying a prayer like this:
Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name, Amen.
