The Biggest Misconception

      There is a fallacy that has been around ever since I've been alive, and probably hundreds of years before that.  It is a belief held by most people who are not Christians.  It is a belief that is rarely, if ever, talked about in churches, I'm assuming in fear of not wanting to offend, yet is solely responsible for most of the unsaved population heading in the wrong direction,.....more specifically, "down the broad road to destruction".  I have never understood why it is not brought up incessantly in churches, so I thought I would address it here.  It is the concept that you get to heaven by being a good person. 

     Literally everyone who is not a Christian thinks you get to heaven by "being a good person".  Millions of people believe this. Do you know a person like this?   I'm sure everyone does.  "Hey man,...I'm a good person, I don't cheat on my taxes, I've never cheated on my wife, everybody at work likes me, I hold the door open for people, I've never murdered anyone, never even robbed a bank,......I even clean the bathroom once a year, of course I'm going to heaven."  This is not true and a false assumption.  Why people assume this I'm guessing, is because they have created a God in their mind to suit their lifestyle.  A God who favors the number of your good deeds to your bad,...a God who is ok with everything as long as it's not illegal by the world's standards.  Folks, most people's mindset is exactly this.  Yet the truth, is exactly this,........we are not saved by our deeds, we are saved by grace through faith.  Ephesians 2:8-9 says,..."For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast."  Now....what does that mean?  It means we are saved by grace from God through nothing we can do on our own, but through our faith in him, no amount of good deeds we do on earth will save us.  If anyone tells you that you must do more, go deaf to them.  Because what they are saying is that Christ's all sufficient and redemptive work on the cross was not enough.  Flee from these people. 

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      Another demented misconception that belongs in the trash heap of history, is this modern day myth that we are all God's children.  I must have heard this 3 times just in the past month, and it seems to get perpetuated through the years.  You hear this everywhere.  On the news, people you associate with socially, coworkers, TV shows, in movies, on the radio,....yet again, it is never discussed.  I was watching a news story where a man murdered his entire family in a drug fueled rage, then went to his place of employment and killed two more, and the news anchor says, "Wow,..a guy in need of a lot of help,..but ya know, nobody is perfect, but it's good to know that we are all God's children."  Couldn't believe what I was hearing, and it got me to thinking how jaded our society has become to what the Bible says and what sounds good, simply to make you feel warm and fuzzy. 

     Make no mistake,...we are not all God's children!  The Bible makes this extremely clear in many places,... John 1:12.......Galatians 3:26.....Romans 8:14......and 1 John 3:10. Matthew 25:33 makes this abundantly clear as well......"He will put the sheep (his children) on his right, and the goats (evildoers) on his left."  And again in 2 Corinthians 6:18....."And, I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty."  Yes, we are all God's CREATION, but only those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior will be called children of God.