A lady once asked, “What have I done that is so bad that God would send me to hell?” Do you ask this same question? Do you see yourself as being good because you try to live a good life and even abide by the Ten Commandments as best as possible? Do you consider yourself a good person not worthy of God’s eternal wrath and eternal damnation? Among those who willfully do not follow the teaching of the Bible or walk in God’s ways, I’m certain that there are few who actually believe that they would go to hell. So, what gives a person that confidence? Proverbs says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12). God tells us, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). Do we not delude ourselves through our own presumption, to our own detriment, by listening to and following our own opinions or those of others? Is God’s wrath not kindled for a reason?

To put the lady’s question in perspective, the question then needs to be asked: what did Eve do that was so bad that God should banish her from His presence and from the Garden of Eden? It is not about good or bad but about righteousness. Jesus said, “No one is good but One, that is, God” (Luke 18:19). It is not about religion but about relationship with God. It is about godliness. Understanding God’s perspective, as presented in His Word (the Bible), is paramount to gaining insight. What does Scripture say? What does God’s Word teach us? Why do we need Jesus as our Saviour?

 

 

Do you know Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour? Have you accepted Him into your heart? Does He, through the Holy Spirit, rule in your life? If He does, you have great reason to rejoice, but if not, know that sin against the Eternal God deserves eternal punishment. Scripture calls out: “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). “Today, if you will hear His voice: ‘Do not harden your heart'” (Psalm 95:7,8). “Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:6,7). “Whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).

Judson McCawl