Many people believe that they only have to be good to enter heaven when they die. That is a false belief. Man tries to do what they can to get to heaven and many religions are based on people doing good to get to heaven. They are being misled.
In Mathew 19:16-30 (and Luke 18:18-30), a rich young ruler comes to Jesus and asks Him what good deed must he do to have eternal life. The young man stated that he had followed the law from birth and had done no wrong to any one, i.e. had not sinned. This statement alone shows that this ruler is not following the teaching of Jesus. 1 John 1:8 tells us that, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us“. We must understand and acknowledge that were are a sinner (have disobeyed God), and to do that, we must acknowledge God.
There are many verses that tell us what we must do to enter into the Kingdom of God, none of them tell us to do good works. Let’s look at one briefly. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us that, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” If it was by the good deeds that we did, then we take away the need for a savior. We replace doing good things for man for something we did against God!
Yes James writes about doing works, but it is not to gain a relationship with God and enter into heaven, it is BECAUSE we know the One who gave His life for us, covering our disobedience to God and taking what we deserve to give us something we don’t deserve. James says the faith without works is dead. That your works are a result of your faith and the two cannot be separated. Belief fosters good works. (James 2), good works do not foster faith.
This rich young ruler did all the right things, but he lacked one thing. His faith and reliance was in what he could do, it trusted and leaned upon his wealth and possessions. One might say how he was revered in the community and by others because of his status. He did not rely upon Jesus and had no faith in Him. The rich young ruler walked away from Jesus with his worldly status in tact, but without that restoration with God. The rich young ruler knew that he was missing something, sought it in Jesus, but walked away choosing to be separated from God for ever.
Following Jesus has a price in this world. It is not easy. Are you willing to walk away from God for all eternity for your “happiness” here on earth, to maintain your status in this world?
Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved…. (Acts 16:31)