Bad people go to heaven.
Yep, that's right. Bad people.
Don't believe me?
Check out Matthew chapter twenty two. Jesus is describing His Kingdom. He says that servants are sent out to, “gather all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good…”
He mentions the bad people before the good people!! And Jesus repeatedly said that the prostitutes were entering heaven before the religious leaders who murdered Him.
Neither the prostitutes nor the Pharisees (religious leaders) were good people. One group was merely talented at masking their ugliness with elegant robes and prayers. The beauty of Jesus’ righteousness stripped them naked. The other group knew their sinfulness was as obvious as an elephant wearing a bikini that walks in during the middle of a sermon.
You belong to one of these groups.
Not all of you believe this.
Am I more righteous when,
I sleep around with anybody who will give me a little attention, or I mentally have sex with every person who fits my type?
I refuse to help the homeless man, or I begrudgingly give him $2 so I look good?
I get entertainment out of demeaning others with gossip, or I silently condemn them in my heart because people would frown if they truly knew my thoughts?
I destroy my body and waste money on drugs and alcohol, or I do the same with junk food?
If all of your thoughts and motives were displayed online, how drastically would your reputation change? Would people say you're good or a good actor?
If you would still be considered good, how good would be good enough to get into heaven? There aren't any Bible verses that specify an amount. It only says that our righteousness would have to surpass that of the Pharisees.
Now you can cross your fingers and hope to accomplish this. But you still don't know to what degree your righteousness needs to surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees. Do you have to complete an additional two hundred good deeds? Do you have to have two thousand fewer sins listed on your record?
Even if your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees, it won't surpass it enough.
Heaven isn't a place for good people. It's a place for people whose goodness and obedience flows from a relationship with God. You have to know the King if you want to stay in His Kingdom. If you don't like how God rules His Kingdom, you are free to live in a kingdom in which you will not find His presence.
If, however, you want to be in the good company of the bad people in heaven, there is Good News. Both Pharisees and prostitutes have walked along the streets of gold. They submitted to the love and lordship of Christ, and you can too.
How, exactly, the blood of Jesus eliminates our sin, frees us from its power and gives us uninhibited access to God, I do not know. The only knowledge I possess in this matter is that His blood has power. His blood is cathartic. His blood redeems. Because His blood type is love positive. And the only thing powerful enough to receive the beautiful, lavish, scandalous, magnificent, soul-piercing, soul-sculpting love of God is sincere and repentant faith.
Do you choose to receive this love?
